New Zealand's Hayden Paddon admits his poor form this season might put him on the outer at Hyundai in next year's World Rally Championship (WRC).
With no Australian drivers in the field at Coffs Harbour's Rally Australia and no New Zealand leg on tour, Paddon will be the closest thing to a hometown hero on Friday when racing begins.
And he will need the morale boost in what is the final round of the WRC, after collecting just one podium among a smattering of retirements and poor results in the 2017 season.
Those results could hurt him next year, given Hyundai boast four drivers, but will only run three cars.
"It's not what we want but, unfortunately, with four drivers and three cars, we're likely to be changing through the year depending how each driver is performing," the 30-year-old told AAP.
"It's been a pretty terrible year; I got off to a bad start with lots of technical failures and a few mistakes on my part so we've been chasing our tail from the word go."
Paddon has given up hope of racing in a New Zealand WRC round for now, but disagrees with his Hyundai teammate Thierry Neuville who has queried Coffs Harbour's place on the calendar.
"If we can't have New Zealand, then Australia is the next best thing; it's as close to home as we get and actually reminds me quite a lot of home," he said.
The Kiwi is 10th in the standings, with Frenchman Sebastien Ogier having already secured his fifth world title.
In the three-day event on the NSW north coast, drivers will be tested on forestry roads surrounding Coffs Harbour and reach a top speed of about 205km/h.
"If it stays dry, it'll be good because the stages are quite fast," Paddon said.
"Friday and Saturday will be key; I'll try and do the damage then and finish off the season with a good result."
