The Hyundai i20N Rally2 team dominated the opening day, securing a clean sweep of stage wins and establishing a commanding 2-minute 27.9-second lead by the overnight halt.
Following in second place are fellow New Zealanders Ben Hunt and Tony Rawstorn in a Škoda Fabia Rally2, with Emma Gilmour and Malcolm Read in third, driving a Citroën C3 Rally2. The highest-placed international competitors are the Japanese father-son team of Fuyuhiko and Ken Takahashi, piloting a Ford Fiesta Rally4, currently holding sixth overall.
The day’s competition saw teams tackling six special stages in a repeated loop format on the hard-based roads north of Whangārei. Warm spring weather added to the challenge, with early morning fog patches and lingering dust over the gravel surface.
The day concluded with a double run of the Pohe Island Super Special Stage, situated conveniently near the service park, before the overnight stop.
“It’s been really tough on the tyres, and we’ve had to take it easy to conserve them. We’ve been lucky to make it back with the ones we have,” Paddon remarked after the afternoon loop.
Emma Gilmour claimed third position after the Toyota Yaris AP4 driven by Mike Young and Amy Hudson stopped on the final stage of the day. Reflecting on her performance, Gilmour said, “We always struggle a bit in Helena (SS1 and SS5), so we lost some time there. Our tyres are very worn, so we focused on driving as smoothly as possible to avoid unnecessary wear. The adjustments we made at service helped the car handle the road cambers better – it’s been working well.”
With seven special stages still to come on Sunday, teams will focus on both speed and survival to complete the rally. The event will culminate at 3:30 pm with a ceremonial finish at Pohe Island, where the 2024 APRC champion will be crowned alongside the Pacific Cup and Junior category title winners.
In addition to the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship title, winners will receive NZ$5,000 from the APRC Working Group, with NZ$3,000 awarded to second place and NZ$2,000 to third.
