Paddon still in lead as ERC heads to Wales
A fresh set of challenges await BRC Racing Team crew as they join fellow FIA European Rally Championship competitors in Wales at the end of August.
This is the first time that Rali Ceredigion has appeared on the ERC calendar. The 14-stage asphalt rally, running 30 August to 1 September, takes in a mix of forestry tracks, high narrow roads, and single and double-width roads around the Welsh coastal town of Aberystwyth.
While Paddon contested and won the rally two years ago, it was in a different car run by a different team with a different co-driver – plus only one special stage of this version of Rali Ceredigion is the same as the version he did.
“I have some idea what the conditions might be like but John and I have to write new pace notes like everyone else,” says Paddon, who currently leads the 2024 ERC Drivers’ Championship leaderboard with 96 to second-placed Mathieu Franceschi’s 82.
The Welsh event is the second-to-last on the eight-rally ERC calendar and Paddon knows a good result here is vital for his goal of winning his second ERC title in the BRC Racing-run Hyundai i20 Rally 2.
“For sure we need to find some more performance with the car, and we’ll have to dig deeper because we know Mathieu Franceschi will be very fast there, as will all the locals. The character of the stages is such that it will provide a unique challenge to the ERC unlike any other event on the calendar.”
“We’re getting to the business end of the championship now so need to take bull by the horns and deliver a result – Wales is possibly our best option to do that. We’ll be going there on maximum attack to do the best job we can.”
BRC Racing Team Principal Gabriele Rizzo says “New event for us as a team, but as Hayden has mentioned we can benefit from his two years ago experience there. Crucial event for the championship as is the second last and the mechanism of the event to be discarded needs to be taken in account. We are leading the standings, so we are in a god position but unfortunately there is not so much to manage. We need to deliver speed on the first special stages and as always look at how the rally will evolve, both for the overall situation and points and for the competitors results. It was not a perfect season for us so far, with a lot of episodes that cost us many points, but at the end what will count is to make one mistake less than our competitors and at least one point more. As a team we must be focused on continuing not to make any mistake. We look forward to a challenge weekend ahead.”
The JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion includes a ceremonial start and finish on the promenade in the town of Aberystwyth, which is a university centre with a population of 18,000. On the coast of Mid Wales, it is surrounded by the Cambrian mountains to the east and the Irish Sea to the west. The 193 competitive kilometres are broken into two stages on Friday, eight stages on Saturday and four stages on Sunday.
Paddon’s 2024 ERC event calendar
12-14 April – Rally Hungary (gravel)
2-4 May – Rally Islas Canarias (asphalt)
13-15 June – Royal Rally of Scandinavia, Sweden (gravel)
5-7 July – Rally Estonia (gravel)
26-28 July – Rally di Roma Capitale, Italy (asphalt)
16-18 August – Barum Czech Rally Zlín (asphalt)
30 August - 1 September – Rali Ceredigion, United Kingdom (asphalt)
11-13 October - Rally Silesia, Poland (asphalt)