Kiwi rally driver Hayden Paddon took advantage of the opportunity to contest Rally Hawke’s Bay on 22 August as part of his preparation for his last outing in the 2026 FIA World Rally Championship.
Competing with Jared Hudson as his co-driver in the PRG-run Hyundai i20 N Rally 2, Paddon won the weather-affected, shortened Hawke’s Bay rally. According to New Zealand rally statisticians, this was his 31st consecutive rally win in New Zealand driving a Hyundai.
“It was a good weekend in Hawke’s Bay,” says Paddon. “The car and team; everything ran faultlessly. The main purpose of the rally was about seat time before we head to Paraguay.
“With our limited testing time and time on gravel with the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 car, the more seat time the better at this point, despite being different cars. Hawke’s Bay went well and I felt like my driving was more refined when comparing the Southland Rally a few weeks earlier. So in that respect, mission accomplished, and now full focus on Paraguay.”
John Kennard returns to the co-driver’s seat for WRC Rally del Paraguay which gets underway on Thursday, 27 August.
“We’re very excited for everything about rallying in Paraguay with Hyundai, but also cautiously mindful how big the challenge is that lays ahead,” says Paddon, who has contested three WRC events – Monte Carlo, Croatia and Japan – for Hyundai this year and is the only driver to have taken Hyundai’s third i20 N to the podium, following a run to third in Croatia.
“We are incredibly thankful for the opportunity, which was never on the cards at the start of the year when the first three tarmac rallies were planned. To be back on gravel is where we are most comfortable, and even with just 100km of testing in the Rally 1 car on gravel in Europe recently, it immediately felt good and an environment where we can thrive.
“Of course John and I want to be competitive in Paraguay, and as our last event in our Rally1, we want to give it our absolute best. But we don’t ever forget that we’re up against the world’s best drivers in cars they get to drive week in and week out.
“Plus most of them contested this event last year and the route is 60 per cent the same as last year, so it’s a tall ask. We will have to take more risks for this event and step out of our comfort zone to give ourselves the best chance of being competitive.”
Based in the city of Encarnación, near the Argentina border, WRC Rally del Paraguay promises a mix of smooth red-earth stages and trickier technical sections through dense vegetation. While the surface is mostly soft and fast, deep ruts and sudden surface changes are expected to keep drivers guessing across the weekend.
“The conditions are unique. For our preparation, we’ve used what’s available to us such as onboard videos from last year. While it’s a fast rally, there are a lot of grip changes on a hard-packed, clay base road. If wet, it can be incredibly slippery. These roads also don’t demonstrate quite the same road cleaning effects as a normal gravel rally, so while our road position – eighth among the Priority 1 drivers – will be a small advantage, it won’t be massive.”
Paddon concludes, “We’re looking forward to the challenge to put our best foot forward, and to enjoy it. It’s also going to be special to have more than 30 Kiwis with us there in our tour group, so we’re looking forward to a good week all round.”
WRC Rally del Paraguay runs 27-30 August and comprises 22 special stages and 358.99 competitive kilometres. The service park is in Encarnación, a city on the north bank of the Paraná River, in southern Paraguay. Competitors complete reconnaissance of the stages on Tuesday and Wednesday, before media activities on Thursday and the rally gets underway with SS1 on Friday morning.
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