NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Sport / Motorsport

10 things you didn't know about Hayden Paddon

Chris Rattue
By Chris Rattue
Sports Writer·Herald online·
24 Apr, 2016 09:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Hyundai Motorsports driver Hayden Paddon from New Zealand, celebrates in the podium after winning the fourth round of the FIA World Rally Championship. Photo / AP.

Hyundai Motorsports driver Hayden Paddon from New Zealand, celebrates in the podium after winning the fourth round of the FIA World Rally Championship. Photo / AP.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Hayden Paddon became the first New Zealand driver to win a round of the World Rally Championship today when he finished 14.3 seconds clear of reigning world champion Sebastien Ogier in Argentina.

Paddon and co-driver John Kennard also won the rally's power stage, earning three bonus points.

Here are 10 things you didn't know about the Kiwi duo.

1) Paddon's goal has always been clear. Back in 2010, when he was still trying to enter the WRC, he told the Herald his aim was to be the world champion. "I know it sounds far-fetched and is a long, long way from where I am and it may never happen. But I believe you have to have your goals and your dreams. Possum Bourne had just entered a team in the P-WRC when he died [in 2003] so he was never able to complete that and who knows what that would have led to ... if we can run a team in the world championship it would be a first for New Zealand."

2) At 57, Blenheim's John Kennard is the oldest co-driver to win a WRC round, eclipsing Arne Hertz (Sweden) who was 52 when he helped Armin Schwarz win the Spain rally in 1991.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

3) Paddon, from the town of Geraldine 140km south of Christchurch, thought his career might be over when the car his father bought for him rolled and "burned to the ground" during the 2005 Canterbury rally. It left little Team Paddon penniless but was a turning point as the local community and car club people from around the country gave him money to start again. Paddon said it was "a moving experience" He added: "The motorsport community is like that - it's very small and we are all friends".

4) Paddon's father Chris who owned a farm machinery business took up rallying in his early 20s and won the 1999 Mainland Series. He built Hayden's first go-kart using a chainsaw engine. Hayden's parents split when he was young and he spent his weekends with Chris, which meant "weekends racing". Chris now lives in Wanaka and one of Hayden's favourite hobbies is mountainbiking in central Otago.

Our rally winners are IN da house!!! 🎉🇳🇿🍾 #wrc #hyundaiwrc #RallyArgentina pic.twitter.com/2q4qT5Elc0

— Hyundai Motorsport (@HMSGOfficial) April 24, 2016

5) Paddon got his first car aged 13, a Mini. He stripped it out himself and first competed in a time trial on a grass airfield run in an event run by the Ashburton Car Club.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

6) Kennard has a background in architecture and runs a wine business. He started as a rally driver in 1979, winning his class in a Finland Rally, then swapped to co-driving in 1985 with Brent Rawstron of Christchurch. Kennard and Rawstron are vineyard business partners.

7) Paddon is based in Germany with his longtime girlfriend Katie Lane, a marketing manager who hails from Napier. Lane has a huge role organising and promoting Paddon's career. Hyundai re-entered the WRC in 2014 and set up a base at at Alzenau near Frankfurt

8) When his dad asked a young Hayden how he would fund his rallying, the 12-year-old went out and got three jobs - a paper run plus working in a fish and chip shop and a motorbike store. At 13, he took sponsorship proposals to Geraldine shops which involved him doing everything from car washes to holding demonstration events.

9) His childhood hero was the Scottish world rally champion Colin McRae. "He always gave it absolutely everything," Paddon said. McRae died in a 2007 helicopter crash.

Discover more

Sport|motorsport

Sexist formula is a blight on F1

23 Apr 05:00 PM
Sport|motorsport

Paddon takes lead at Rally of Argentina

23 Apr 10:51 PM
Sport|motorsport

Paddon makes NZ motorsport history

24 Apr 06:07 PM
Motorsport

Hayden Paddon: One win is not enough

24 Apr 09:30 PM

10) Paddon was one of the sports stars who supported a flag change for New Zealand, saying he wanted to avoid confusion with Australia on the world stage. There have been mix ups at world rally events and Paddon has found people pointing at the flag on his car while uttering "Australia".

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Motorsport

Premium
Opinion

Alex Powell: What does Red Bull’s Verstappen problem mean for Lawson?

06 Jul 11:45 PM
Motorsport

Van Gisbergen dominates for another street Nascar win

06 Jul 09:13 PM
Motorsport

Dixon secures unlikely victory to keep consecutive win streak alive

06 Jul 08:55 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Motorsport

Premium
Alex Powell: What does Red Bull’s Verstappen problem mean for Lawson?

Alex Powell: What does Red Bull’s Verstappen problem mean for Lawson?

06 Jul 11:45 PM

OPINION: What we learned from the British Grand Prix.

Van Gisbergen dominates for another street Nascar win

Van Gisbergen dominates for another street Nascar win

06 Jul 09:13 PM
Dixon secures unlikely victory to keep consecutive win streak alive

Dixon secures unlikely victory to keep consecutive win streak alive

06 Jul 08:55 PM
‘Who the hell was that?’: Lawson taken out on first lap at Silverstone

‘Who the hell was that?’: Lawson taken out on first lap at Silverstone

06 Jul 02:20 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP