Kiwi rally drivers Hayden Paddon and John Kennard have made history with their victory at Rally Argentina as the first New Zealanders to ever win a round of the FIA World Rally Championship.

Paddon delivered the drive of his life on the very last challenge of the rally – the famed, mountainous, rock-strewn El Condor special stage – to wrench the rally victory from three-time WRC champion Sébastien Ogier on Sunday afternoon (Argentinean time). The Paddon, originally from Geraldine, now holds second place in the WRC drivers’ championship with 57 points to Ogier’s 96 – the highest-ever championship position for a Kiwi rally driver.
 
Paddon and Kennard, from Blenheim, started Sunday’s final three-stage leg of Rally Argentina in the lead with a margin of 29.8 seconds over Ogier. The first fog-affected run through El Condor saw Ogier take 7.4 seconds out of Paddon’s lead as Paddon lost precious seconds with a gear-change issue. Special stage 17 saw Ogier deliver a blistering run which cut Paddon’s lead to a mere 2.6 seconds with just the final power stage to go. But Paddon stood up to the Frenchman’s challenge, saying he drove the wheels off his new generation Hyundai 120 WRC car to secure not only his first power stage win, but also his debut WRC rally win.
 
“It’s an amazing feeling, to win like this, on the last stage where the odds were a little bit against us,” said Paddon at the rally finish. “We lost a lot of time in the previous stage and just over two seconds margin going into that last one – I didn’t have a lot of confidence, but we just pushed like hell.
 
“We’ve worked a lot on that stage in the three weeks before the rally because I’ve not been particularly strong on the tight and twisty stages. It’s a fantastic result for me, John and the whole team. A huge amount of work has gone into the New Generation i20 WRC. I knew from the first test that we could win with it. I just didn’t quite expect it to be so soon.
 
“Everyone in the team, at the rallies and at Alzenau, thoroughly deserves this result. I am sure it’s the start of a lot more to come! I am thankful for everyone who has supported us back home in New Zealand and for all the positive messages we’ve received this weekend.”  
 
In what has been a history-making weekend of competition, Paddon won five WRC stages, bringing his total WRC stage victories to 15. He’s the second driver from the Southern Hemisphere to win a WRC round (the first being Argentina’s Jorge Recalde who won his home rally in a Lancia in 1988 and in again in a drivers-only round in 1995).
 
The event victory gives Paddon’s team, Hyundai Motorsport, its first win on a gravel event with Paddon’s team-mate Thierry Neuville having delivered the only other WRC event win for Hyundai on the German tarmac in 2014. It’s also the first win in the new generation Hyundai i20 WRC car in only its fourth outing.
 
All three Hyundai Motorsport crews finished in the top six with Dani Sordo fourth overall and second to Paddon in the points-earning power stage to equal his best result of the season so far and Neuville was sixth to allow Hyundai Motorsport to improve its manufacturers’ championship standing.
 
Team Principal Michel Nandan said: “This is a rally weekend that we will never forget! Hayden has put in the performance of his career to take one of the most popular victories we’ve seen in WRC in recent times. His pace and commitment in the power stage was impressive; he and John both deserve this win. It’s fantastic for all of us at Hyundai Motorsport. It is our second win in WRC but the first with our New Generation i20 WRC in only its fourth event. We’ve worked so hard on this car so to see the fruit of our work is very special. All our drivers and team members can share in this moment. Dani and Thierry also fought hard to overcome a few difficulties this weekend to score crucial championship points. We have never had a one-two in the Power Stage before, so that was just the icing on the cake. While we will enjoy this moment, we know there is more to do so we will continue to push development of the New Generation i20 WRC. Portugal is next with a new set of demands and challenges.”
 
Prior to the next WRC round in Portugal toward the end of May, Paddon and Kennard fly back to New Zealand to compete in the International Rally of Whangarei (29 April-1 May) in the New Zealand-built Hyundai i20 rally car in which they secured an astounding record-breaking win at Rally Otago just the week before Argentina. The New Zealand rally project sees Paddon compete in a car, the chassis of which has been built to relatively new AP4 (Asia Pacific) regulations, designed to foster rallying and other competitors in New Zealand.
 
Paddon and Hayden Paddon RallySport Global (HPRG) Ltd appreciates the support of their exclusive partners, Hyundai New Zealand, Pak’nSave and Z Energy and associate sponsors Scott Sports and All About Signs Timaru.

FIA World Rally Championship, round 4, Rally Argentina
Overall Final Classification
1.         H. Paddon / J. Kennard (Hyundai New Generation i20 WRC) 2:54:45.6
2.         S. Ogier / J. Ingrassia (Volkswagen Polo R WRC) +14.3
3.         A. Mikkelsen / A. Jaeger (Volkswagen Polo R WRC) +1:05.2
4.         D. Sordo / M. Martí (Hyundai New Generation i20 WRC) +1:17.1
5.         M. Østberg / O. Floene (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +4:56.7
6.         T. Neuville / N. Gilsoul (Hyundai New Generation i20 WRC) +9:29.5
7.         M. Ligato / R. Garcia (Citroën DS3 WRC) +9:39.2
8.         E. Camilli / B. Veillas (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +10:16.0
9.         H. Solberg / I. Minor (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +10:48.5
10.        N. Fuchs / F. Mussano (Škoda Fabia R5) +24:42.8
 
2016 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings
S. Ogier 96 points / H. Paddon 57 / M. Østberg 52 /  A. Mikkelsen 48 / D. Sordo 44 / J. M. Latvala 27 / O. Tanak 24  / T. Neuville 23/ S. Lefebvre 10 / H. Solberg 8 / M. Prokop 6 / E. Evans 6 / M. Ligato 6 / C. Breen 4 / L. Bertelli 4 / E. Camilli 4 / T. Suninen 3 / E. Lappi 2 / A. Kremer 1 / K. Meeke 1 / V. Gorban 1 / N. Fuchs 1
 
2016 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
Volkswagen Motorsport  117 points / Hyundai Motorsport 81 / M-Sport World Rally Team 62  / Hyundai Motorsport N 49 / Volkswagen Motorsport II 45 / DMACK World Rally Team 30 / Jipocar Czech National Team 6
 
All results remain subject to official FIA confirmation.

Hayden-Paddon-John-Kennard-Sunday-action-WRC-Argentina-by-Timo-Anis 3-LRHayden Paddon and JohnKennard on the extremely difficult El Condor stage at Rally Argentina. Photo: Timo Anis

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