The penultimate round of the 2025 New Zealand Rally Championship takes place this weekend, and it could prove to be the decisive moment in the title battle.
The 2025 overall title is essentially a two-horse race at this point, with defending champion Ben Hunt (Skoda New Zealand Rally 2) and Canterbury young gun Robbie Stokes (Stokes Motorsport Skoda Rally 2) fighting it out.
The Battle
Hunt holds a slender 11-point advantage over Stokes heading into the second-last event on the calendar. If the three-time national champ was to beat Stokes at Rally Bay of Plenty, he would go a long way to defending his crown and capturing a fourth title.
Stokes needs to come out on top of the battle this weekend to set up a thrilling finish at Whangarei next month. He has been superb so far in 2025, adding consistency to his outright pace and getting that breakthrough NZRC round win at home in Canterbury.
Can he find a maiden win in the North Island to really give his championship chances the boost they need heading to the finale? Neither driver can afford a DNF; a poor result could throw the championship the other way, or if both were to have a drama, it opens the door for the chasing pack.
Jack Stokes (Stokes Motorsport Ford Fiesta AP4) is searching for a maiden NZRC win, while the likes of Jack Hawkeswood (Force Motorsport Toyota GR Yaris), Emma Gilmour (Vantage NZ Citroen C3) and Josh Marston (RDL Holden Barina AP4) are all capable of mixing it up with Hunt and Stokes and having a say on who gets what points.
Other Classes
Bryn Jones (Ford Fiesta Rally 4), fresh off a successful outing in Portugal, can secure the NZRC 2WD championship if results go his way. He holds a 20-point lead over Tim Mackersy (Ford Fiesta Rally 4) and if he can grow that to 30 or more, Jones will secure the title with a round to spare.
Little has separated the pair all season, so Mackersy would love to triumph at Bay of Plenty and make Jones take the battle to Whangarei. Dave Strong (Honda Civic) will look to put a couple of rough outings behind him in the Open 2WD class and is the only entrant at Bay of Plenty.
Deane Buist holds a commanding lead in the Historic 2WD class in his Ford Escort. Second-placed Stephen Gill (Ford Escort) will aim to make up some ground ahead of the final round, while Mike Cameron (Mitsubishi Lancer) will keep the Escorts honest.
Caleb Macdonald (Mitsubishi EVO 6) returns to the Rally Challenge 4WD class after missing Coromandel and will take a two-point advantage into the event. Ben Huband (Subaru Impreza), Will Menzies (Mitsubishi EVO 6), hometown boy Gavin Feast (Subaru Impreza) and the in-form Julien Lenglet (Subaru Impreza) will provide stiff competition for Macdonald’s return to the North Island.
Keep a close eye on
Josh Keighley (Subaru Impreza) and Kevin Laird (Subaru Impreza) have both enjoyed outstanding campaigns in the Group A Challenge class. The pair have mixed it with the overall Rally Challenge leaders and will go head-to-head for the class title.
Keighley takes a two-point lead over Laird into the weekend after the worst results from the opening four rounds were dropped.
This match-up should be worth your attention over the weekend.
Best Spectating
A ceremonial opening at Mitre 10 Mega in downtown Tauranga on Friday afternoon will be a great spot to see cars up close. A pair of spectator points on the famous Campbell stage provides great viewing, while the iconic Manawahe stage is always worth a visit.
Fans can see the cars at the finish at Classic Flyers in Tauranga on Saturday afternoon.
Entry List – BOP 2025 Seeding ex BB and ChrisSport 50 Entries.xlsx
Maps – https://www.sporty.co.nz/asset/downloadasset?id=671b8096-6249-4489-baf3-3f11844ba6f3
Where to watch
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗹𝗲 | 𝗦𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗱𝗮𝘆
SS3 Matahina – 34.16km | Livestream commences @ 9:10NZST
SS9 Campbell – 14.36km | Livestream commences @ 16:10NZST
𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘦 – 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘯 𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘤𝘦.
As usual, our streams are FREE and ONLY on our Facebook page or www.nzrc.tv Youtube channel. If they ask you to pay, walk away!!
The post-production show will air on TV3’s CRC Motorsport after the event.
Follow the action with live times on www.chrissport.co.nz
Header Image: Geoff Ridder
