It all comes down to this – Hunt v Paddon for title
Two-time national champion Ben Hunt will look to hold off WRC rally winner and seven-time national champ Hayden Paddon in a head-to-head battle at the final round of the Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship in Whangarei this week.
Hunt (Skoda New Zealand Fabia Rally 2) holds a 12-point buffer over a charging Paddon (Hyundai New Zealand i20 Rally 2) heading into the final round but knows a second-place finish on both legs and the power stage will be enough to be crowned champion.
Paddon missed the season-opening round in Otago and has been trying to make up the deficit ever since – winning every round he has contested.
Hunt will be more mindful of the chasing pack than Paddon – with the likes of Robbie Stokes (Stokes Motorsport Ford Fiesta AP4), Emma Gilmour (Vantage NZ Citroen C3) and Zeal Jones (Smith & Sons Skoda Fabia R5) more than capable of spoiling his party.
Recently crowned NZRC 2WD and overall 2WD champion for 2024 Dylan Thomson is stepping up to NZRC 4WD in a Subaru Impreza and could be a wildcard while the likes of Haydn Mackenzie (Albany Toyota Yaris AP4), Stewart Reid (AR Automotive Mitsubishi Mirage AP4), Eugene Creughnet (Mitsubishi Mirage AP4) and Pierre-Henri Brunet (Ford Fiesta Proto) will also contest the category.
Without Thomson a three-way battle between Jack Stokes, Bryn Jones and Tim Mackersy – all Ford Fiestas – looms in the NZRC 2WD class, while Indian Naveen Puligilla will be one to watch in his Proton Satria, joining the class for this round.
Willy Hawes will be looking for a finish in his Toyota 86 as he aims to win the Open 2WD championship from the charging Dave Strong (Honda Jazz).
Anthony Jones (Ford Escort) starts as the round favourite in the Historic 2WD class but Paul Fraser (Ford Escort) will be thinking about a finish to win the championship ahead of contender Mike Cameron (Mitsubishi Lancer).
The Rally Challenge 4WD battle is set for an epic finale – Southlander Andrew Graves (Mitsubishi EVO 3) takes a 11-point buffer to Whangarei but will have Caleb Macdonald (Mitsubishi EVO6), Carter Strang (Mitsubishi EVO 10) and James Macdonald (Subaru Impreza) all within touching distance of the title.
The likes of Jay Pittams (Subaru Impreza), Gavin Feast (Subaru WRX), Julian Lenglet (Subaru Impreza) and Brian Green Mitsubishi EVO 9) have demonstrated enough speed to impact the title contenders.
Jared Parker (Toyota Corolla) will look to defend his Rally Challenge 2WD crown by holding off Pat Norris (Toyota Yaris) in what has been an entertaining season-long battle.
Kyle Percival will enter the mix for the final round in a Ford Escort.
The rally gets underway on Saturday with stages north of Whangarei before stages south and west of the city on Sunday.
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