Kiwi driver Hayden Paddon will make a long-awaited return to the World Rally Championship, but the 32-year-old won't competing in a Hyundai.
After being overlooked by the South Korean car manufacturer, Paddon has taken the opportunity to drive for the M-Sport Ford Fiesta team at Rally Finland next month.
His agreement to return to M-Sport - where he started his world rally career in 2013 - is currently for one event and he'll reunite with former co-driver John Kennard for the first time since 2017.
"It has been really hard sitting at home, watching the WRC unfold this year, especially as I know we can deliver at a high level," he said.
"After the Hyundai Motorsport news last week, we decided to make things happen, as we are not going to achieve anything by sitting around.
"Now that we have this chance, we will grab it with both hands. We are not sure if it's a one-off event for this season and whether it can aid our discussions for next year - a lot of that is out of our control.
"What is in our control is the preparation and the performance we can put in place, which I'm confident of and will do everything to make sure is at a high level."
Paddon's previous best finish in Finland was fourth. The Kiwi's last WRC action was his runner-up spot at last year's Rally Australia.
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