Meet Hayden
If anyone knows adventure, it’s Hyundai New Zealand. And if anyone knows adventure at very high speeds, it’s world rally driver Hayden Paddon. We’re extremely proud to help drive Hayden’s success, whether he’s racing at home or representing his country on the global stage. Our commitment to Hayden and his team is unquestionable and we are thoroughly excited about our motorsport activities that include the NZ Rally Championship with the Hyundai i20 AP4, the development of our Kona Electric rally car and our return to the WRC with our WRC2 2022/2023 program in a Hyundai i20 N Rally2 car.
Hayden is New Zealand’s most successful rally driver both nationally and internationally, winning 1 WRC rally, 8 WRC podiums, and more than 40 WRC stage victories. He was the 2011 Production World Rally Champion, becoming the first person in the Southern Hemisphere to ever win a world rally championship. He’s also a 5-time New Zealand Rally Champion and has received many other national accolades.
Want to support your favourite flying Kiwi while enjoying exclusive benefits at the same time? Join the Paddon’s Pack supporters club.
Exclusive Members-Only Benefits:
- Pre- and post-race newsletters with Hayden.
- Paddon's Pack exclusive annual gathering with guest speaking appearance by Hayden.
- Rally ride give away - all registered members go in the draw to win one of two rally ride prizes.
- Members-only Q&A chat to Hayden sessions twice a year.
- Competitions and merchandise giveaways per race.
- First look at Hayden’s behind the scenes content series.
Join Paddon's Pack
Hayden and Hyundai Hydrogen
Hayden's career
Hayden first started racing in 2002 at just 15, following in his rally driver father’s footsteps. Since then he’s gone on to become Aotearoa’s leading rally legend and five-time national champion.
On the world stage Hayden is just as strong, with 40 WRC stage victories, eight podiums and the win in Argentina in 2016.
We started sponsoring Hayden back in 2014, kitting his team out with the fantastic Hyundai i20 WRC. Later, in 2018, we also helped him design and build the world’s first Kona EV rally car.
Hayden's wheels
i20 N WRC Rally2 Car
Every round of the WRC season features WRC2, but drivers and co-drivers can only nominate seven scoring rounds. Their best six results count.
To be eligible for the Rally2 category, manufacturers must have made at least 2500 examples of the road-going version of their nominated vehicle model in the previous 12 months.
Rally2 cars run 1.6-litre, fuel-injected, turbocharged 4-cylinder engines with a power output of around 285bhp (212kW). They run permanent 4WD and a 5-speed sequential gearbox. Minimum weight is 1230kg, or 1390kg with driver and co-driver.
Kona EV Rally Car
Sleek steel bodyshell. 220 kW of power. Custom cooling and front/rear torque vectoring. Up to 1,100 Nm of torque. And not a petrol pump in sight.
In August 2018, Hayden and his engineering team began designing what would become the world’s first Kona EV rally car. This is a hugely exciting project, custom made for a fresh start and new perspective. When this car debuts on the world rally stage, it will be one of the only fully electric cars competing in the WRC.
i20 AP4
Hayden's mighty i20 AP4 has seen some serious action, helping Hayden take home numerous Rally NZ titles. It’s also a monstrous uphill climber, racing in competitions like the Battle of Jack’s Ridge (which Hayden has won twice in the i20).
At its standard, the i20 AP4 comes with a 1.8 Litre Force Motorsport Turbocharged petrol engine spitting out 215 kW of power, Hayden’s team of engineers can strip it down to just its interior and put it back together in as little as one weekend - upgrading the power to 500 kW.
Want to feel the experience yourself?
With the power of our Hyundai N performance car range, you can experience that race car precision at home.
Feel the power as you take off. Apply the brakes and carve through the corner. Launch yourself around and feel the traction, the control. Driving isn’t meant to be boring, which is why we developed the N range.
