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Palmer Clinches Title at Rally Bay of Plenty
Defending champion Quentin Palmer secured his second consecutive Hawkeswood Mining North Island Rally Series title on Saturday, finishing as the top series competitor at the Battery Town Rally Bay of Plenty. Driving a Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo, Palmer set the pace among series entrants across all eight contested special stages after technical issues prompted officials to cancel the ninth and final stage. Alongside his series success, Palmer finished second overall in the concurrently run final round of the 2026 New Zealand Rally Championship behind Jack Hawkeswood, while World Rally Championship competitor Hayden Paddon took the outright rally victory in an Allcomers-class Hyundai WRC2.
Reliability and Campbell Record
The result allowed Palmer to match Phil Campbell's benchmark of two series championships. Palmer noted that the stages featured dry and dusty surfaces that varied between slick sections and high-grip gravel, praising the reliability of his car and the efforts of his crew in finishing every event on the five-round 2026 schedule, which began in early autumn.
Podium Battle and Class F Honors
William Menzies and Doug Dolan placed second among North Island Rally Series entrants in a Toyota GR Yaris Rally Cup, with Menzies collecting the series Drive of the Day honours. Gavin Feast and Noel Moloney finished third in a Subaru Impreza WRX STi following a rally-long contest, a result that earned Moloney the overall series Co-Drivers' championship. Palmer had already secured the Class F drivers' title for four-wheel-drive entries between 1601cc and 1999cc prior to the weekend, finishing ahead of Menzies and third-placed Mason Grimmer in a Mazda 323, while Moloney won the Class F co-drivers' title ahead of Dolan and Leighton Spurdle.
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Two-Wheel-Drive Class Titles
The finale decided eight class championships for drivers and co-drivers. In Class A for two-wheel-drive cars up to 1300cc, Darryl McManus guided his Toyota Vitz to the stage win and took the drivers' crown ahead of Blair Richardson, while Nikki Sim secured the co-drivers' title over Madeline Buhr. Andrew Lowe claimed the Class B title for 1301cc to 1600cc two-wheel-drive entries in a Toyota AE101 ahead of Sam Broadbent's Toyota Corolla FXGT and Matt Priest, with Lowe's navigator Ian Barr winning the co-drivers' title over Matthew Broadbent. In Class C for 1601cc to 2000cc two-wheel-drive machinery, Khalid Mason finished first on the day in a Ford Fiesta ST150, but a second-place finish allowed Stephen Dill in a Nissan Pulsar GTI to seal the championship by five points; Mason took second in the final standings ahead of Dale James, and Sara Mason claimed the co-drivers' title ahead of Adrian Sutton and Kim Raggett. In Class D for two-wheel-drive entries over two litres, Tony Differ took the title in a Mitsubishi Lancer EX Turbo after entering with the points advantage and watching Dave Strong retire his Honda Jazz RS with mechanical trouble on stage five; Strong concluded the season second ahead of Phillip Broadbent, while Jayson Stringer won the co-drivers' championship ahead of Rob Scott and Sam Broadbent. High attrition marked the Classic Class E contest, where Chris Alexander suffered driveline failure before stage four in a Ford Cortina, Glenn Cameron stopped on stage five in a Mazda RX-7, and Nick Flanagan retired on stage six in a Peugeot 205; Andrew Keighley finished the rally in a Ford Escort RS1600 to take the title over Alexander and Brent Taylor, while Jackson Foster took the co-drivers' championship ahead of Dave Neill and Buhr.
Four-Wheel-Drive Categories
In Class G for four-wheel-drive machinery displacing over two litres, Gavin Feast finished first on the day ahead of Vanuatu's Julien Lenglet and Carlin Leong in matching Subaru Impreza entries. The result left Leong and Feast tied on 57 points at the top of the standings, with Leong winning the drivers' championship on countback across the five rounds; Lenglet placed third, and his navigator Fleur Pedersen secured the co-drivers' title ahead of Nathan Roa and Hamish Feast. In Class I for pre-1996 four-wheel-drive cars, Shaun Wade finished first in a Mitsubishi Mirage 4WD, but Chris Burke clinched the drivers' title by five points in a Toyota Celica GT after entering the weekend with an insurmountable 25-point advantage, with Kingsley Jones third. Stephen Taylor won the Class I co-drivers' championship by ten points over Haylee Wade, while thirteen-year-old Hamilton co-driver Mere Smith finished third in standings alongside Burke in her competitive rally debut.
Specialist Honors and 2027 Outlook
Specialist honours were also settled at the event. Dave Strong won the Masters drivers' championship ahead of Dale Perry and Peter Farrell, with Jackson Foster collecting the Masters co-drivers' trophy. Shaun Wade won the Blind drivers' title over Lowe and Keighley, while Haylee Wade won the Blind co-drivers' title ahead of Barr and Foster. Mitch Pilcher earned the Rookie drivers' award over McManus and Khalid Mason, as Malisse Bertelsen won the Rookie co-drivers' title ahead of Smith. Rounding out the season awards, the penultimate event, the BP Rally Taumarunui, was selected as the best round of 2026 for its marketing and community engagement, while series coordinator Marty Roestenburg confirmed that organizers are preparing for the 2027 campaign.
