The Star: November 17, 2016

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Thursday November 17 2016 43
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Scholarship chance drives Summerfield
• By Gordon Findlater
MATT SUMMERFIELD is on
the brink of an opportunity that
could help take his talent behind
the wheel to the next level.
The Rangiora rally driver is
one of five who have been shortlisted
for the inaugural Hyundai
NZ Young Driver Shootout and
Scholarship, created by World
Rally Championship driver
Hayden Paddon.
“It’s not just about the fastest
driver. We’re looking for the
whole package – personality,
motivation and ability to
learn and improve, as well as
outright performance during the
shootout. The winner may not
necessarily be competing in the
New Zealand Rally Championship
at this stage – we are looking
for someone that stands out and
has the X factor,” said Paddon.
Hawkes Bay’s Max Bayley,
Rotorua’s Sloan Cox, Waiuku’s
Dylan Thomson and Ashburton’s
Job Quantock will join Summerfield
in Auckland for the
shootout weekend in December.
“Sloan and I probably have
the most experience but I don’t
think that’s going to count for a
lot. Any of the five can do the job,
that’s why we’ve been selected.
DOWN TO FIVE: Rangiora’s Matt Summerfield will look to the
Hyundai NZ Young Driver Shootout and Scholarship to his list
of accomplishments in 2016 which include winning the Ashley
Forest Rallysprint title and Tauranga Clubmans Rally. ​
It’s going to be an interesting
weekend but I’ll just give it my
all and see what happens,” said
Summerfield.
Being an aspiring young rally
driver has come with plenty of
ups and downs for the 24-yearold.
Summerfield won his first
ever round of the New Zealand
Rally Championship at the
Daybreaker Rally in Wairarapa
last October and still has a dream
driving on the world stage.
“That’s always been the objective.
Some days it seems close and
other days impossible but this
programme is a great boost for
any New Zealand rally driver,”
said Summerfield.
The prize for the winner will
certainly act as a great stepping
stone for someone looking to
further their driving career. It
includes the opportunity to drive
the Hyundai NZ AP4 i20 rally
car in two rounds of the 2017
NEXT GENERATION: Kiwi World Rally
Championship driver Hayden Paddon has teamed
up with Hyundai to help unearth the country’s next
star.
New Zealand Rally Championship
being operated and run by
Paddon Rallysport, testing and
training with Paddon, plus the
potential for an expanded programme
in 2018.
The drivers will be tested on
a range of skills required to
become one of the world’s top
drivers. This will include assessments
on fitness, how to identify
and look after sponsors, nutrition,
media presence, writing
pace notes and car set-up. The
drivers will also get a day behind
the wheel in a Hyundai AP4,
gunning for the quickest time
driving to their own pace notes.
When it comes to pace notes,
the weekend will be a family
affair for Summerfield, with
sister Nicole joining him in the
co-driver seat.
“That’s something we’ve
worked really hard on over the
last couple of years. You can’t
even begin to go fast without
good pace notes and if you’re
trying to go fast without good
pace notes it usually doesn’t end
up going very well,” said Summerfield.
The five finalists were selected
from more than 180 applicants
and will participate in the
shootout from December 9-10.
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