Dunedin offroad racer and rally driver Emma Gilmour has kicked off her Extreme E season on the podium and slapped down her World Rally Championship challenge with an entry for the Rally of New Zealand.
In addition to her recently announced drive with McLaren Racing in the Extreme E offroad racing series, Gilmour is the first to commit to the 2022 Rally of New Zealand.
The World Rally Championship will return to New Zealand for the 32nd time this year with the 11th round of the 2022 championship to be based in and around Auckland from 29 September to 2 October.
One of New Zealand’s most talented rally drivers, Gilmour this year turns her hand to the high rofile Extreme E offroad racing series as the first female to compete for McLaren Racing. She won one of three races at the opening round of the Extreme E series.
Gilmour’s rally career has been equally impressive. She has rallied in Europe and the UK, competed in the X-Games rallycross series and is one of New Zealand’s leading rally drivers having finished runner-up in the New Zealand Rally Championship three times. She was also the first female to win a round of the NZ championship and has finished second in a round of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship.
The Rally of New Zealand has been a WRC event since 1978, missing occasional years at full status as the shape of the championship evolved. International drivers are loud in their praise for the event, and Gilmour says it’s a well-worn cliché, but New Zealand roads really are the best rally roads in the world.
“Our roads are smooth – so they don’t break the car, the roads have camber which allows the car a lot more grip and gives the best sensation when dancing the car at high speed from corner to corner and jumping over the camber,” said Gilmour.
“We have great support for the event with a huge motorsport passion in New Zealand so there will be lots of fans out on the stages. It’s very exciting to have the pinnacle of world rallying returning to New Zealand.
“We are very proud to be coming on board to assist bringing the WRC back to New Zealand as a major sponsor this year.