"Possum Bourne was a huge idol of mine growing up and I learned from him that loyalty is a very important thing," said Paddon.
"I had other offers on the table for next year but Hyundai gave us a chance last year - they never had to - and so when the chance came to sign with them for three years, I didn't hesitate.
"Next year, we're starting with a brand new car, but can't use any of the data from the past two years.
"There are pros and cons to that, as we really don't know what's going to happen, as the car is 90 per cent new, but from what I've discovered already, it's got a lot of potential. I'm quietly confident that on the gravel rallies, we'll be able to challenge up the front more often."
Paddon is back in New Zealand for a short break to catch his breath before heading back to Europe for testing and a season debrief. He and Kennard achieved a lot in their first full year in the WRC, and it's only just beginning to sink in that they have set the bar pretty high for rookies, having already had a podium finish and a string of top-five finishes.
"I guess it was always a dream to be able to do a full season in the WRC and we have. The main thing this year was to prove we were worth a contract for 2016 and beyond, which we did.
"It's been a big year and a busy one. I probably don't pinch myself enough to think about how far we've come but I'll do that when the adventure ends in God knows how many years.
"For now I'm focused on the job at hand and trying to be the best I can. Finishing second in Sardegna [Rally Italy] has set the bar pretty high, as we didn't expect that to happen so soon.
"So now we have only two places to go - get our first rally win and then a championship," said Paddon.
At the beginning of the year, Paddon and Kennard were definitely the newbies on the block at Hyundai Motorsport.
Not only did they have to cope with relocating to Europe but there was also the alien environment of being part of a team that had the fast and well-respected duo of Dani Sordo and Thierry Neuville.
These two lead drivers had been in the top echelon of rallying for many years longer than Paddon and were where he wanted to be.
Demonstrating a drive and commitment Paddon has shown his entire career, he and Kennard were soon out-pacing their more illustrious colleagues and setting the fastest stage times.
"It's all very collegiate within all the teams really. All the drivers get on within the teams, as we do, as the manufacturers' championship is more important for the teams than the individual drivers' championship.
"We all work together to get as many points for the team at each rally as possible. Hyundai probably has the most stability driver-wise of all the teams for the future.
"The team has grown so much this year and is so much more stable and we will be in a position to challenge for the world title in the next couple of years.
"Thierry and Dani are much more experienced than I am and are very fast drivers, so to be able to occasionally beat them was great.
"In the future, we'll be looking to beat them all the time. To start with, we were the new boys on the block and maybe they didn't take us too seriously. Now, I think they see us as a threat," said Paddon.
The rally co-driver is a bit of an enigma to a lot of followers of the sport. The only people who really understand and appreciate just how fundamental co-drivers are to the success of winning a rally stage are probably the drivers themselves.
Paddon is under no illusion how important Kennard has been to his development as a world-class rally driver and is chuffed the vineyard owner is back on board for 2016 and hopefully beyond.
"John didn't take any convincing to stay on for another year and he's fully committed to it. The great thing with John is that he's as passionate about it [rallying] as I am.
"As long as it keeps working, we're not going to change anything. When we were looking for a co-driver back in 2005, we knew John would be a really good fit. I don't think any one of us back then would have dreamt where we'd be now," said Paddon.
From Kennard's perspective, he must have seen something in the teenager in 2005 when he received a phone call from then 18-year-old Paddon and his dad Chris to join their Team Green. It's not as if he had anything to prove, having raced in the WRC for years before managing the logistics of the Mitsubishi and Prodrive world rally teams.
"Although I spent seasons doing logistics in the WRC, this year was my first full-time, full year as a co-driver in the WRC," said Kennard.
"On reflection, it went extremely well as far as I'm concerned but from Hayden's point of view, he's probably not that happy.
"That's how you keep making progress - by being hard on yourself and forcing yourself to do more and more. And that's what Hayden does.
"It was one of the first things I noticed about him when he and his dad asked me to become involved. I'd worked with other young drivers before and they had a sense of entitlement about them and didn't listen to advice much. Hayden on the other hand is really good at listening and that's why I have really enjoyed my time co-driving with him.
"Every single event we do, we are [learning]. We're going back next year to do even better than we did this year. We've already managed a second place and the new car is good so we'll be back there [on the podium] again next year that's for sure."
There is no doubt the flying Kiwi pair will be back at the sharp end of the competition in 2016. With a faster car and this year's experience under their belts, look for them to be consistently inside the top three and maybe legitimate title contenders in 2017. Now that would be something for Possum Bourne to smile about.
2015 WRC points
1 Sebastien Ogier 263
2 Jari-Matti Latvala 183
3 Andreas Mikkelsen 171
4 Mads Ostberg 116
5 Kris Meeke 112
6 Thierry Neuville 90
7 Elfyn Evans 89
8 Dani Sordo 89
9 Hayden Paddon 84
