Kiwi rally driver Hayden Paddon has sped through overcast and slippery conditions on home soil to take an early lead in the WRC2 division after the opening super special stage of Rally New Zealand.
In the WRC's return to Aotearoa after a 10-year hiatus, Paddon and the field opened with a 1.40km super special stage at Auckland Domain.
Paddon took 10th overall with a time of 1:52.4 in his Hyundai i20N, just 1.8 seconds ahead of 11th placed Kiwi Supercars star Shane van Gisbergen in his Skoda Fabia.
"It's just awesome to see so many people here. Obviously, tomorrow we're expecting to see a lot more people out on the stages as well," Paddon said after the stage.
"It was a shame about the bit of moisture that came through that made it shiny and slippery but I'm sure it will dry off.
"But a good start to the rally, I can't wait for tomorrow."
Leading the overall standings is Estonia's Ott Tanak after he set a blistering time of 1:45.8 - 0.9s faster than Ireland's Craig Breen in 2nd. Series leader Kalle Rovanpera is 6th, 2.6s off the pace.
Rally NZ now enters the tougher stages this morning with classic stages in the Whaanga Coast and on Waikato region roads near Te Akau. WRC noted the stages "create a hugely challenging opening leg that comprises more than half the rally’s competitive distance".
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