Rally of Canterbury provided a little light at the end of a fairly long tunnel for Auckland driver Haydn Mackenzie.
Mackenzie came home fourth – his best-ever finish in the New Zealand Rally Championship – in his Albany Toyota Yaris AP4.
Prior to that breakthrough result, Mackenzie had endured a tough run of mechanical failures dating back to Whangarei last year.
Mackenzie has shown glimpses of talent that could see him fighting for regular podiums if he can get the car where it needs to be, but the failures have not only limited the development of the car but also his own development as a driver on gravel.
So his approach of just trying to get to the finish at Canterbury might be the blueprint we see for the rest of the season.
“We’ve had a hard run for the fact that we have developed a car – we made the call to be brand loyal to Toyota because that is our business,” Mackenzie said.
“We have done some testing – the car feels really good, but the car has felt really good prior to the last couple of rounds. It is just, unfortunately, stupid breakages.
“We had a drive shaft at Otago and then an input shaft mid-way through stage two at South Canterbury.
“So, we just need to finish some rallies.”
Mackenzie is adamant he will get more out of finishing and gaining experience than pushing harder, and his haul of points at Canterbury suggests he might find more success that way.
2025 NZRC Dates:
- Apr 5-6 Otago Rally
- May 10 Rally South Canterbury
- Jun 1 Rally Canterbury
- Aug 23 Rally Coromandel
- Oct 11 Rally Bay of Plenty
- Nov 7-9 International Rally Whangarei
Header Image: Geoff Ridder
