Hayden Paddon of New Zealand drives his Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC to place fifth on the last day of the Rally Sweden. Photo / AP
Hayden Paddon dropped off the pace on the final day of Rally Sweden to finish fifth in his opening race of the 2018 World Rally Championship season.
The Kiwi driver lost 11 and a half seconds on the final stage to finish behind Finland's Esapekka Lappi.
"An annoying end to
what had been a generally positive weekend for us," Paddon said. "It was just a small mistake in the Power Stage, which stalled the car and lost us too much time to defend our fourth place.
"It is what it is. We're not in the championship hunt this season so whether it's fourth or fifth doesn't really matter greatly.
