Motorsport: Hayden Paddon eyes step to the top

Hayden Paddon is optimistic about his chances in Rally Australia.

Kiwi driver Hayden Paddon has had to contend with a few changes after his recent success in the World Rally Championships, not least his own expectations.

Previously Paddon aimed for a podium finish but now, after finishing second in Sardinia - the first time a New Zealander had placed that high in more than 20 years - and fourth in Poland, he's eyeing top spot.

"For Australia [in September], we targeted the podium initially. Now we've achieved the podium, I think we can try and target the top step," said Paddon, who returned to New Zealand last week.

"It's a pretty tough ask but you've got to have goals. At the moment, we're sticking to the plan, which in the European rallies is top five."

The 28-year-old said a combination of his driving team gelling and vehicle upgrades were responsible for his recent successes.

"It's a combination of a lot of things, really," he said. "Rallying is one of those sports where it's very important and very dependable on experience and time in the car and now, having spent 12 months with the team and doing events just naturally over time, the speed comes.

"As we've been doing better, we've been getting more upgrades on the car. Our car now is pretty close to the front two drivers."

Paddon said a big upgrade before Sardinia was getting a paddle shift on his car's steering column, which made a huge difference to his driving. His result in Sardinia was the highest equal finish by a New Zealander in a WRC event alongside former racers Rod Millen, Ray Wilson and Blair Robson.

He was optimistic Rally Australia was "the best chance we've got for the year" of winning a rally.

"In normal practices, you'd be focusing on one rally at a time, which is what we're doing, but at the same time every rally we're doing is a build-up to Rally Australia in terms of how we're approaching the rallies, the car set up, the pace notes ... until by the time we get to Rally Australia, we're in the best position."

Paddon was hopeful for first, but said his performance would be partly down to luck when it came to the weather. Dry conditions meant a better chance of winning than rain when roads become slipperier.

"It's pretty tough. I think we can be on the podium in Australia but there are so many variables in rallying.

"It's pretty hard to predict weather patterns six weeks out so it's really a matter of keeping fingers and toes crossed. All we can do in the meantime is prepare the best we can."

Paddon's expectations might have changed recently but he said they hadn't translated into financial gain through sponsorship.

"Unfortunately we haven't seen the benefits of that yet. Sponsorship is difficult. It doesn't matter what level you're at. Whether you're looking for $5 or $50,000, it's not easy."