Josh Read has assumed the lead of the 2024 Barbados Rally2 Championship sponsored by CIBC Caribbean and Ace H & B Hardware after taking maximum points at First Citizens King of the Hill last Sunday (May 26). The Barbadian driver mastered a challenging day of tricky road conditions in his Ford Fiesta R5 to carry a five-point lead into the championship’s marquee event, BCIC Rally Barbados, which starts with two floodlit special stages at Bushy Park Barbados on Friday evening.
Less than one second covered the top three finishers. Britain’s Rob Swann led the championship contenders after two runs in his Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo, but was eclipsed by Read’s last run time, while championship newcomer and fellow Fabia Rally2 evo pilot Logan Watson claimed his best result of the season so far in third place.
Ahead of BCIC RB24, fans can get up close and personal with the drivers and cars from the Barbados Motoring Federation’s (BMF) Championship at a Meet & Greet at the Dome Mall Car Park, Warrens, between 3.00pm and 6.30pm tomorrow (Thursday). There will also be live entertainment by Edwin, the Combermere School Steel Orchestra, the Peynho Dance Company and DJ Gerald B.
For championship contenders, BCIC RB24 is the most important weekend of the year, with a maximum of 60 points on offer; Friday’s three stages and the nine on Saturday represent round four, with Sunday’s action round five . . . with 25 points for a win each day. Then there are 10 bonus points for all drivers classified as overall finishers.
Despite heavy early morning showers, fans arrived in their numbers well before the 11.00am start of KotH on Sunday, lining the 4.1-kilometre course from Palmers in St Philip to Colleton in St John. Although largely the same as last year, the start was moved forward and the finish extended by 300 yards to include the tricky hairpin left after Colleton Plantation, which created a few issues early in the day with standing water.
Championship leader Kyle Gregg of Jamaica set the pace in the first run in his Fiesta Rally2 (2m 19.14s), beaten only in the overall standings by the Subaru Impreza WRC S12 of 2019 KotH winner Dane Skeete, who went on to claim his second KotH title. Swann was the next of the championship contenders, around 4secs slower, ahead of Roger Hill (Fabia R5), Adam Mallalieu (Fiesta R5) and Paul Horton of the Turks & Caicos Rally Team in his Citroen C3 R2.
Gregg and Mallalieu were to take no further part in the day’s proceedings, however, as both retired early in the stage on their second run, Mallalieu first when he was caught out by the slippery conditions, hit some cut rock and came to a halt with a damaged wheel. Gregg’s departure was more dramatic, clipping the same corner but rolling his Fiesta a number of times and making contact with Mallalieu’s car in the process.
Swann emerged fastest of the championship contenders on this run (2:15.42), ahead of Horton, Hill, Watson and Read, who then cut four-tenths off Swann’s mark to top the time sheets on run three. Swann remained second, while Watson was now third, his Fabia by now sporting a white front valance to replace the original which had been wiped out by the Society chicane on the second run. A determined Read chipped another two-tenths off his time on the final run (2:14.85) and, while Swann and Watson both improved, they could not catch him. Read now has 47 points, with Swann and Gregg now tied on 42 apiece and Hill fourth with 33.
Barbados Rally2 Championship
Round 3 – First Citizens King of the Hill (Barbados Rally Club)
St Philip & St John – May 26
Results
1st Josh Read/Mark Jordan (Ford Fiesta R5), 2m 14.85s
2nd Rob Swann – ENG/Stephen Bell (Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo), + 00.44s
3rd Logan Watson/Kreigg Yearwood (Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo), + 00.97s
4th Roger Hill/Graham Gittens (Skoda Fabia R5), + 02.42s
5th Paul Horton – TCI/Matt Edwards – WAL (Citroen C3 Rally2), + 03.66s
6th Kyle Gregg – JAM/Orry Hunte (Ford Fiesta Rally2), + 04.29s
7th Andrew Mallalieu/Geoff Goddard (Ford Fiesta R5), + 04.32s
8th Adam Mallalieu/Steve McNulty – ENG (Ford Fiesta R5), + 09.41s
9th George Sherman – USA/Scott Pinheiro – T&T (Ford Fiesta Rally2), + 15.81s
Championship points after round 3
1st Read, 47 points; equal 2nd Gregg – JAM & Swann, 42pts; 4th Hill, 33pts; 5th Watson, 30pts; 6th Andrew Mallalieu, 22pts; 7th Horton – TCI, 20pts; 8th Sherman – USA, 12pts; 9th Adam Mallalieu, 6pts
(PR)