It’s fifty years since the Canterbury Rally was the opening round of the very first NZ Rally Championship in 1975. This Sunday, 1 June 2025, will be the third round of the Mainland Rally Championship (MRC), which will see three top drivers fighting for hometown honours.
The Rally of Canterbury has Robbie Stokes (Stokes Motorsport Skoda Rally 2), Jack Stokes (Stokes Motorsport Ford Fiesta AP4) and Josh Marston (RDL Holden Barina AP4) making the most of the familiar roads for their home event. With the event doubling as the third round of the NZ Rally Championship, all three are also vying for the national title.
In the MRC, Marston and co-driver Andrew Graves beat home Round 1 winner Robbie Stokes/Shane Reynolds at the second round in South Canterbury in early May, with Caleb MacDonald/Larisa Biggar (Mitsubishi Lance Evo 6) in third.
Despite this, Stokes has a narrow three-point lead over Marston, with MacDonald third, followed by Deane Buist (Ford Escort). Jack Stokes proved very quick in the opening round in Otago, having moved up into a Ford Fiesta AP4, but unfortunately retired out of the second round and now sits in sixth place.
“I can’t wait for it,” commented Marston.
“I’m feeling really good in the car, really confident and can see where there is more pace from me as a driver. We don’t really need to change anything in the car; it’s just getting back into it after the break that we have had.“
Rallying was still in its infancy when, in 1975, the National Rally Pilots Association began the national championship. To have the first national rally that year was a real coup for the local scene, and it attracted a huge entry of 103 drivers and co-drivers.
Thirteen Special Stages were run mostly at night through the Malvern Hills, Ashley Forest, Woodford Glen and over Banks Peninsular, a total of 750 km.
Scrutineering and documentation were done in the King Edward Barracks in the middle of Christchurch (which is no longer there).
Included in the entry were the Ford Escort RS1600 entries of Mike Marshall, Blair Robson, Paul Adams, Jim Donald and Jim Richards up against the rotary Mazda RX3s’ of eventual winner Rod Millen and Robbie Francevic, plus the Datsun 1200 of Leo Leonard.
Millen won the event from Trevor Tapper (Mazda RX3) with local Trevor Crowe in a Datsun SSS. The latter two having started well down the order in 38th and 35th positions.
Jim Richards, who would go on to win seven Bathurst 1000 races, finished in fourth. While others were glad to see the finish of the overnight rally, he spent the afternoon racing a saloon car at Woodford Glen.
This year’s rally will be run in the Ashley Forests and the public roads of North Canterbury, plus the final spectator-friendly stage at Ruapuna circuit.
The rally comprises of approximately 140 km of special stages and 270kms of touring, with the first car leaving Joe’s Garage Rangiora at 7:30am with the start of the popular spectator’s first Special Stage in the Ashley Forest using the full length of Mt Grey Rd at 14.21 km and starts at 7:55am.
Three service breaks will take place over the day in Amberley (8:26am), Cheviot (11:05am) and Broomfield (13:31pm)
Euromarque Motorsport Park in Ruapuna hosts the final SS9, tackling 13.92 km around the circuit starting at 15:50pm before a tour back to Lone Star, Manchester Street, for the ceremonial finish with the first car due at 16:45.
Fifty years after competing in the 1975 Canterbury Rally in a Datsun SSS, Gary Cliff will again be involved in the event, this time driving a Zero Car (route opening car) before the field tackles each of the Stages.
Header Image: Terry Marshall
