We report on the chemiresistive gas sensingcharacteristics of ZnO nanorods (NRs) modified by a thin layerof nickel phthalocyanine (NiPc). Ozone detection was carried outthrough electrical measurements with an optimized performanceat 250oC, good reproducibility and suitable concentration range(from 80 to 890 ppb) for technological applications. The hybridNiPc:ZnO films had superior performance to pure ZnOnanorods in terms of response time and sensitivity. The responsetimes were 22 s and 26 s, respectively, whereas the ratio ofresistances under ozone and air was 3.27 for NiPc:ZnO films and 2.56 for the pure ZnO NRs. The improvement in response time is attributed to the large surface area generated with the coating of the ZnO nanorods with the NiPc layer. Significantly, images taken with field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) indicated that the ZnO nanorods were fully covered withNiPc. X-ray diffraction measurements (XRD) revealed a preferential growth of the nanorod-like structures along the [100] direction. In summary, a successful approach has been developedto functionalize ZnO nanorods, which is promising for detection of ppb levels of ozone gas.