The 2025 Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship gets underway this week at the Central Machine Hire Otago Rally with the most open title race in recent history.
WRC star Hayden Paddon will not contest all rounds of the championship for a second successive year, paving the way for the best domestic competitors to go all out for the gold star.
Defending champion Ben Hunt starts as favourite in his Skoda New Zealand Fabia Rally 2 but a number of other contenders are set to mount a valid challenge of the three-time national champion.
The Battle
Hunt has proven to be fast and consistent in recent years, rarely making mistakes. That should see him start the season as the clear favourite but a number of others can put up a compelling case.
Jack Hawkeswood is the most recent round winner on the entry list, having topped the podium at Otago Rally in 2024 and returns with his Hawkeswood Mining Toyota Yaris AP4 aiming to repeat that performance.
Cantabrian Robbie Stokes demonstrated speed and a maturity in driving over the first half of the 2024 campaign and he returns this year with a factory-built Skoda Fabia Rally 2 car of his own, that should immediately catapult him into title consideration.
Younger brother Jack Stokes – who impressed in NZRC 2WD last year – will take over the steering wheel of the Stokes Motorsport Ford Fiesta AP4 and should not be discounted.
Dunedin local Emma Gilmour’s second half form in 2024 should see her enter the campaign with her best shot at winning a national title in her more than two-decade long career. The Vantage New Zealand Citroen driver showcased renewed speed as she got more seat time in the car and will be desperate to put on a good showing at her home event.
Josh Marston returns to the championship after a season off and should immediately find himself in the mix in his RDL Holden Barina AP4.
Kingsley Jones is another to make a return to the championship, piloting his Auckland Denture Clinic Skoda Fabia R5 car that nephew Zeal Jones did so well in last year.
Auckland’s Haydn Mackenzie is another dark horse – he is set for a full campaign in the Albany Toyota Yaris AP4.
Other Classes
Caleb MacDonald (Mitsubishi EVO 6) felt the heartbreak rallying can produce last year as he saw a terrific campaign come unstuck with titles on the line. He will start 2025 as a favourite in the Rally Challenge 4WD class on familiar roads.
He’ll be pushed by the likes of Gavin Feast (Subaru WRX), Ben Huband (Subaru Impreza) and Vanuatu driver Julian Lenglet (Subaru Impreza). Others to watch for in the class are Josh Leighley, Glenn Alcorn and Kevin Laird, who are all competing in H6 Subarus, and Terri Taylor in her Subaru Impreza.
Ian Warren (Nissan Pulsar) and Thomas Paul (Honda Civic) will start as the favourites in the Rally Challenge 2WD class while Charlie Evans (Mazda RX7) and Kyle Percival (Ford Escort) will keep them honest.
Bryn Jones heads a trio of Ford Fiesta Rally4s in the NZRC 2WD class as he chases a title in 2025, but will face stiff competition from Tim Mackersy and Japenese driver Fuyuhiko Takahashi
Dave Strong’s wild mid-engined Honda Jazz leads contenders in the Open 2WD, but will face plenty of competition from the Toyota Corolla of Paul Cross.
Keep a close eye on
The Historic 2WD class is rejuvinated this year with a number of entrants returning to the sport and creating a very competitive class.
Headlining the class are three returning champions, Paul Fraser (2024, Nissan 240RS), Deane Buist (2013, Ford Escort) and Mike Cameron (2009, Mitsubishi Lancer). The trio will be kept honest by a pair of Ford Escorts for Stephen Gill and Andy Martin as well as the Toyota AE86 of Pat Norris.
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