Anyone who has a junior CV as strong as Hayden Paddon’s can rightfully expect an easy glide path into a top seat in the World Rally Championship. The amiable Kiwi was the standout rookie of his region.
The trouble was, he was performing his heroics on the other side of the world in his homeland, away from all the major rally team bases in Europe and the heartland of the WRC.
Having started as a young teenager, he pushed himself forward and winning the Pacific Cup in 2009 gave him the springboard, along with his selection as a Pirelli Star Driver in for 2010. That is when the wider service park was able to appreciate his skills at closer quarters, and it led to a lengthy stay in the top-flight.
Paddon aligned himself with Hyundai in 2014 and has been linked with the South Korean manufacturer mostly ever since. His crowning glory came with Rally Argentina victory in 2016 when he fended off Sebastien Ogier’s VW with a healthy five stage wins along the way.
His links with Hyundai have remained strong since he stepped away from the WRC driving strength and, through his own preparations firm and the support of Hyundai New Zealand, Paddon is at the forefront of the future of the sport with a full EV rally car under development.
But he isn’t done winning from behind the wheel just yet. His decision to refire the competitive juices with a campaign in the European Rally Championship – naturally in a Hyundai i20 N – brought him right up to date with a title victory. He enjoyed it so much he is planning to return for more in 2024 too.
Paddon kindly took time out of his busy schedule to tackle the MN readers’ questions, and we are grateful for his time.
Question: What ignited the rallying passion in you – were you always destined to follow your dad Chris into the sport?
James Hilton
Via email
Hayden Paddon: “Rallying is really the only way of life I remember – it was the only way I knew: when I was in nappies I was taken away to rallies. When I got to about five or six years old, I went go-karting. Driving and competing is something I was brought up around and so for me it has always felt natural. It is, for me, my safe place if you like… “
MN: Aside from your dad, obviously, did you have any early rallying heroes? Who did you follow when you were a kid?
HP: “I always had three idols when I was growing up. Obviously my father played a big part in my life, but then there was also Colin McRae. I remember watching an old Duke Video – remember those? – of the 1995 RAC on repeat over and over about 100 times and then there, because I am from New Zealand, Possum Bourne was clearly a hero as well. Between the three of them, they were the ones that I looked up to and I wanted to be like.”
MN: Was there ever any inkling that you might do something else, or was it always focused around competitive driving as a future for you?
“Well I have always had an interest in business and I almost went to university to sit my business papers but at that time I decided that my mind wasn’t really in it and I was too interested in the rallying side of things
