Jack Stokes/Hayden Graves (Skoda Fabia Rally2 Evo) have won the third round of the 2026 Mainland Rally Championship (MRC) at Sunday’s Lone Star Rally of Canterbury. The pair won from the Ari Pettigrew/Jack Norris (Porsche 911) with Thomas Paul/Bridget Airey (Subaru Impreza H6) third.
“An eventful day with some troubles early on,” commented Stokes. “Really proud of the way the team worked together and got the car fixed and had no issues after that.
“On the last corner of Special Stage 2 we just clipped the bank, and it hit the rear left and sunk the front end in it, damaging one of the water pipes so we had to do a ‘geriatric-fit’ to get us back to service.”
Also, off in Special Stage 2 and out of the rally was Stokes’ brother Robbie and co-driver Andy Sarandis (Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo).
Pettigrew had his Porsche flying all day finishing all nine MRC stages in the top three, even beating Stokes to the quickest time in SS 6.
“Otago was our first event in the car so since then we have made a lot of setup changes and are definitely heading in the right direction and getting a lot more comfortable behind the wheel,” said Pettigrew. “With all the weight in the back it is good for (rear) traction but can be a bit under-steering at times.”
Third MRC entry home and first in the H6 Class, Thomas Paul, said it couldn’t have gone any better!
“It’s been excellent and the roads have been awesome,” said Paul. “It’s been a great battle between the H6 boys. First year in a four-wheel-drive and it’s been so much fun.
“It has so much grip and it’s been a matter of trusting how much grip there is. We are starting to get towards our limit.”
Seven separate MRC Class titles for both drivers and co-drivers were contested over the nine Special Stages.
Mile Matheson/Kevin Brockie (Toyota Vitz) were first home in Class A (2WD 0-1300cc) ahead of Jak Elliott/Blair Brosnan (Toyota Echo), with both pairs equal on 36 points. Round 1 winners Mauro Balzarini/Sam Coulthard (Toyota Starlet) retired out of the event in SS5.
Josh Silcock (Ford Fiesta R2) has increased his lead in Class B (2WD 1301-1600cc) from Pat Morris (Toyota Corolla AE86), who came in third behind Ian Warren (Suzuki Swift Cup Car).
Ari Pettigrew/Jack Norris (Porsche 911) were first in Class C (2WD 1600cc and over) from Deane Buist (Ford Escort Mk2) followed by Andrew Sim (Ford Escort Mk2). Buist’s consistent form has him leading the Class from Sim with Pettigrew in third.
Harri Silcock/Mark Greenwood (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6) continue to lead Class D (4WD) despite finishing eighth MRC competitor and fourth in Class. Jack Stokes has moved into second ahead of Sean Haggarty/Shane Reynolds (Suzuki Swift Subuki).
Nigel King (Mitsubishi Lancer) has extended his lead in Class E (Pre 2000 4WD) as has Thomas Paul in Class H (Subaru H6). Paul now has a 22-point lead over Josh Keighley with James Macdonald holding third.
After three rounds of the MRC, Jack Stokes has grabbed a one-point overall lead to Buist with Paul just four-points further back and Pettigrew in fourth.
The Mainland Rally Series heads to Southland in July for the Barry Robinson Memorial Rally organised by the Eastern Southland Car Club (Saturday 18 July 2026). The event sees 160 kilometres of Special Stages and 180km of Touring Stages with servicing at Wyndham and Tokanui before finishing at the Ascot Hotel in Invercargill.
The 2026 Mainland Rally Championship has the support of RDL Performance, Brita Safety Ltd, Palmside NZ Ltd, Christchurch Building and Decorating Ltd, Thomson Rust and Repair Services Ltd, Rally Drive NZ.
Overall Points after 3/6 rounds (Top 15)
1/ Jack Stokes 60
2/ Deane Buist 59
3/ Thomas Paul 55
4/ Ari Pettigrew 49
5/ Harri Silcock 46
6/ Andrew Sim 39
7/ Josh Silcock 36
8= Sean Haggarty 35
8= Caleb MacDonald 35
8= Josh Keighley 35
11/ Dylan Thomson 32
12= Robbie Stokes 28
12= James McIver 28
14= Tim McIver 27
14= James Macdonald 27
Rally Canterbury – Mainland Rally Championship Rnd 3 Results
(Position, #, Driver 1/Driver 2, Car, Class)
1/ 1, Jack Stokes/Hayden Graves, Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo, D
2/ 6, Ari Pettigrew/Jack Norris, Porsche 911, C
3/ 16, Thomas Paul/Bridget Airey, Subaru Impreza H6, H
4/ 9, Matthew Wright/Stephen Lloyd, Subaru Impreza, D
5/ 17, Josh Keighley/Neill Woolley, Subaru Impreza H6, H
6/ 7, Caleb Macdonald/Larisa Biggar, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8, D
7/ 10, Deane Buist/Karl Celeste, Ford Escort Mk2, C
8/ 14, Harri Silcock/Mark Greenwood, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6, D
9/ 20, Josh Silcock/Ben Leech, Ford Fiesta R2, B
10/ 13, Sean Haggarty/Shane Reynolds, Suzuki Swift Subuki, D
11/ 30, Andrew Sim/Caleb Sim, Ford Escort Mk2, C
12/ 47, Nic McCallum/Anna McCallum, Ford Escort, C
13/ 37, Richard Galley/Anna Robinson, BMW 320i, C
14/ 46, Brayden Sim/James McIver, BMW 316i, C
15/ 36, Nigel King/Jaimee King, Mitsubishi Lancer, E
16/ 34, Shane McKenzie/Sean Sands, Mitsubishi Galant, D
17/ 48, Ian Warren/Matt Priest, Suzuki Swift Cup Car, B
18/ 56, Terri Taylor/Daph O’Rourke, Subaru Impreza, D
19/ 22, Kevin Laird/Aled Jones, Subaru Impreza H6, H
20/ 58, Mike Matheson/Kevin Brockie, Toyota Vitz, A
21/ 39, Simon Ellis/Tony Witheridge, Honda Civic, B
22/ 51, Jak Elliott/Blair Brosnan, Toyota Vitz, A
23/ 67, Pat Norris/Geoff Parr, Toyota Corolla AE86, B
DNF 3, Robbie Stokes/Andy Sarandis, Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo, D
DNF 24, Willy Hawes/Veronica Penny, Toyota Celica, D
DNF 38, Dave Ollis/Gemma Thomas, Subaru Impreza, D
DNF 55, Tom Milliken/Chris Cunningham, Subaru Impreza H6, H
DNF 72, Mauro Balzarini/Sam Coulthard, Toyota Starlet, A
2026 Mainland Rally Championship Calendar
Round, Date, Rally, Club
1/ 28 March 2026 Westland Rally (Westland CC)
2/ 11 April 2026 Otago Rally – Day 1 only (OSCC)
3/ 31 May 2026 Canterbury Rally (Autosport)
4/ 18 July 2026 Rally Southland (ESSC)
5/ 15 August 2026 Timaru Tarmac Rally (T.B.C.)
6/ 3 October 2026 Rally Waimate (T.B.C.)
