14 Sep 2015

Paddon finishes fifth at Rally Australia

10:11 am on 14 September 2015

Geraldine's Hayden Paddon has finished the Rally of Australia as the highest-placed Hyundai driver.

Hayden Paddon at Rally Australia, 2015.

Hayden Paddon at Rally Australia, 2015. Photo: Vettas Media

After two stage wins on Saturday, Paddon and his co-driver John Kennard maintained fifth place on Sunday with two fourth and three fifth placed finishes in the rally's final five stages.

Rally Australia was won by the French Volkswagen driver Sebastien Ogier, who won all of Sunday's stages to take the lead and the title by 12 seconds from his Finnish team mate Jari-Matti Latvala.

Paddon finished 55 seconds behind Ogier and more than a minute in front of his Hyundai team mates Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo.

"It was a solid final day for us and a pleasing end to a positive weekend," said Paddon.

"I was happy with our pace today and enjoying driving the car. We were a bit in no man's land with a big gap in front of us and an equally big one behind, so we concentrated on bringing the car home in fifth - picking up important points which has helped the team to consolidate second place in the Manufacturers' classification."

"It has been great to see so much support from the Kiwi fans. It gives me such a buzz and makes Rally Australia a special event."