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While anticipation among island fans about the record-breaking overseas invasion for Sol Rally Barbados 2012 (June 9/10) is reaching fever pitch, local competitors are concentrating on their preparations for the highlight of the season. Shell V-Power King of the Hill (June 3) and Sol RB12 – each day is a separate round – offer three chances to score points towards the Barbados Rally Club (BRC) Virgin Atlantic Championships.
After three rounds, it is tight at the top. In the four-wheel-drive title chase, Modified 8-WRC leader Sean Gill (Suzuki SX4 WRC) is just one point ahead of Roger Skeete (Subaru Impreza WRC S12), with Paul Bourne (Ford Focus WRC07) another three behind; each has won once this year, in what is proving to be the closest tussle going in to the season’s headline events for some time.
Among the two-wheel-drive runners, the leaders are far more spread out, as a variety of issues has kept the each of the key players away from one or more events. SuperModified 11 points-leader Stuart Maloney (Peugeot 306 Maxi) has a five-point advantage over his class competition Logan Watson (BMW M3), with Ian Warren (Suzuki Swift) and Daryl Clarke (Honda Civic), respectively leaders of SM10 and M7, tied in third, six points behind.
With the only 100 per cent record so far this year in a fully-subscribed class, Clarke also leads the overall VA Class Championship with 50 points; Maloney and Production 4 leader Geoff Noel (although a winner every time, he’s dropped a couple of points because of an unsubscribed class) tie for second on 48, with Gill, Skeete and SM9 leader Allan Maynard (Toyota Starlet) completing the top six.
Virgin Atlantic BRC Class Championship
Provisional positions after round 3:
Modified 8-WRC: 1st Sean Gill (Simpson Motors/Shell V-Power/Automotive Art/Monster Energy Drink Suzuki SX4 WRC), 45 points; 2nd Roger Skeete (Sol/Michelin/Da Costa Mannings Auto Centre/Simpson Motors Subaru Impreza WRC S12), 44pts; 3rd Paul Bourne (Chefette/LIME/Slam 101/MQI/Banks/Castrol Ford Focus WRC07), 41pts; etc
Modified 8-A: 1st Avinash Chatrani (Electric Avenue/Hankook/Solder Seal Gunk/Niagra Water/Sign Station Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI), 37pts; 2nd Graeme Finlayson (www.racedandrallied.com [4] Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III), 26pts
Production 4: 1st Geoffrey Noel (Globe Finance/Sentry Insurance Brokers/Cargo Solutions International/Mix 96.9FM/CIAC Air Conditioners Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX), 48pts; 2nd Andrew Mallalieu (Terra Caribbean Subaru Impreza N10), 39pts; 3rd Mark Hamilton (CIBC-FCIB/Simpson Motors/MAXI Malta/PowerMaster/Boston Seasoning/Automotive Art Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX), 28pts
SuperModified 11: 1st Stuart Maloney (Automotive Art/Sign Station/Valvoline Peugeot 306 Maxi), 48pts; 2nd Logan Watson (Oreo/Chips Ahoy!/Club Social/Formula1 High Performance Auto Care Products/Liquid Wrench/Sign Depot/The Unknown Entity/In support of Little Pink Gift BMW M3), 41pts; 3rd Alex Whitehead (AM Electrical Solutions/Sign Station BMW 328i), 33pts; etc
SM10: 1st Ian Warren (Automotive Art/Simpson Motors/Degree Suzuki Swift), 22pts; 2nd Neil Armstrong (Lubriguard/Hankook Tyres/Nassco/Redline Fuels/ARMAG Rentals Toyota Starlet), 20pts; 3rd Nigel Reece (Subzero Services/IGM Air Conditioners/Ullyetts Machine Shop Service/Valvoline/Gatorade/Frito-Lay/Trident International Ford Escort MkI), 15pts
SM9: 1st Allan Maynard (Marshal Trading/Roberts Manufacturing Toyota Starlet), 43pts; 2nd Clifford Cox (PondFly Inc/SDRR Hydraulics Toyota Starlet), 36pts; 3rd Carlos Edwards (Courts I-Finance/Enermax Toyota Starlet), 30pts; etc
M7: 1st Daryl Clarke (Ellco Rentals/Mom's Pasta Products/MQI/Roberts Manufacturing Honda Civic), 50pts; 2nd Kyle Catwell (Chicken Pen Racing/Kumho/Valvoline/Mackeson/Ellesmere Quarries Volkswagen Golf GTI), 41pts; 3rd Sean Field/Darnley Rayside (Field Insurance Brokers/Castrol/Ackee Tree Restaurant/AM Realty Services/Landscapes in Harmony/Beacon Insurance Peugeot 306 GTi6), 32pts; etc
M6 & M5 merged: 1st Neil Corbin (M6 Nassco/Jason Jones/Auto Solutions/Castrol Toyota Starlet), 45pts; 2nd Wayne Archer (M6 Peugeot 206), 26pts; 3rd Sean Cox (M5 Simpson Motors/Gliptone/Johnsen’s Suzuki Swift Gti), 22pts; etc
Clubman: 1st Jeremy Croney (Peugeot 206GTi), 41pts; 2nd David Brewster (Peugeot 205GTi), 22pts
BRC 4wd Championship: 1st Gill, 45pts; 2nd Skeete, 44pts; 3rd Bourne, 41pts; 4th Roger Hill (M8-WRC Esso/Nassco/MotorMac Toyota Corolla WRC), 34pts; 5th Noel, 29pts; 6th Mallalieu, 24pts; 7th Chatrani, 21pts; 8th Dean Serrao (M8-WRC Sugar Ultra Lounge/Rush Restaurant Subaru Impreza WRC S9), 13pts; 9th Finlayson, 17pts; 10th Hamilton, 7pts
BRC 2wd Championship: 1st Maloney, 41pts; 2nd Watson, 36pts; 3rd equal Warren & Clarke, 30pts; 5th Whitehead, 22pts; 6th Sammy Cumberbatch (SM11 LIME/F Taylor Associates/Castrol BMW M3), 21pts; 7th equal Armstrong & Catwell, 20pts; 9th Roger Mayers (Chefette/Digicel/Delaware Dispensary/Illusion Graphics/Barbados Today WR Starlet), 15pts; 10th Corbin, 14pts; etc
For further media information: e-mail - robin@bradfax.com [5]
web sites: www.rallybarbados.bb; [6] www.barbadosrallyclub.com [7]
