Words: Kyle Cassidy
Published 26 May 2026
New Zealand rally duo Hayden Paddon and John Kennard are aiming to step up the pace at this week’s World Rally Championship round in Japan, with the pair targeting stronger stage times after building confidence in their Hyundai package earlier in the season.
The Kiwi crew will contest Rally Japan from 28–31 May in and around Toyota City, marking their third appearance with Hyundai Motorsport this year.
After prioritising clean finishes at Monte Carlo and Croatia, Paddon says the approach in Japan will be more aggressive as he and Kennard look to close the gap to the factory team’s front runners.
“It’s another new rally for us, but this time the approach shifts,” says Paddon. “It’s time to release the shackles and turn up the speed. There’s less pressure on us to simply finish as there was at Monte Carlo and Croatia – although this doesn’t stop that being a key goal – but John and I want to try and get closer to our teammates in terms of speed and stage times. We’re feeling much more comfortable in the car and want to use that to try and be competitive within the top five or six.”
Japan’s WRC event has evolved significantly in recent years. While earlier editions featured more flowing asphalt roads, the current route is known for its narrow and highly technical mountain stages lined with barriers, dense forest and steep drop-offs.
Read more – Hayden Paddon – The Come Back Kid?
That presents another learning challenge for the New Zealanders, who lack the experience many rivals have gained over the past two editions of the rally.
“However, I’ve also benefited from another one-day test in Europe, helping me get to know the car more. Based off my feelings and the data from Croatia, we tried some new setups which took us in the right direction. However, there’s no opportunity to test in specific Japan conditions, so the Shakedown runs immediately before the rally starts will be very important for fine-tuning the car.”
Paddon and Kennard have only competed in Japan once before, back in 2010 when Rally Japan was held on gravel as part of the FIA Production World Rally Championship. The pair finished second in class on that occasion.
“We’ve obviously been doing our homework on the stages. They look quite slow, tight and technical, so different to the European tarmac rounds. Compared to Croatia with the huge amount of dirt and stones being dragged onto the tarmac, we’re expecting the stages in Japan to stay relatively clean, allowing for the fact it’s coming into the rainy season. We can expect some wet conditions at some point during the rally, which will make roads extremely slippery.”
This year’s Rally Japan features 20 asphalt stages covering 302.82 competitive kilometres, with the service park based in Toyota City.
