The twenty two year old Mexican driver is going to make the next step in his career with the full support of the Spanish team ASM motorsport. It will be the first driver from his country to compete at the wheel of an FIA S2000 rally car. He will complete this season a full training campaign with the team´s Skoda Fabia S2000, in a selected number of rallyes and testing programme among other activities, with the objective to compete at World Rally Championship level in a medium term period.

ASM Motorsport has decided to sign and to welcome Victor Rodriguez in its team. The young Mexican driver will be the first in Latin America to receive the support of the Spanish team in order to compete in Europe, in the first phase of an exciting new sports project that will be released shortly.

Despite his youth (22 years), Victor Rodriguez has established himself as the strongest Mexican rallying talent. The successes he has achieved in his country are evident. In his first full season as a rally driver, Victor Rodriguez attracted the attention of all those involved in the Mexican Championship by the spectacular results achieved. The young driver from the state of Oaxaca claimed his first victory in the Rally Sierra Juarez, and finished the championship in an excellent third place, proving to be able to beat other highly experienced competitors although his short experience.

Alex Sabater, ASM team principal comments: “We are very proud to announce our long term relationship with Victor Rodriguez from Mexico. He caught our attention last year due to his short experience and his great results in his National Championship, proving a natural talent in the sport. After working with two great drivers in 2012 like Hayden Paddon and Esapekka Lappi, it is a great and exciting challenge now for us to give Víctor the right environment he will need to reach the top class in World Rally Championship”.

Together with co-driver Janne Ferm, the talented 21-year old driver from Naarajärvi in Finland will test the ASM Motorsport Fabia S2000 in Spain next week (23/24 October).

The Barcelona-based ASM Motorsport team hopes to continue a great 2012 season, in which it has established itself as one of the leading teams in the FIA Super 2000 World Rally Championship. Meanwhile Lappi scored the best result of his career, when he won the recent Rally Poland, a round of the FIA European Rally Championship, in a ŠKODA Motorsport factory-run Fabia S2000.

Lappi’s car on both the Rallye Sierra Morena and Rallye Comunidad de Madrid will run on DMACK tyres and enjoy support from Holiday Inn Hotels & Resorts.

Lappi is managed by EVEN Rally, the motorsport management organisation that also looks after Intercontinental Rally Challenge champion Andreas Mikkelsen and upcoming talent Pontus Tidemand.

Alex Sabater, ASM Motorsport team owner: “ASM Motorsport is delighted to have reached an agreement with EVEN Rally and Esapekka Lappi, for him to drive in the last two rallies of the Spanish National Tarmac Championship. We strongly believe Esapekka is one of the most talented up-and-coming young drivers in rallying, and this small programme will help him gain very valuable Tarmac experience. We are already working at full throttle so the ŠKODA Fabia S2000 we give him will be the best car possible. We also want to make sure he has the best team environment, so Esapekka and his co-driver Janne Ferm can enjoy and learn from the experience of working with what will be a totally new team, culture and championship for them.”

Esapekka Lappi: “I’m really looking forward to contesting these two rounds of the Spanish National Tarmac Championship. To drive on Tarmac, which is a quite unknown surface for me, with the Fabia S2000 is going to be really enjoyable. It will also be nice to work with such a professional team as ASM Motorsport; I’ve received so much good feedback about them and I feel that I can trust them one hundred per cent immediately. Of course everything is new – the car, team, Tarmac, DMACK tyres and the roads of Spain, so I really don´t know what to expect. Hopefully it’s going to be a very instructive challenge for me.”

Ferrari 308 GTB Gr 4, safe investment and high reliability
The high reliability of the vehicle, due to a very meticulous preparation thereof and the fact that these original cars don’t get its price devalue in the market, makes the Ferrari 308 GTB a safe investment. Designed by Pininfarina, under the hood hides an atmospheric engine of 8 cylinders in V with 2926 cc, situated transversely behind the cockpit of the car to compensate the weight distribution and develops 252 horsepower at 7600 rpm. With its powerful engine and its light and aerodynamic body, the 308 moves with ease and reaches the 248 km/h top speed being able to accelerate from 0-100 km/h in just over 6 seconds.

A new commitment of ASM Motorsport
Since 2011, thirty-six years after the market launch of this legendary vehicle, ASM Motorsport offers the possibility to have the Ferrari 308 GTB with Group 4 preparation in either both circuit-racing cars to vehicles designed to run on rallies or regularity (TSD rallying), as the homologation of the International Automobile Federation number 648. ASM Motorsport provides two preparation levels that optimize the performance of the competition vehicle, always starting from a standard vehicle of either fiberglass or steel and with dry sump.

The Ferrari 308 GTB Gr 4 according to Björn Waldegård
With over 300 teams entered, Rally Legend Boucles of Spa 2012 was the scene where the ASM Motorsport’s car debuted in the hands of Björn Waldegård. The Swedish driver won in its category and finished in the Top 10, making clear the potential of the Ferrari 308 GTB Gr 4 as a winner car in a no favors race for it due to its narrow and uneven floor. Björn Waldegård commented: “In races with smoother and wider stages the Ferrari 308 GTB Gr 4 is a great weapon to fight for victory. It is a very balanced car and its excellent power to weight ratio means it can go very fast. It is certainly a real race car to enjoy and also lets you win rallies.”

The Ferrari 308 GTB Gr 4, a winning vehicle
The victory in Class 10 and the excellent 7th place in the overall classification in the classic Rally Legend Boucles of Spa, this year, were not a matter of luck. The Ferrari 308 GTB Gr 4 has also won this season at The Boucles Chevrotines, both in general and in its class. It has also taken part in the no scoring rallys of Eiffel Historic Rally and Senzeille Historic Stage, making clear its potential and good know-how.

Information and sales
For further information about the Ferrari 308 GTB Gr 4 and budgets you can contact with ASM Motorsport at the +34.934.698.226 or by email at info@asmmotorsport.com.

Even though they were contending with further mechanical issues today, 24 June, the popular pair was also the first New Zealand crew home, an honour they’ve also secured at the past two New Zealand WRC events.

Despite a winning margin of over 33 minutes to second-placed SWRC finisher P-G Andersson, Paddon admitted to having hoped to achieve more at his home event.

“We were out to show our pace on roads we know well so it was particularly frustrating for the rear suspension to break in the first stage this morning just when we were about to try and chase down Manfred Stohl in a WRC Ford who started the day just in front of us in eleventh place overall,” says the 25-year-old production world rally champion.

“Today was frustrating. Although we bought it home and scored maximum points, not only did we have the suspension issue, I made a silly mistake in stage 20, hitting a bank, spinning and puncturing a tyre. So we lost time there.

“Yes, overall the result was good and I’m very pleased for everyone who’s worked so hard that we are now leading the championship, but I was hoping for more.

“I feel the best is yet to come with John and me in the Skoda. The car’s not bad at all, but it’s a fine balance to get the setup right. We’ll do more testing and put in a lot more hard work. We’re aiming to go hard in Finland in July. Finland is a very special rally and it’s crucial to have absolute confidence in the car.”

The final day of Brother Rally New Zealand took competitors to Puhoi and Kaukapakapa north of Auckland for some high speed stages as well as two quick blasts around the narrow tarmac roads around the magnificent Auckland War Memorial Museum and Auckland Domain.

When not hampered by suspension issues or a puncture, Paddon put in some solid stage times on Sunday’s final seven stages with two 12th-fastest and one top ten time, putting him among the WRC competitors.

“We were humbled by the sheer number of fans cheering for us. From that perspective, it’s been an amazing event,” added Paddon who heads home to Geraldine briefly before returning to Spain to work with his team, ASM Motorsport, with the car’s preparation for Finland.

“My sincere thanks to ENZED for their support for Brother Rally New Zealand and thanks also to our many fantastic supporters including PlaceMakers, Giltrap Group, Skoda, Z Energy, Cameron Sea and Airfreight, Granger Design, Raiseys, New Balance, Pope Print, Racetech, Chicane Racewear, Endless Brake Pads, 1 Group web design, Brita Safety, Rally Tours, MAK-Corp, EPS International, Saddle Hill Quarries, Monit Rally Computers, Bluebridge Ferries, Stadium Finance, and Ewing Engineering Contractors.”

Paddon’s next event is Rally Finland which runs 3 to 5 July.

Brother Rally New Zealand SWRC Results:
1. H. Paddon 4:20:17.4, 2. PG. Andersson +33:19.7, 3. M. Oleksowicz +43:37.9, 4. Y. Al Rajhi +49:45.1.

SWRC 2012 Overall classification:
1. Hayden Paddon 62 puntos, 2. Craig Breen 43 p., 3. PG. Andersson 43 p., 4. M. Oleksowicz 41 p. …

After a long period of research and planning, currently we can offer two levels of preparation that will optimize the performance of our race car, always starting from the production vehicle, either fiberglass or steel bodyshell and from the dry sump engine.

Next, a photo gallery summarizes the manufacturing process of this legendary race car.

The announcement links three significant Kiwi entities – the Kiwi world champion rally driver, New Zealand’s leading mobile hose repair service and New Zealand’s longest-running world championship event.

“It is a privilege to sport the ENZED colours at Brother Rally New Zealand,” says Paddon from his home in Geraldine where he is preparing for the 21 to 24 June event.

“ENZED’s brand has long had positive associations with New Zealand motorsport and it’s fantastic to have the opportunity to form a relationship with the team at ENZED who are passionate about supporting Kiwis at home and offshore. I trust that we can deliver the result that we all want with ENZED on the side of the car.”

Paddon is competing in the 2012 FIA Super 2000 World Rally Championship and, after events in Sweden and Portugal, currently holds second place in the series, which is widely-regarded as the key stepping stone into the full World Rally Championship. Brother Rally New Zealand is third of Paddon’s events for the 2012 season and, with current SWRC points’ leader Irishman Craig Breen electing to skip the New Zealand event, Paddon’s goal is to win the S2000 category on his home event and move into the championship lead.

Nigel Bartlett, New Zealand operations manager for ENZED based in Mt Wellington, Auckland, says: “We are proud to support such a talented New Zealand driver as he competes on the world stage with all the advantages of running at home in New Zealand.”

Bartlett adds: “There’s no doubt that Hayden is a rising star in world rallying – his four straight production category wins last season which netted him the 2011 FIA Production World Rally Championship title clearly demonstrate New Zealanders’ favourite young rally driver has the talent to succeed at the highest levels in this sport. The team at ENZED has a genuine interest in promoting New Zealanders competing in the international arena, bringing further pride and passion to the New Zealand brand.”

ENZED is a division of Parker Hannifin NZ Ltd and a subsidiary of Parker Hannifin Inc, the global leader in motion control products, systems and solutions for the industrial hose and fitting market. In New Zealand, ENZED operates a network of 23 franchises and 100 owner-operator Hose Doctors® to provide premier service nationwide. Under the Parker brand, the company also supports ‘You’ Men’s Health Trust New Zealand.

Paddon also acknowledges the support of Rally Tours NZ Ltd and MAK-Corp in putting together his Brother Rally New Zealand campaign. “Greg Paul from Rally Tours NZ, which runs a range of fully guided tours to see and participate in rallies around the world, has supporting both Paddon RallySport and rallying as a whole for many years. And MAK-Corp is new to the Paddon RallySport family – their brilliant team is known for their work with various real life teams and series to produce the most accurate racing simulators possible. They have designed the software for our new rally simulator which we’ll be running at Brother Rally New Zealand for all our supporters to compete on. Our thanks to both organisations for their ongoing support.”

Paddon’s 2012 campaign is supported by PlaceMakers, Giltrap Group, Skoda, ENZED, Cameron Sea and Airfreight, Granger Design, Castrol, Raiseys, New Balance, Pope Print, Racetech, Chicane Racewear, Endless Brake Pads, 1 Group web design, Brita Safety, Rally Tours, MAK-Corp, EPS International, Saddle Hill Quarries, Monit Rally Computers and Bluebridge Ferries.

Andre Bernard and co-driver Eric Gressens, on board of a Ford Escort MkI unit, have competed in the Gr 4 and even electrical problems delayed the French couple have finally managed to finish seventh in its class.

The event has been noted for its hardness, for some long days for both competitors and service teams, temperatures have exceeded 40 ° C and an excellent organization.