WRC '16 - Out of the wilderness

In groups of two, or five, or ten, scattered across the face of our planet, fans of the World Rally Championship sat about sipping coffees, quaffing wines or chugging beers and talking in hushed, slightly reverential-yet-excited tones about shakedown at Rally Argentina.

Paddon and Kennard celebrate their victory at Rally Argentina

The theme of these discussions can be universally classified as " Is it time? Will it happen here, this weekend". And opinions swung from a tentative "Yes, it really could", as the rally first began, to an eye-widening near-certainty as the evidence unfolded in front of them, where it eventually became
"I think it will".

I know this because I saw it being revealed in the many motorsport forum exchanges, Tweets and posts across every imaginable social medium in the hours before Friday's opening stage and after. And I was involved in exactly the same process. There was an unmistakeable sense that something momentous might be about to happen.

Hayden Paddon's triumph on Rally Argentina rocked the rally world, but not in the way you might have expected. It was less of a revelation as such, than it seemed like some crucial, but as-yet theoretical element in nature, had been finally verified.

Those who once saw Paddon as an outsider, unaccountably given a factory seat in preference to one of the many young European talents who surely must have a greater claim to such a priviledge, had long-since mellowed in the wake of Paddon's ability to impress and improve, and despite themselves, had developed a grudging respect for the Kiwi.

Rally Argentina showed clearly that such respect was not misplaced - as the stages passed, it was demonstrated in microcosm. Shakedown was an early hint. Paddon was fastest on his second run and fastest again on his third and final. When the rally proper got under way, he was second fastest on SS2 only to Ogier, even beating Latvala who would enjoy a better road position for two full days, and scoring impressive times for the rest of the event

Given Paddon's limited experience in Argentina, and the poor result he'd achieved by his standards the previous year, his opening salvoes on SS2 and SS3 got people's attention. A stage win on SS6 opened their eyes even wider, with a further second-fastest on SS8 and wins on SS10, SS11 and SS14 adding to the sense of anticipation.

Hayden had shown his skill and his mental toughness in the face of determined attacks from both Latvala and Ogier, arguably the two finest drivers in world rallying. And the New Zealander's combination of skill and mental fortitude was nowhere better expressed than in the now legendary power stage win.

The Argentinian victory must have been one of the most popular wins in the history of the WRC. It mattered not at all if you were a SebO fan, or a Kris Meeke follower or a Mikkelsen supporter, because the performance of the gutsy little battler from New Zealand took our breath away. It would be a hard-hearted WRC follower indeed who didn't tear up a little as it became clear that Paddon and Kennard were going to beat Ogier and Ingrassia on that final stage. Not just by a few tenths of a second it turned out, but by an emphatic 11.7 seconds.

And in doing so, to win their first top tier WRC event into the bargain. At that moment, the gutsy Kiwis won over thousands of hearts and minds, and must have created a whole load of new Hayden Paddon fans worldwide.

Outlanders no more.