Gilmour aims for rally title
Consistency is at the forefront of Emma Gilmour’s 2025 New Zealand Rally Championship (NZRC) game plan by signing up Australian co-driver Ben Searcy for her full six-round campaign.
Perth-based Searcy brings a wealth of experience and is no stranger to sitting beside Gilmour in the WRC2 C3 car.
They most recently paired up at the Southern Lights Rally last June and finished in fifth. But their working relationship goes back to 2019 when Searcy navigated in her previous Suzuki rally car.
Gilmour says: “I enjoyed working with Ben again at the Southern Lights. He’s an absolute professional and has a huge amount of experience. I know having that consistency for the whole year will be great.”
Searcy claimed the 2023 Asia-Pacific Rally Championship title as co-driver for Rifat Sungkar, of Indonesia.
Last year he competed with Maguire Motorsport in the Australian Rally Championship and made his FIA World Rally Championship debut in a Rally2 with Peter Rullo at Rally Sweden.
Searcy says: “I’ve always enjoyed competing with Emma and can’t wait to get back onto the New Zealand stages.”
Last year he took part in two different Rally2 vehicles following the Kiwi round with Gilmour in her C3.
“I did three weekends in a row in three different Rally2 cars and the Citroen was by far the best performing,” adds Searcy. “I’m keen to see what the Citroen can do over the entire championship with Emma this year.”
Following an impressive third place in the NZRC last year, Gilmour will continue working with her mechanic Ollie Talbott and Paddon Rallysport this year.
She says: “They are so talented team to work with, and their experience and knowledge over the past couple of seasons has been awesome.
“The Paddon Rallysport team has been helping me with developments with the rally car over the off-season, so we will be ready to hit the ground running for Otago.
“This time last year I was still battling with the recovery process following my Extreme E crash concussion, so I’m looking forward to starting this season strong and continuing to build on the speed we found last year.”
Gilmour, of Dunedin, loves that her season begins with her home event, the Otago Rally on April 5 and 6.
New stages on the Saturday around Middlemarch add a fresh take on one of her favourite events, which will also feature famous Otago stages, such as Waipori Gorge and Kuri Bush, on the Sunday.
The 280km route includes 15 special stages and with Cromwell’s Hayden Paddon electing to contest the rally in a classic car, that leaves the path clearer for Gilmour to achieve her goal of a home-turf victory.
“It’s a long event and a fast event. The AP4s have the advantage on the flat-out stages but we will give it a good go.”
She has the title in her sights and is keen to move up the podium from her third place last season and top the several runner-up finishes she has to her name.
“I still want to win the championship, but don’t underestimate the challenge of that with the calibre of competition at the top end of the NZRC field. I’m looking for a consistent competitive season and we’ll see what transpires come the final round in November.”
After Otago, the action resumes at the South Canterbury Rally on May 10 based in Timaru before a return to the Canterbury Rally, Christchurch, on June 1.
Following a mid-season break, the teams will move to the North Island with another returning event, Rally Coromandel, on August 23 out of Whitianga.
The series then moves to the Tauranga-based Rally Bay of Plenty on October 11, before the second two-day round of the season, the International Rally of Whangarei, rounds out the season from November 7-9.
Her fans can meet Gilmour at the Friday night motor show and ceremonial start in Dunedin’s Octagon on April 4 from 5.30pm. The first car will leave at 6.45pm.
She thanks the following sponsors for their support – Vantage Windows & Doors, Gilmour Motors Suzuki, Dura-Seal, Dayle ITM, MITO, Suzuki NZ, Castrol NZ, Sparco, Allport Motorsports, Custom Signs, NGK, Webdesign, Pure Sports Nutrition and Body Synergy Gym.
