Jack Hawkeswood has slashed Jack Stokes’ lead in the New Zealand Rally Championship to a solitary point after winning a dramatic Rally Hawke’s Bay on Saturday.
Hawkeswood, who has now split round victories two apiece with Stokes, led from start to finish in a superb drive in his Toyota Yaris Rally 2 car.
He laid down the challenge on the opening stage, taking almost 30 seconds off his title rival in the process.
Stokes had to settle for third place behind his Stokes Motorsport teammate and brother Robbie Stokes, who finished second.
The older Stokes brother looked back to his near best with an impressive drive.
Quentin Palmer (Skoda Fabia Rally 2) found himself more in the podium battle with good outright speed and showed he will be a force on the North Island roads he’s more familiar with.
Hawke’s Bay local Grant Blackberry completed the top five – dominating the Rally Challenge 4WD class in his Mitsubishi EVO 10. Blackberry turned heads with a brilliant second-fastest time on the opening stage in his older model car.
The Toyota GR Yaris Rally Cup cars of Aussie star Toby Price and local driver Will Menzies finished sixth and seventh respectively in a performance that highlights the quality of the Force Motorsport product.
Jackson Clendon reminded everyone about his undeniable talent with a strong showing in his Ford Fiesta Rally 4 car to win the NZRC 2WD class.
Dave Strong claimed honours in the Open 2WD class in his Honda Jazz to help close the championship gap to the absent Ari Pettigrew.
Phil Macquarie (Ford Escort) made up for missing the most recent round to win the Historic 2WD class ahead of Pat Norris (Toyota Corolla) and Mike Cameron (Mitsubishi EX Lancer). The latter two enjoyed a terrific back-and-forth battle that Norris ended on top of.
Hawke’s Bay locals Ben and Charlotte Harding (Mazda RX7) enjoyed a brilliant day on home roads to win the Classics class ahead of Ross McKay (Ford Escort)
The impressive Josh Silcock (Ford Fiesta) turned heads again with a terrific showing in the Rally Challenge 2WD class to claim class honours and finish top 10 overall.
Josh Keighley (Subaru Impreza) backed up second place in the Rally Challenge 4WD class with a win in the Group A Challenge.
The championship heads north to the two-day International Rally of Whangarei next month.
Header Image: Geoff Ridder
