Stuart Maloney started his preparations for next month’s BCIC Rally Barbados in determined fashion with victory on Sunday’s BRC Shakedown Stages.
Spectators turned out in their numbers for the first closed-road rally of the season, and enjoyed some first-class action in the second of two back-to-back rounds of the Barbados Rally Club Driver’s & Class Championships, although a high attrition rate left only 37 official finishers from the 61 starters.
Driving his new Skoda Fabia RS Rally2, Maloney survived a strong challenge from early leader Josh Read (Ford Fiesta R5) and a late charge from Jamaican Kyle Gregg (Fiesta Rally2), to defeat them by nine and 11 seconds respectively.
After finishing second behind his brother Mark (Fabia Rally2 evo) in Saturday’s Bushy Park RallySprint, Maloney said he was still getting used to the Fabia’s latest evolution.
“The changes between the different versions are incremental, but it is a better car and can give a good showing on Rally Barbados once I gel with the car like how Josh is now gelled with his car. He was flying today,” he said.
Maloney won the day’s opening 3.6-kilometre stage between Lamberts to Luke Hill in St Lucy, 12 hundredths quicker than Dane Skeete (Subaru Impreza WRC S12), who retired on the next stage. Read was fastest on the first run from French Village to Four Hills (3.7kms) in St Peter, assuming the lead, but Maloney fought back, arriving at lunch ahead by just over one second after four stages, with England’s Rob Swann (Fabia Rally2 evo) third, another 2.5 seconds adrift.
Gregg and fellow Jamaican Jeff Panton (Fabia Rally2 evo) started the day uncharacteristically slowly, with Gregg seventh at lunch, nine seconds off the leader, while Panton had clawed back from eighth to fourth.
Maloney won the next three stages, stretching his advantage over Read to 7.6 seconds, with Read also now coming under pressure from Gregg.
The Jamaican had been faster than the Bajan on each run, moving up to third, also passing Mark Maloney, Panton and Swann on the way and cutting the eight second lunchtime gap to just 3.6 seconds with two stages to go.
Just as he did at the Motoring Club Barbados Inc Spring Blaze in March, Gregg won the final two stages but still had to settle for third.
Panton, Swann and Mark Maloney completed the top six, with the leading 2wd finisher Roger Mayers ahead of FIA R5 runners Roger Hill (Fabia R5), Logan Watson (Fabia Rally2 evo) and Andrew Mallalieu (Fiesta R5).
Mayers dominated the 2wd battle from the off in his Toyota WR Starlet with some stunning times in the morning – second overall from French Village to Four Hills – placing him fifth overall at lunch.
While his pace slipped a little in the afternoon, he still finished seventh overall, winning SuperModified 2.
His brother Barry (Fiesta), who was the top 2wd in Saturday’s RallySprint, failed to make Sunday with engine issues, while Andrew Jones (Ford Escort MkII) failed to finish the first stage.
Rhett Watson (BMW M3) was second in 2wd and SM2 and 12th overall, while Modified 2 winner Neil Corbin (Toyota GT86 CS-R3) was third in 2wd and 15th overall.
(PR)
