The Taranaki Tarmac one-day rally takes place this Saturday, 12 July 2025, with the rivalry among the 2025 North Island Rally Series (NIRS) competitors expected to intensify.
The question to be answered after nine Special Stages is ‘Will this be a year a rally car beats a Targa spec car?’
Quentin Palmer (Skoda Fabia Rally2 Evo) stamped his mark on the 2025 NIRS season after taking first round honours in early May, winning the Ruarangi Rd Rallysprint. It was his first outing in his new Skoda, and he beat home last season’s champion Phil Campbell (Ford Fiesta AP4).
“Taranaki will be interesting for us,” commented Palmer.
“Our car originally came into NZ as a tarmac car before being converted to gravel spec. I definitely have to do some tarmac practice, and we have a lot of setup changes to make.”
However, traditionally, the Taranaki Tarmac Rally has been the domain of bitumen specialists. Last year’s winner, Cameron Ross/Matthew Broadbent (Subaru Impreza), is seeded first and will be hard to beat, as will second-seed David Rogers (Mitsubishi Evo 10).
Also making an appearance in the North Island and not to be discounted is Marcus van Klink (Mazda RX8), who will start third on the road ahead of Palmer.
The rally comprises 204 km of Touring Stages and nine Special Stages, totalling 124 km, with four of them being repeated. As per MotorSport NZ Tarmac Rally requirements, this event runs with a 200 kilometres per hour speed limit. The new route includes the infamous tunnels and the spectacular Inglewood jumps.
Co-Chairman Sean Bryce said, “The Rally Committee are excited about the new route and location of this year’s Rally and hopes this Event will go down well with the residents, local community and the competitors”
Missing from the start list is last season’s NIRS champion Phil Campbell (Ford Fiesta AP4). Current Class C (2WD 1601-2000) leader, John Whooley (Honda Civic), will look to extend his lead while in Class D (2WD 2001 and over), Charlie Evans (Mazda RX7) resumes his battle with Jeff Torkington (Toyota MR2).
Scholarship recipients (with a discounted entry fee) are first-time rookies, young Samuel and Matthew Broadbent (Mitsubishi Evo) from Ngatea, who have been showing fast pace at recent Rallysprints.
The Taranaki Car Club promotes the Clubman’s and National Rally in conjunction with the South Taranaki Car Club, and will take place in the New Plymouth and North Taranaki regions.
The first car departs from the Plymouth International Hotel at 07:00 hours, starting Special Stage 1 at 07:30 hours, and returns at approximately 16:00 hours to Plymouth for the champagne finish, after-match meal, and prizegiving.
North Island Rally Series Overall Points after Round 1
| Position | Driver | Points |
| 1 | Quentin Palmer | 40 |
| 2 | Phil Campbell | 34 |
| 3 | Ben Huband | 30 |
| 4 | Dave Strong | 27 |
| 5 | Charlie Evans | 24 |
| 6 | Jay Pittams | 22 |
| 7 | William Menzies | 20 |
| 8 | Carlin Leong | 18 |
| 9 | Bradley Stewart | 16 |
| 10 | Mike Goldsbury | 14 |
| 11 | Kyle Percival | 12 |
| 12 | Tony Young | 10 |
| 13 | John Whooley | 8 |
| 14 | Phillip Broadbent | 7 |
| 15 | Jeff Torkington | 6 |
| 16 | Kieran Cornelius | 5 |
| 17 | Peter Farrell | 4 |
| 18 | Graeme Barr | 3 |
| 19 | Nick Flanagan | 2 |
| 20 | Chris Subritzky | 1 |
2025 Hawkeswood Mining North Island Rally Series Calendar
- Round 1: 11 May Ruarangi Rd Rallysprint – think 1000 Lakes crests!
- Round 2: 12 July SBT Group Taranaki Tarmac – based back in New Plymouth – new route
- Round 3: 23 August Rally Coromandel – back after a 5 year hiatus!
- Round 4: 21 September Rally Waitomo – Clubman’s
- Round 5: 11 October Battery Town Rally Bay of Plenty
Header Image: Geoff Ridder
