Ben Jagger Sizes Up Opposition For 09

This year's plan of attack for Ben Jagger and Ben Hawkins in the New Zealand Ford Fiesta Trophy is to learn from their mistakes in their rookie season and improve on their success.

"We plan to put everything we learnt last year into use and hopefully come out as the best this year." says Ben Jagger.

Last year the pair showed many they have the talent to be contenders in the New Zealand rally scene while competing their first NZ Rally Championship.

An exciting season duelling over the championship lead with Patrick Malley last year all but came to a close when a roll in the latter stages of Rally New Zealand curtailed what was looking to be a comfortable round win for Jagger and Hawkins.

This left the Northland team to enter the final round of the season at Rally of Nelson trailing Aucklander Malley by 21 points and were unable to make up the deficit over that weekend with Malley taking the Ford Fiesta title.

Patrick Malley returns this season and will ensure the competition will be tough for Jagger but he has his eye on some new blood coming into the mix.

"We know where we are with Patrick but with the others we really have no idea." says Jagger.

Ben Hunt from Nelson has just been awarded the very first Rally New Zealand Rising Stars Scholarship and along with two other drivers who have shown some talent in the past will complete a field of five cars in the Ford Fiesta Sporting Trophy for this weekend's rally and the season.

"I think Ben will go pretty well after he's picked up the basics and I hear he's a real fast learner - also there are Daniel Harris and Dominick Unterberger - it's hard to guage where we will be until after this weekend when we can see where everybody is at." says Jagger.

This weekend will be a two day rally but some may remember at the event last year very heavy storms on Saturday night forced the closure of the main road between Napier and Wairoa ending all hope of staging the second day of Rally of Hawkes Bay.

The forcast for the weekend at this point in time is for clear weather.

With no Rally New Zealand this season the championship will consist of just five rounds which of course includes the third round of the Asian Pacific Rally Championship held within the Rally of Whangarei over the weekend of 5-7th of June.

This gives the New Zealand drivers an opportunity to mix with international drivers and teams but also three locals are entered in the APRC, Haydon Paddon, Emma Gilmour and veteran Brian Green.

Jagger and Hawkins are still hopeful to get another taste of the World Rally Championship this year.

"We are hoping to confirm that we will be going to Australia because there won't be a world rally here so we hope to go over there." said Jagger.

The World Rally Championship will return to New Zealand in 2010 and will alternate with Australia each year.

Ben Jagger took the opportunity when it became available to take some training with past British Rally Champion and WRC driver Alister McRae.

"We did about ten runs and he sat with me through the day pointing out bits and pieces on my driving which I worked on each time - by the end I could definitely tell the difference." he said.

McRae also had sessions with Northland drivers Kirsty Nelson, Kingsley Thomson and Auckland driver Mark Tapper who debuts in the Production World Rally Championship this weekend in Portugal.

"Apart from the driving side of things I have been working on fitness and have had some media training which so far has been very beneficial." he says.

Jagger has his sights set on a strong season improving on his second place in the Fiesta Sporting Trophy from last year with many opportunities available for a successful team.

"We are aiming at the Rally New Zealand Development Award which the Fiesta drivers are eligible for which would help us into a four wheel drive next season."

Also up for grabs again is the opportunity for the winner of the NZ Ford Fiesta Sporting Trophy to compete in the international shootout in the UK as well as the Pirelli Star Driver Award where the successful driver would receive entry into the Production WRC to follow in the footsteps of NZ's Mark Tapper.

"There are some really good opportunities for us so we will be aiming at going well and having a strong season." said Jagger.

The other events of the season will be round two the Rally of Otago on 16-17 May with round four the Rally of Wairarapa in July and the final in September with the Rally of Nelson.