2011/03/16th
Article by Glenn Beckles
Photos by Kirk Watkins
Roger “The Ninja” Hill and Sean Gill shared the spoils as they were both in winner’s row after contesting the Motoring Club of Barbados Inc’s (MCBI) double header. Drivers faced a stern test on what has been said to be the most technical and challenging stage in Barbados – Ellesmere. Hill drove his Toyota Corolla WRC like a man possessed throughout the event, and won the pre-lunch session with a fastest time of 1 minute 18.38 seconds. ‘The Ninja’ signaled his intent from the practice run, and left spectators stunned with his commitment in each and every twist, turn and corner of the course. Gill, driving his Suzuki SX4 WRC on local tarmac for the first time was less than a second behind Hill in the morning session, but turned the tables, claiming victory in the post-lunch session. His fastest of the three official runs being 1:18.22. Gill looked quite comfortable in the SX4, and they will pose a very viable threat to the established order in the WRC group.
Mark Hamilton returned to four-wheel drive competition, this time behind the wheel of the ex-Barry Gale Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX. Hamilton made himself right at home, taking the fight to Group N champion Geoff Noel. These two had an enthralling battle all event long, with nothing more of a fraction of a second between them in each run. Andrew Mallalieu in a Subaru Impreza WRX returned to competition after a 14 year layoff and gave a pretty good account of himself. In the final run of the day, Mallalieu made two marvelous turns in the “esses” just after exiting the Todds junction, much to the delight of the spectators.
Cliff Roett was blisteringly quick in his Toyota Starlet. Even though he only completed two runs during the event, he placed third overall in the morning session. Norman Catwell was quite rapid in his Peugeot 205. Apart from his committed driving, fans thoroughly enjoyed the Pug’s engine note and the crisp gear changes. Jason Cozier made a return to the tarmac after a seven year absence and had quite a battle going with Jamal Brathwaite. Cozier’s Peugeot 205 was less than a second quicker than Brathwaite’s Mitsubishi Colt throughout the morning’s runs, setting up Brathwaite to exact revenge in the afternoon. This wasn’t to be, however, as the Colt suffered some mechanical problems. Paul Horton continued to impress in his Honda Civic, and Edward Corbin was ‘Mr.Consistent’ in his Daihatsu Charmant. The Watson brothers put down solid displays in their BMW M3. They even let the back hang out a bit, and the acoustics from the M3’s straight six weren’t half-bad either.
If Sunday’s event is anything to go by, the 2011 season will be full of action and excitement. What’s more intriguing is that there are quite a few competitors to enter the fray. Well done to all those involved in Sunday’s event, and we look forward to even better things as they year progresses. Red265 Rally Media will keep you informed….stay tuned.
Results
