Kiwi Hayden Paddon has overcome overcast and slippery conditions to lead the WRC2 division, after the opening super special stage of Rally NZ.
FIA World Rally Championship’s first visit to New Zealand in 10 years began with three runs over the shakedown at Auckland Domain.
Paddon crossed at a time of 1m 52.4s in his Hyundai i20N to finish 10th overall, 1.8 seconds quicker than Supercars championship leader Shane van Gisbergen in 11th.
Estonian Ott Tanak leads the WRC standings, setting a blistering time of 1m 45.8s, while series leader Kalle Rovanpera finished sixth, more than 2.5 seconds off the pace.
Eight-time world champion Sébastien Ogier has finished in eighth place in his Toyota GR and is satisfied with what he got out of the tarmac stage.
"The rain before the start tonight made the first stage a bit more difficult and it probably dried a bit for the guys behind us," he said.
"Shakedown was not especially representative of the rally, but it was extremely fast and it was important for me to get the confidence in the high-speed sections.
"There are a lot of them in these stages this weekend and that's probably the most challenging thing, after three months out. I want to fight for the top positions and for the win, if we can.
"Hopefully, our road position can help us a bit in the beginning and I will give it everything."
