Hayden Paddon: a Kiwi takes on the ERC

One of the centers of interest of the next Fafe rally (March 10-12) will be based on the participation of Hayden Paddon who will begin his program there. At the wheel of his Hyundai i20 Rally2, will he become the first non-European to take the ERC crown?

Published on 01/03/2023 à 07:19

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What if a New Zealander was crowned European champion? Wouldn’t that be a nice snub to all the pretenders from the “Old Continent”? If this were to happen, it would be the first time in this competition that it is possible to trace it back to 1953.

In any case, this is the challenge that Hayden Paddon has set for himself. Since the rally from New Zealand in October 2022, the driver from Geraldine in the south of the South Island, explained that he was not planning to return to WRC2, but that he was looking to race in Europe. During the offseason, he confirmed that his project in ERC was progressing well and here he is at the start of the first round of 2023.

Usually, Paddon likes to do things alone with his small team of diehards, but this year he will join forces with the BRC team. The Italians living in Cherasco (60 km south of Turin) are used to European games. Associate for 18^e season to the indestructible John Kennard (64 years old), Paddon will play 7 of the 8 meetings. He will indeed miss the Canaries. On land, he will already have landmarks in Latvia (6^e in 2022) as well as in Portugal and Poland where it evolved in WRC. For races on asphalt (Rome, Barum, Hungary), however, he will have the handicap of discovery.

At the wheel of this Hyundai i20 Rally2 Hayden Paddon ambitionne d’être le premier non-européen à devenir champion d’Europe

« During our European participations last year we learned a lot of things, explains Hayden. It concerned events and budgets. We decided to focus on the ERC for two reasons. First of all, the amount requested is more achievable for us, knowing that we are still competing in a high-level FIA championship. Secondly, from a personal point of view, fighting for rally victories rather than class successes is more attractive. Considering the logistics of this competition, it was interesting to develop a close relationship with a very renowned European team like the BRC Racing Team, while also using some of our own staff. »

In addition to the ERC, Paddon will return to his country several times to compete in the national championship or to perform exhibitions with his Hyundai Kona EV.