Facing continual border uncertainty at being able to run an international event for 2020, organisers Rally New Zealand have opted to cancel this year’s International Rally of Whangarei.

Originally scheduled to run 8 – 10 May as a combined FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) and Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship (NZRC) event, it was postponed just prior to New Zealand’s COVID-19 lockdown.

With much of the planning in place organisers were hopeful a new date could be set once border measures allowed for international travellers.

Chairman of the organising committee Mr Willard Martin said the decision was inevitable given the growing uncertainty around offshore travel....more...

The first four events of the 2021 Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship have been confirmed and will be a replica of what was planned for the 2020 season.

The season will start with the Otago Rally on April 16-18 before heading north to the International Rally of Whangarei on May 14-16. Rally South Canterbury will run June 19 while Rally Hawke’s Bay will follow on July 24.

The fifth and/or sixth rounds of the championship will be confirmed at a later date once the international calendar, including whether the FIA World Rally Championship will return to New Zealand shores, is locked in place.

The four confirmed events were set to be the first four rounds of this year before the Covid-19 pandemic set in and a decision was made to postpone the 2020 season.

Championship coordinator Blair Bartels is delighted to lock in some dates this early in the year....more...

A new rally working group involving Kiwi rally star Hayden Paddon has been formed to support MotorSport New Zealand’s long-term plans for rally sport in this country.

The rally working group is the first of its kind within the structure of MotorSport New Zealand and will complement the activities already undertaken by MotorSport New Zealand’s Rally Advisory Commission which helps govern domestic rallying day-to-day. 

The five invited group members have been tasked with examining a range of initiatives to sustain and grow rallying in New Zealand. These include career development pathways for rally competitors and officials who wish to progress further in domestic and international competition, the increasing use of technology in rallying, financial aspects of event management for clubs and organisers, vehicle regulations and eligibility, and New Zealand’s position in the international rally scene.

Respected Rally Otago organiser Roger Oakley, of Dunedin, is the group’s coordinator. Group members include Cromwell-based Paddon who brings his wealth of international experience, Aucklander Blair Bartels who has been on the organising committee for the New Zealand Rally Championship since 2011, long-time competitor and Rally Advisory Commission member Tony McConachy, of Palmerston North, and Christchurch’s Rocky Hudson who is a rally driver, co-driver and licenced Competitor Relations Officer (CRO)....more...

What a difference a year makes. Over the weekend just passed (July 04/05) tarmac rally specialist Leigh Hopper and co-driver Michael Goudie (Subaru Impreza WRX) dominated this year’s re-scheduled two-day Targa Hawke’s Bay tarmac motor rally event, winning nine out of the ten special stages to cross the finish line in Havelock North on Sunday afternoon with an advantage of over three minutes over second placed local pairing Ivan Knauf and Trevor Corbin, also in a Subaru Impreza WRX.

Local farmers Knauf and Corbin were the only pairing to take a stage win (albeit by just five seconds) off Hopper and Goudie - through the long (29.07km), fast Porangahau run from Wallingford to Wimbledon in the far south-east of the province just before the lunch time service stop at Dannevirke.

But Hopper made up that deficit – and more – with the only sub-15 minute run home through the final 36.7km stage of the day from Tod Rd on the outskirts of Waipawa and on down the roller-coaster run along Middle Road to the ceremonial finishing arch in downtown Havelock North....more...

Thanks to the efforts of motorsport officials and club volunteers, a series of club rallies are now scheduled to take place around the North Island during the remainder of 2020. 

Following the postponement of the 2020 New Zealand Rally Championship due to COVID-19, clubs up and down the country have worked together to ensure a series of high-quality events are ready for competitors to enjoy.

The calendar incorporates two test days, one in June and another in July, to help competitors get ready, as well as traditional multi-stage rallies and exciting shorter rallysprint formats in several North Island locations...more...

Rally New Zealand organisers have today announced two exciting new events, the City of Auckland Rally and the Battle of Jack’s Ridge to be staged in November.

The event will comprise the stages that were planned for the World Rally Championship event both north and east of the city.

The City of Auckland Rally will be held on Saturday 14 November and include stages in the Kaipara Hills, Puhoi and Riverhead Forest before its conclusion at the purpose-built road “Jack’s Ridge” in Whitford.

The Battle of Jack’s Ridge will be a standalone rally sprint on Sunday 15 November which will feature an open category rally sprint over a section of the 6.2km Jack’s Ridge stage....more...