Rally Barbados pivotal for Texaco Championship
While the
attention of many Barbados Rally Carnival fans will be focused on the
overseas entries during Rally Barbados, which runs off over the May
26/27 weekend, there is an important hometown fight going on, too, as
Barbados Rally Club (BRC) members drive for points in the 2007 Texaco
BRC Rally Championship.
Each day of Rally Barbados counts as a separate round of the
Championship, so a consistent performance over the weekend is vital for
Championship success. With two rounds run, and only one further
remaining in October, Rally Barbados will play a pivotal role in
deciding the 2007 Champion.
This is the third year of the Texaco BRC Rally Championship, won
in 2005 by Roger Mayers (Ford Focus WRC) and last year by Paul 'Surfer'
Bourne (Subaru Impreza WRC). With co-driver Stuart Maloney, reigning
Champion Bourne has won both of this year's earlier rounds and gained a
healthy 12-point lead in the Championship . . . but, with a possible 30
points to be won over RB'07 weekend, there is still a long way to go,
especially as it will be the first time this year that all the
potential Championship winners go head-to-head.
Bourne has been chased home this year by two of the region's best:
in the opening round in March, it was Trevor Manning (Shell
V-Power/Simpson Motors/Garbage Master Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII) who
was closest, but an unplanned excursion into the scenery, during which
Manning made contact with a fence post and damaged the exhaust system,
caused a loss of power.
'Electric Micey' didn't even make it to round two in April, after
a turbo boost problem in the previous weekend's second round of the
Vaucluse Raceway RallySprint Cup left insufficient time to have the car
prepared. It has been a frustrating time for Manning, as the car is
working - when it's working! - better than ever before: "It was
disappointing, because I really enjoy driving it."
In the Texaco Championship's second round, Bourne's main
protagonist was Jamaica's John Powell in the Intercontinental
Shipping/Trinidad Mooring and Launch Services/Toyota Trinidad Toyota
Corolla WRC, who had not made it to the island for round one; in light
of an injury to his hand suffered some weeks previous, his performance
in April was remarkable, especially claiming fastest time in the Bushy
Park SuperSpecial. He said this week: "I was in a lot of pain at the
end of that event, because I tore three stitches in my finger. Anyhow,
I am glad to report everything is almost back to normal now."
While Manning and Powell are now ready for action, they are not
Bourne's only challengers, thanks to the return of Roger 'The Sheriff'
Skeete to four-wheel-drive, with his ex-works Ford Escort WRC. During
the BRC's 50th Anniversary Gala Dinner at the Sherbourne Conference
Centre on Saturday, Bourne said: "Just look at the entry - there are 10
cars in the WRC class, and there must be at least six guys on this
rally who are capable of setting fastest stage times; it could be the
best yet."
Fortunately for Bourne, not all of those six are registered for
the Texaco Championship, but the overseas visitors, such as last year's
winner, Jamaica's Gary Gregg (Ford Focus WRC), and Britain's Steve
Perez (Ford Focus WRC) and Kevin Procter (Hyundai Accent WRC) will rack
up the pressure on those Bajans aiming for Championship points. It will
not be an easy weekend.
Rally Barbados is organised by the Barbados Rally Club; each day
is a separate qualifying round of the Texaco BRC Rally Championship and
the BRC Driver's Championship. Principal sponsors are Automotive Art,
Banks Holdings Ltd, DaCosta Mannings Auto Centre, Digicel, McEnearney
Quality, Simpson Motors, Texaco and Williams Industries. Associate
sponsors are Armag, the Barbados Hotel & Tourism Association, Crane
& Equipment, Essco, Harris Paints, Nassco and SOL.
Key dates for Barbados Rally Carnival 2007
Friday, May 18 - scrutineering for all competitors
- Sir Garfield Sobers Gymnasium, Wildey
Saturday, May 19 - Red Bull International RallySprint
- Vaucluse Raceway, St Thomas
Thursday, May 24 - Rally Barbados 2007 shakedown
Saturday, May 26 - Rally Barbados 2007, day 1
Sunday, May 27 - Rally Barbados 2007, day 2
Monday, May 28 - Rally Barbados 2007 prize-giving
- The Boatyard
Texaco BRC Rally Championship
Positions after round 2
1st Paul Bourne (Subaru Impreza WRC), 30 points
2nd Jonathan Still (Hitachi Power Tools/Philips Lighting/Crane & Equipment BMW M3), 18pts
3rd Mark Hamilton (Consolidated Finance/McEnearney Quality Inc Ford Escort MkII), 14pts
4th equal Trevor Manning (Shell V-Power/Simpson Motors/Garbage
Master Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII) and John Powell (Intercontinental
Shipping/Trinidad Mooring and Launch Services/Toyota Trinidad Toyota
Corolla WRC), 12pts
6th Kirk Watkins (Abacus Builders Inc/Hankook Mitsubishi Lancer Evo V), 10pts
etc
For further information:
e-mail - robin@bradfax.com
web sites - www.rallybarbados.bb
