By winning the International Rally of Whangārei held from 8-10 November, New Zealand duo Hayden Paddon and co-driver Jared Hudson secured the 2024 FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) title.

This victory marks the second time that 37-year-old Paddon has claimed the prestigious international APRC title, following-on from his recent win in the FIA European Rally Championship (ERC) in October.

Driving a Hyundai i20N Rally2 car, the pair set the fastest times on all 18 special stages of the event, which covered rural roads of Northland, New Zealand. Kiwi pair Ben Hunt and Tony Rawstorn (Škoda Fabia Rally2) finished in second place, with Emma Gilmour and Malcolm Read (Citroën C3 Rally2) rounding out the podium in third.

“It’s a fantastic result from a tough event,” Paddon said, reflecting on his new title. “The dry conditions were very hard on tyres, as expected, so it was all about keeping it clean, managing our pace, and enjoying it as much as we could. A huge credit to everyone on our team – the reliability of the car and how well they have been working is second to none. I’m very proud of this result.”

Second-placed Hunt expressed his admiration for Paddon, saying, “There’s no one else I’d rather finish behind. He’s a world-class driver who’s always active in the car, whereas we only compete in five or six rallies a year. It’s an awesome result for our team. It’s been a great weekend.”

Gilmour, thrilled with her third-place finish, said, “Very, very happy. It’s been a tough event, a long event, and the heat made it even more challenging. We’ve had an awesome weekend, and finishing third in the APRC is an amazing result given the competition.”

New Zealand's Jack Hawkeswood, along with co-driver Jason Farmer (Toyota Yaris AP4, New Zealand), claimed the Pacific Cup with Hawkeswood also claiming the Junior title. Tim and Lauren Mackersy (Ford Fiesta Rally4, New Zealand) won the two-wheel-drive title.

Over the two-days, teams covered a total of 237 competitive kilometres on Northland’s iconic cambered and flowing roads. The dry weather created a hard, fast surface, although isolated rain patches on Sunday failed to add variability. While 11 teams representing four nationalities entered the championship decider, nine completed the event. Kiwi competitors Robbie Stokes and Ally Mackay went off the road on Saturday’s third stage, while Zeal Jones and Waverly Jones were sidelined by gearbox issues on Sunday after the 12th stage. Other retirements rejoined the rally with time penalties.

In addition to the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship title, Paddon was awarded NZ$5,000 from the FIA APRC Working Group, with Hunt receiving NZ$3,000 and Gilmour NZ$2,000.

Paddon and Hudson will be formally presented with their title at the FIA Awards event in Kigali, Rwanda, on 13 December.

Final placings – 2024 FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship

Pos     No.      Crew, Vehicle, Time
1          1          Hayden Paddon/Jared Hudson (NZ), Hyundai i20N Rally2 2:24:49.8 
2          2          Ben Hunt/Tony Rawstorn (NZ), Skoda Fabia Rally2  +4:42.1
3          5          Emma Gilmour/Malcolm Read (NZ), Citroen C3 Rally2 +7:20.0
4          3          Mike Young/Amy Hudson (NZ), Toyota Yaris AP4 +15:11.3
5          9          Tim Mackersy/Lauren Mackersy (NZ), Ford Fiesta Rally4        +20:27.5
6          7          Jack Hawkeswood/Jason Farmer (NZ), Toyota GR Yaris AP4 +35:49.1
7          10        Fuyuhiko Takahashi/Ken Takahashi (Japan), Ford Fiesta Rally4 +38:12.8
8          11        Naveen Puligilla/Santhosh R Thomas (India), Proton Satria +51:34.0
9          8          H Rihans Variza/Mochamad Fahrezi Fadh (Indonesia), Ford Fiesta R5 +1:01:17.2
dnf       4          Robbie Stokes/ Ally Mackay (NZ), Ford Fiesta AP4      
dnf       6          Zeal Jones/Waverley Jones (NZ), Skoda Fabia R5