This weekend’s Battery Town Rally Bay of Plenty will throw a brand-new challenge at the leading Kiwi rally drivers in the Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship.

For the first time in over two decades, the national championship will visit some iconic stages in the Matahina Forest that were made internationally famous in the 1990s and early 2000s.

“We haven’t been in there for a long time,” rally organiser Dave Loughlin explained.

“We are in the Matahina Forest, where rally hasn’t been for 20 years.

“Very few of the top drivers will have experienced this forest.”

Loughlin said drivers can expect a traditional forestry test but on roads that will hold up well to being used twice.

“The roads are well drained, hard based in most cases,” he said.

“We are using a mix of major forestry roads and some smaller roads to join them together. It is soft rolling country – not too steep.

“They are generally well-maintained. Like all forest, it is reasonably fast.

“The Nursery Rd stage has an amazing surface on it that has good metal grip, that has had lots of traffic.”

Battery Town Rally Bay of Plenty begins with a ceremonial start at Mitre 10 Mega in downtown Tauranga on Friday evening before a full day of action on Saturdaycovering 165 kilometres in 10 high speed special stages. 

New Zealand rally stars Hayden Paddon and John Kennard notched up another rally win in their bid to win their first 2025 EROAD Australian Rally Championship (ARC) title.  

The pair won both days of the Adelaide Hills Rally in their Hyundai i20 Rally 2 car, 3 to 5 October in South Australia, earning the maximum 50 points per day to take their respective drivers’ and co-drivers’ championship points total to 470, 85 points ahead of closest rivals Lewis Bates and Anthony Mcloughlin.  

“All in all, a pretty good weekend,” says Paddon. “It’s always about managing things, trying to build a gap in the mornings on the first loop, then manage things like tyres in the afternoons. A weekend of management is what I’ve called this one in terms of tyres and strategy, and we did what we needed to do to secure the win.”  

Saturday’s competition on the rolling roads through the Adelaide Hills saw Paddon and Harry Bates take three stage wins apiece in the first six stages, with Paddon holding the lead by just 4.4 seconds. Then, Harry crashed out of the first of four early evening stages. Paddon took one more stage win while Lewis Bates took the other three to finish the day 20.7 seconds adrift of Paddon.  

Winning the Saturday Heat extended Paddon and Kennard’s lead at the top of the standings to 81 points over Lewis and McLoughlin.  

“Obviously mission accomplished in the respect of winning Heat 1 and extending the championship lead, but it was a real shame that Harry had his little off road excursion today,” Paddon said. “It was obviously a close fight, and I think we would have been pushing each other right to the end. With Harry on the side of the road, we sort of backed off a bit in the evening just to look after tyres. But in saying that, Louis has not been far away all day as well, so it’s close.”  

Sunday’s itinerary featured eight stages, with Paddon winning five to secure another Heat win, 31.6 seconds ahead of Lewis Bates who secured maximum bonus points by winning the power stage. Fellow Hyundai driver Alex Rullo took third place in both heats.  

Of Sunday’s stages, Paddon said: “Every time we go to new stages, we seem to find a bit more performance, so we always said that the 15km stage (SS12 and SS14) was our target and winning that one really did the damage (in terms of tyres) for us.  

“It’s a very fast stage where I think everyone was in tyre management mode, including Clayton Hoy who won. When rallies are like this and require a lot of strategy, it brings in a lot of unknowns, and that’s good for everyone and good for the sport.”  

The Adelaide Hills Rally was the fifth round of the ARC’s six round championship which will conclude in Tasmania in early November, with an Endurance style event with no Heats. 100 Points for the Winner of the whole event and 10 Points for fastest on the Power Stage. So still 110 Points up for grabs.

“Being 85 points in front isn’t really a position you like to be in. I’d have preferred to either be closer or have the title wrapped up, because then you can go to Tassie and just push. But now, being in this position, we have to finish seventh or better. You’ll probably hear every little rattle and bang in the car all weekend. It makes it a lot more stressful than it probably should be.”  

Keep up with all PRG’s news and results via the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/paddonracinggroup.   

PRG appreciates the support of their partners including Hyundai New Zealand, Caltex Havoline Oil, Mitre 10 Trade, Winmax Brake Pads, Bar’s Bugs, EROAD, Ben Nevis Station, Wipertech, Design Windows, MITO, Repco, Machinery House, King Gee, KiwiFibre, TrailLite, Hankook, Z Energy, Blaster and Signbiz.

Kiwi rally stars Hayden Paddon and John Kennard are staying focused on learning new stages and delivering the best result they can when they contest the Adelaide Hills Rally in their Hyundai i20 Rally2 car. Running 3 to 5 October in South Australia, this event is the fifth and penultimate round of the 2025 EROAD Australian Rally Championship (ARC).  

Paddon says despite leading their respective drivers’ and co-drivers’ championships by 71 points, he and Kennard will take the same approach they always do.  

“We’ll push as hard as we can and try to deliver a good result,” says Paddon, who won the Ashley Forest Rallysprint in North Canterbury last weekend in his Hyundai i20 AP4++ car.

“Until the last round, it’s all about collecting as many points as we can. No one gets to put the championship hat on until the last rally.”  

Paddon says he’s heard a lot of good things about this rally. “The stages look a lot smoother and more flowing, similar to New Zealand. That’s where we are comfortable and should work well with our car. We will have a small pre-event test to dial the car in, and use the lessons from the last rally to continue that momentum.  

“Like most events this year, many of the stages are the same for the local competitors, but we are enjoying the challenge of pushing ourselves on unfamiliar roads.”  

Hosted in the scenic Adelaide Hills regions, around the town of Mt Barker, the rally comprises 18 stages and 160.5 competitive kilometres split across Saturday and Sunday. Local crews have a couple of new stages to learn, while Paddon and Kennard will be competing on all stages for the first time. The Adelaide Hills Rally is the only council/shire road-based event in the 2025 ARC calendar, the other events typically using forestry roads.  

Teams can participate on a test stage on Thursday with reconnaissance of all 18 stages on Friday before a rally show in Mt Barker on Friday evening, including the ballot draw for the top three starting positions for Saturday’s Leg 1. Paddon and Kennard are seeded number two, with their closest competitors Harry Bates/Coral Taylor and Lewis Bates/Anthony Mcloughlin seeded first and third respectively.  

Like the first three ARC events of the 2025 championship, this is a sprint round where points are available based on finishing position on each day. The standings going into this weekend’s event are Paddon with 366 points, Lewis Bates 295 and Harry Bates 278. Each day’s winner earns 50 points and the fastest through the Power Stage on Sunday a bonus 10 points.  

Keep up with all PRG’s news and results via the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/paddonracinggroup.   

PRG appreciates the support of their partners including Hyundai New Zealand, Caltex Havoline Oil, Mitre 10 Trade, Winmax Brake Pads, Bar’s Bugs, EROAD, Ben Nevis Station, Wipertech, Design Windows, MITO, Repco, Machinery House, King Gee, KiwiFibre, TrailLite, Hankook, Z Energy, Blaster and Signbiz.

Robbie Stokes (Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo) was too good for his Mainland Rally Championship rivals winning both the Sadlers Garage Hanmer Memorial Rally and the 2025 Mainland Rally Championship (MRC) overall title on Saturday.  Stokes, along with co-driver Matt Summerfield, were the first MRC competitor home in all seven Special Stages in the Hanmer Forests beating second placed Deane Buist/Richard Fairhall (Subaru Impreza) and Tim Smith/Ben Trevelyan (Subaru Magnum H6).

“It’s been a good day,” commented Stokes who won his first MRC title in 2021. 

“It hasn’t quite sunk in yet.  Matt (Summerfield) did an incredible job sitting beside me so thanks to him and the whole team.”

Heading into the final MRC round and with a maximum of 30-points on offer, it was Caleb Macdonald holding a slim three-point lead over Stokes with Deane Buist (Subaru Impreza) and Josh Marston (Holden Barina AP4) also in mathematical contention. 

MacDonald chose to sit out the rally to focus on the national championship (NZRC), so it was Marston who took up the challenge finishing second in the first two Special Stages on Saturday morning.  His attack came to an abrupt halt retiring at the first service with a mechanical issue.

Buist was always in contention across the whole day but ended up 1 min 13 seconds behind Stokes at the finish.

“The car has been good all day,” said Stokes.  “Everything went really well which gives me confidence for the rest of the NZRC season.  I’ve been comfortable all day and really enjoyed the rally.  It’s great to have it back on the calendar and it has been a surprising amount of fun.”

While Stokes won the overall title, Christchurch’s Ben Trevelyan won the overall Co-Drivers title for 2025, six-points clear of Larisa Biggar with Shane Reynolds in third.

Seven separate Class titles for both drivers and co-drivers were confirmed by Saturday evening.

Josh Silcock (Toyota Starlet) finished the event ninth overall adding to his perfect season finishing first in Class A (2WD 0-1300cc) in each of the five rounds.  Thirty-six points behind in second was Mike Matheson with Jak Elliott in third.  Silcock’s co-driver, Ben Leech won the Class A Co-drivers title 30-points clear of Gordon Legge.

In Class B (2WD 1601cc and over), Ian Warren (Nissan Pulsar) sat out the Hanmer Rally having earned enough points to claim the title after the last round.  Mark Greenwood picks up the Class B Co-Drivers title.

Deane Buist had also wrapped up the Class C (2WD 1601cc and over) title after round four and chose to compete in Class D (4WD) at Hanmer.  While Andrew Sim (Ford Escort Mk2) finished first in Class C at Hanmer, he finishes third overall with Richard Galley (Ford Escort Mk2) in second.  Galley’s co-driver Claire Buccini picks up the Class C Co-Drivers title.

The Class D title goes to Stokes with Macdonald second ahead of Josh Marston.  Larisa Biggar won the Co-Drivers title from Shane Reynolds with Andrew Graves in third.

Hayden Shakespeare (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 3) finished first in Class E (4WD Classic) and takes the Class title from Nathan Fraser with Mark Grimmer picking up the Co-Drivers title.

The close Class F (Classic 2WD) battle over the 2025 season was resolved with Steve Gill (Ford Escort Mk2) beating Paul Cross (Toyota Corolla AE86) by 18-points with Ally Mackay (Ford Escort Mk1) in third.  The Co-Drivers Class F title goes to Gill’s co-driver Grant Molloy with Janey Blair in second.

Tim Smith/Ben Trevelyan (Subaru Magnum H6) won both the Driver and Co-Drivers Class H6 titles.

The 2025 Mainland Rally Championship has the support of RDL Performance, Brita Safety Ltd, Palmside NZ Ltd, Christchurch Building and Decorating Ltd, Thomson Rust and Repair Services Ltd, Rally Drive NZ.              

Kiwi rally star Zeal Jones is once again aiming to secure a place in Toyota’s world rally programme as a stepping stone to becoming one of the top-level competitors in the FIA World Rally Championship.

Jones has made the final ‘cut’ of just five drivers for the final of the 2025 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WRC Challenge Program – securing a place from 100 drivers initially assessed.  

The first selection at Koda Circuit in Aichi, Nagoya, used Toyota’s GR86 model and narrowed the field of contenders down over several days of one practice lap and two time attack laps, with the top three from each session advancing to the semi-final.  

In the semi-final, drivers were evaluated less on lap times and more on car handling, pressure management and driving skill over a slightly altered course.  

Zeal and the other drivers completed one practice and two timed laps with both instructors, Mikko Hirvonen and Jouni Ampuja, who then hand-selected five finalists to advance to the Toyota Gazoo Racing WRC Challenge Program Generation 5 final in Finland, come December.  

Jones’ name was on the final list – as it was in last year’s competition. "If anything, I’m relieved,” he said.  

“Having gone through this last year, there was that added expectation to make it again, and we did. It was stressful, but I wanted to put my best foot forward, which it seems we did.”  

Jones has scored numerous podium finishes and stage wins during his debut Japanese rallying season - competing in the Morizo Challenge Cup along with a large number of potential young rally stars. A win has eluded him but he says he’s learned a lot.  

“We’ve learned a lot from last year’s experience and also from our year in Japan this season, where driving on the tarmac helped improve our smoothness, calmness, and overall understanding of what the instructors are looking for.  

“I’m really excited to go back to Finland, the rallying capital of the world. It’s a lifetime opportunity to drive on ice and snow in different cars and to be coached by WRC drivers across a week, which is truly world-class.  

“To be part of Toyota Gazoo Racing would be a dream. They are the reigning world manufacturers’ champions and are having a great season this year, practically dominating, so representing and earning a contract with a team like that would be an honour.  

“This year, nothing will be a surprise, and we can prepare better, knowing what to expect. My focus is on consistency, strong physical preparation, and proving that I’m an all-around driver capable of ultimately reaching the WRC team.”  

The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WRC Challenge Program was established in 2015 with the ambition to identify and develop rally drivers from Japan who can compete on the world stage. Jones qualifies as his mother is Japanese.

The return of the Sadlers Garage Hanmer Memorial Rally 2025 to the Mainland Rally Championship has been welcomed by a fantastic 63 car entry for the final round of the series.  The one-day event this Saturday, 27 September 2025, will decide both overall and Class titles for the season. 

Heading into the rally with a maximum of 30-points on offer, Caleb Macdonald has a slim three-point lead over Robbie Stokes (Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo) with Deane Buist (Subaru Impreza) and Josh Marston (Holden Barina AP4) also in mathematical contention. 

However, Macdonald has opted not to enter with his focus on the upcoming NZ Rally Championship round at Bay of Plenty in two weeks’ time.

With Macdonald’s no show, it opens the way for Stokes to grab the title to be fought over seven Special Stages. 

He has a nice 17-point buffer over incumbent champion Deane Buist, with Marston a further five-points back. Marston won the last running of the event in 2018, winning seven of the eight completed stages. 

This year the rally will again be run in the Hanmer Forest Estate, in North Canterbury with approximately 76kms over seven Special Stages plus approximately 48 kms of Touring. All Special Stages are on good gravel roads with Stage Notes not permitted for this event.

Seven separate Class titles will be confirmed by Saturday evening with a maximum of 20-points available for first home in each Class. 

Although Josh Silcock/Ben Leech (Toyota Starlet) have affectively won Class A (2WD 0-1300cc), they will still line up for the final round along with rival Mike Matheson (Toyota Vitz) who should consolidate second in Class.

It’s a similar situation in In Class B (2WD 1601cc and over) with Ian Warren/Brody Cattermole (Nissan Pulsar) with an unbeatable 34-point lead over second placed Thomas Paul/Bridget Airey (Honda Civic).  Neither of the top two have entered the Hanmer Rally which gives the opportunity for James McIver (Ford Escort Mk2) to move into second in Class.

Having wrapped up the Class C (2WD 1601cc and over) title, Deane Buist will compete in the final round in a Class D Subaru Impreza. Currently third in Class C is Andrew Sim (Ford Escort Mk2) who has the opportunity to move up into second.

With Macdonald not on the start list, this hands the Class D title to Stokes who has a 25-point lead over Josh Marston.

With rival Nathan Fraser having not entered, Hayden Shakespeare (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 3), who sits four-points behind, should win the Class E (4WD Classic) title.

The closest Class battle over the 2025 season has been in Class F (Classic 2WD) with just two points separating the top two.  With second-place Paul Cross (Toyota Corolla AE86) not having entered, this effectively hands the title to Stephen Gill (Ford Escort Mk2) while the fight will be between Pat Norris (Toyota Corolla) and Ally Mackay (Ford Escort Mk1) for third.

Tim Smith/Ben Trevelyan (Subaru Magnum H6) continue to lead Class H6 with an eight-point lead over second place Kevin Laird.

Details including spectator points can be found at autosport.org.nz. 

The first car leaves from Rally HQ at the Hanmer Springs Gateway Lodge, 35 Hanmer Springs Rd at 10:15am, finishing 4:00pm at the Final Control, which is also situated at the Hanmer Springs Gateway Lodge. 

The Service Park is on Jollies Pass Road.

The 2025 Mainland Rally Championship has the support of RDL Performance, Brita Safety Ltd, Palmside NZ Ltd, Christchurch Building and Decorating Ltd, Thomson Rust and Repair Services Ltd, Rally Drive NZ.

The entry list for the Copyworld Adelaide Hills Rally has been released with a field of 18 confirmed to contest the fifth round of the 2025 EROAD Australian Rally Championship (ARC). Headlining the field will be the trio of title contenders, led by current championship leaders Hayden Paddon and John Kennard in the Paddon Racing Group 2022 Hyundai i20N Rally2.

With the Kiwi duo holding a commanding 71-point lead ahead of the South Australian round, Toyota Gazoo Racing Australia’s Harry Bates/Coral Taylor and Lewis Bates/Anthony McLoughlin need a big result behind the wheel of their competitive Toyota GR Yaris Rally2s to take the title fight to the final round.

IntelliSpatial Fleetcare Racing’s Alex Rullo and Steve Glenney continue their push to help Hyundai seal the Manufacturer’s title against the recently-dominant Toyota. They will also welcome the return of teammates Peter Rullo and Ben Searcy, who are back after a big crash in Queensland in their Hyundai earlier this year, but this time in a Skoda Fabia R5.

Adding to the battle between Toyota and Hyundai at the top of the field is Ezi Up Tyre Repair Kit’s Troy Dowell and Bernie Webb in the Toyota GR Yaris AP4, while Stewart Reid and Bella Haggarty in the SR Automotive Mitsubishi Mirage AP4 round out the outright crews.

Leading the charge in the WOLF Production Cup is another Mitsubishi, with Clayton Hoy and Erin Kelly looking to bounce back from a DNF at Gippsland last month. Behind the wheel of their Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 6, Hoy and Kelly could put themselves in the box seat of the Cup title should they stand on the top step of the podium on the Sunday afternoon.

Standing in their way will be the reigning champion Bodie Reading and co-driver Brad Jones in the Les Walkden Rallying Subaru Impreza WRX, while Toby Price and Holly Kilbride’s inclusion in the class at South Australia will add another dimension to the title fight as they jump in Glenn Brinkman’s Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 9.

With Danny Traverso and Anthony Carr back for a second consecutive ARC round in their Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 9 following a runner-up finish in Gippsland, and Victory Ford’s Nathan Stokes and Ian Wheeler in their Subaru Impreza WRX – the class will have plenty of battles going on up and down the field.

Like Price and Kilbride, current WOLF Production Cup leaders Jackson and Damien Long will switch classes for this round, with the pair moving into the Subaru WRX Challenge thanks to the assistance of Brinkman.

Upgrading from the 2005 Subaru Impreza RS that helped him seal the ARC Junior Cup title in Gippsland to Brinkman’s 2023 Subaru Impreza WRX Challenge Car, Long will be up against Cape to Cape MTB’s Andy van Kann and Catherine Saayman in the Subaru WRX Challenge, who are back for their first event since their Forest Rally class podium in May.

Having loaned two of his regular ARC cars to Price and Long, Brinkman will revert to the third option in his ever-growing arsenal, the Kickass 12 Volt Products 1994 Ford Cosworth RS.

That sees Brinkman and co-driver Scott Beckwith cross-entered in both WOLF Production Cup and the 4WD Classic Cup – a unique double eligibility shared with Spalding Dillon Australia’s Molly Spalding and Matt Dillon in their 1995 Subaru Impreza WRX and Racing Dipsy’s Shane and Sylvie Garner, who lead the 4WD Classic Cup in their 1994 Subaru Impreza WRX.

Rounding out the entry list is Australian Truck Performance’s Tony Sullens and Kaylie Newell, who will contest both the WOLF Production Cup and the ARC 2WD on board their 2013 Citroen DS3.

The Copyworld Adelaide Hills Rally takes place in and around the forests of Mount Barker on 3-5 October.

Quentin Palmer was the driver to beat heading into the Newstead Lodge Rally of Waitomo, however, along with co-driver Michael Goudie (Skoda Fabia Rally2), the pairing won all four Special Stages on Sunday to claim the 2025 Hawkeswood Mining North Island Rally Series (NIRS) title with one round to spare.  Second in the penultimate NIRS round was Todd Bawden/ Katrina Renshaw (Ford Fiesta MkII R5) who now moves up to fourth overall.  

“Been a good day and good fun,” commented Palmer.  “The car performed well having solved an engine ‘miss’ overnight.”  

It was the first win for co-driver Michael Goudie who said, “It was epic, as I had the best seat in the house.  Quentin was having the time of his life.  I’m understanding more about the car and getting more confidence.  All in all, a very good day.”  

Bawden finished second to Palmer in all four stages with Ben Huband (Subaru Impreza WRX) third and William Menzies (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6) fourth.    

With a maximum 40-points on offer at each event, Palmer now has an unbeatable 43-point lead over Menzies with just the final Battery Town Rally Bay of Plenty round to take place on Saturday 11 October 2025.  

In the Class results, Driver of the Day and winner of the RallyDrive NZ testing voucher, Sam Broadbent (Toyota Corolla) finished 12th overall and first in Class B (2WD 1301-1600cc) and now sits first equal with Marc Milner and Mike Goldsbury.  

John Whooley (Honda Civic) was first home in Class C (2WD 1601-2000) and has a 13-point advantage over Adrian Sutton (Nissan Pulsar).  

Finishing in eighth, Chris Ramsay (Toyota Corolla APR2) has moved into the lead in Class D (2WD 200cc and over) with a seven-point advantage over Charlie Evans (Mazda RX7) who finished in fifth overall.  Previous class leader Jeff Torkington (Toyota MR2) has now slipped to third, one-point behind Evans.

With no Class E Classic 2WD NIRS cars competing in the event, Kyle Percival (Ford Escort Mk2) still holds a 45-point lead over Mike Vincent (Hillman Avenger) and will claim the Class title with one round to spare.  

Palmer has won the Class F (4WD 1601-2000) title, now with a 40-point margin over Bawden.  

Ben Huband (Subaru Impreza) has reduced Menzies lead in Class G (4WD 2001 and over) to 12-points.  

The see-sawing battle in Class I (4WD Pre 1996) continues with Chris Burke (Toyota Celica) who was seven-points ahead of Bradley Stewart (Subaru Impreza), now just one-point behind.  

While the overall NIRS title has been decided, the final Battery Town Rally Bay of Plenty round will decide the remaining podium places along with the very competitive Class titles on Saturday 11 October 2025.

Hayden Paddon is a six-time winner of the Ashley Forest Rallysprint after taking victory in the 2025 edition over the weekend. In doing so, Paddon put down a winning time of 52.62, just six tenths shy of the outright record.

The Hyundai i20 AP4++ had the job of chasing down the time of Blenheim’s Neil Webb, choosing to go second in the final top two shootout. He unleashed all 900 plus horsepower to claim victory number six.

With the record standing, Hayden Paddon has unfinished business and plans to return next year. Webb finished second for a third time in his Mitsubishi Mirage having battled all the way to the final. Going first in the final, he laid down a 56.55, setting the time for Hayden to chase as he went first in the final.

Dunedin driver Mike Wellington put on an impressive drive in the top four run off to land his podium with a time of 1:00.06. The car had been tuned by the Paddon Racing Group to attack the hill, and he did enough to take the final step on the podium.

Quentin Palmer is the one to beat as the 2025 Hawkeswood Mining North Island Rally Series (NIRS) has its penultimate round at the Newstead Lodge Rally of Waitomo on Sunday.  Along with co-driver Michael Goudie (Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo), the pairing are the overall front-runners having won the first two rounds and claiming second overall in the third, Rally Coromandel, in August.  That round was won by Todd Bawden/Katrina Renshaw (Ford Fiesta MkII R5) who will again be on the start line this weekend, and a potential threat to the current leader.  

Palmer has a healthy 30-point lead over William Menzies (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6) with Ben Huband (Subaru Impreza WRX) another 30-points further back, having dropped to third after retiring out of the previous event with electrical problems.  

Currently sitting on 40-points and eighth overall, should Bawden win this weekend, it could catapult him into a podium position and with a mathematical chance to threaten Palmer's tilt for the title.  

In the Class results, rookie Marc Milner in his 1600c Toyota Starlet sits first equal with Mike Goldsbury in Class B.  

John Whooley (Honda Civic) has a 20-point advantage over Adrian Sutton (Nissan Pulsar) in Class C (2WD 1601-2000).  

In Class D, Jeff Torkington (Toyota MR2) has a one-point lead over Chris Ramsay (Toyota Corolla APR2) while in the Classic Class E, young Kyle Percival (Ford Escort Mk2) has a 45-point lead over Mike Vincent (Hillman Avenger).  

Palmer continues to lead Class F (4WD 1601-2000) over Bawden while Ben Huband’s (Subaru Impreza) is 17-points behind Menzies in Class G (4WD 2001 and over).  

The see-sawing battle in Class I (4WD Pre 1996) finds Chris Burke (Toyota Celica) seven-points ahead of Bradley Stewart (Subaru Impreza).  

The one-day Piopio based event organised by the Hamilton Car Club comprises four Special Stages totalling 76.8km and approximately 92.9km of touring.  

The opening SS1 takes places on a fast flat section that tightens to narrow flowing road. After a short easy 1km tarmac section, a narrow flowing road joins to a more open undulating section to the finish.  

SS2 starts on a narrow, little used access road travelling steeply up the side of a hill.   It then opens out to a flowing downhill and joins a wider flowing stage (with a couple of straights) till the end.  

SS3 is a repeat of SS1 then SS4 is a repeat of SS2.  

The first car gets underway from Pio Pio at 10 am and finishes at approximately 2.30pm at the final control also situated at Piopio.  

There is one service area at the Piopio College.  

Hamilton Car Club appreciates the volunteers and helpers who contribute their time and efforts behind the scenes that make this rally happen, as well as the Piopio College for providing the Service Park and the catering for purchase on the day.  

Event secretary Lyndsay Homes said “We have a great clubmans lineup and it is cool to see such a wide variety of cars entered. We hope the competitors enjoy these fantastic gravel roads.”