A total of eight class 1 competitors headline the entry list for Rally South Canterbury next week.
Dylan Thomson returns to the second round of the New Zealand Rally Championship in the Subaru Impreza WRX, where he drove impressively at Whangarei last year.
Reigning national champion, Ben Hunt is the top seed, having won the opening round at Otago last month in his Skoda New Zealand Fabia Rally 2.
The Stokes brothers – Robbie and Jack – are second and third seeds in their Stokes Motorsport Skoda Fabia Rally 2 and Stokes Motorsport Ford Fiesta AP4, respectively.
Both brothers proved their rally-winning ability at Otago. Jack Hawkeswood got better and better at Otago. He should be in the mix in the Force Motorsport Toyota GR Yaris, while Emma Gilmour is another who could contend in the Vantage NZ Citroen C3.
Josh Marston will be better for his first event in 18 months when he lines up in his RDL Holden Barina AP4, while Haydn Mackenzie hopes for a little fortune in his Albany Toyota Yaris AP4.
Bryn Jones and Tim Mackersy will continue their battle in NZRC 2WD in their matching Ford Fiesta Rally 4 cars.
Dave Strong (Honda Jazz) and Paul Cross (Toyota Corolla) will battle it out in the Open 2WD class, while in the Historic 2WD category, a trio of Ford Escorts will look to fight for the top spot in the shape of Deane Buist, Stephen Gill and Andy Martin.
Paul Fraser (Nissan Silvia), Pat Norris (Toyota Corolla), and Mike Cameron (Mitsubishi Lancer) will keep them honest.
The Rally Challenge 4WD battle will resume with Caleb Macdonald (Mitsubishi EVO 6) and Gavin Feast (Subaru WRX) leading the charge.
Josh Keighley and Ben Huband should be relevant in Subaru H6s, while Brian Green (Mitsubishi EVO 9) and Kevin Laird (Subaru H6) could also feature.
A tight battle is expected in Rally Challenge 2WD, with the return of local driver Darren Galbraith (Ford Fiesta), along with Thomas Paul (Honda Civic) and Ian Warren (Nissan Pulsar).
The event begins with a ceremonial opening in Timaru next Friday before a day of stages on Saturday.
Header Image: Geoff Ridder
