New Challenge For Paddon And Kennard In Rome

New Zealand rally stars Hayden Paddon and John Kennard take on the high speed asphalt roads around Rome and nearby Fiuggi for the first time when the Rally di Roma Capitale takes place in Italy this weekend (27-30 July). The rally is the sixth round of the 2023 FIA European Rally Championship (ERC).

Paddon is currently leading the ERC drivers’ championship and is the number one seed on this rally’s 34-strong entry list, but he’s not underestimating the challenges of competing against many fast local competitors in this rally where he’ll be driving the BRC Racing-prepared Hyundai i20 Rally 2 car.

“We are getting to the business end of the championship now with the Rome event the first of three tarmac rallies to wrap up the ERC season,” says Paddon. “We’re at the point where it’s almost irrelevant where we finish in the rally. The sole focus in to finish ahead of our main championship rivals to maintain or extend our points’ advantage. We’ll be watching what they do closely.”

Paddon and Kennard now each have 142 points in their respective driver/co-driver championships. Second place is held by Latvian Martin Sesks with 108 points, and Mads Ostberg holds third with 80 points.

Paddon acknowledges doing this rally for the first time works against him a little. “All 13 stages are the same as last year which makes it a little harder for us against the competition. But John and I are looking forward our recce of these technical stages in what looks to be very warm weather.”

While he has experience of several other Italian rallies, they had a different character. “We do know how fast the Italians are on their home soil, so we expect the competition to be seriously fast.”

This week, Paddon and Kennard will complete a small pre-event test on Wednesday, taking the car’s setup from the only other tarmac ERC rally so far this season in the Canary Islands and adjusting accordingly.

The rally gets underway on Friday evening with an opening super special stage near Rome’s famed Colosseum, then they tackle 189km of special stages around the rally base in Fiuggi, a thermal spa town southeast of Rome.

Paddon and Hyundai New Zealand Rally appreciate the support of Hyundai New Zealand, Mitre 10 Trade, Z Energy, Makita, Open Country, Bars Bugs, Pirelli, OMP/Racer Products, Winmax Brake Pads, South Canterbury Road Safety, Ben Nevis Station, Bailey Caravans, Repco NZ, Highlands Motorsport Park, MITO, ETCO, Jacanna Freight, Pak N’ Save, Machinery House, Bartercard, Mike Greer Homes, Provident Insurance, Zealandia Systems, Carters Tyres and Signbiz.

Keep up with news on Hayden Paddon and the Hyundai New Zealand Rally team via the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/paddonrallysport.

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