BIRD TARGETS SOL RALLY BARBADOS VICTORY

Former UK National Rally Champion Paul Bird will return to Sol Rally Barbados (June 4/5) this year with one aim in mind . . . victory in the Caribbean’s biggest annual motor sport international; he will once again campaign his Ford Focus WRC08, but in its new Frank Bird Poultry livery, and shod with DMACK tyres. On his first two visits to the island in 2008 & ‘09, he was beaten into second place by Northern Ireland’s Kris Meeke – the Ulsterman went on to win the Intercontinental Rally Challenge in 2009 - then finished third last year, behind local aces Roger Skeete and Paul Bourne; he was also the highest-placed international competitor in 2010 and Scottish co-driver Kirsty Riddick the highest-placed female. Bird says: “There’s no shame in being beaten by class drivers like that, but I have learned some useful lessons since my first visit. I’ve said it more than once, Rally Barbados really is the best rally in the world, the crowds, the enthusiasm, the people. “And last year, driving against Roger on top form in the Impreza and Paul in my old Focus, was the best rally battle I’ve ever been involved in. I always enjoy my time in Barbados, whether for the rally or family holidays . . . but it might be just that bit more fun if I finally ticked the box and won!” Once again, however, he’ll have to face Skeete, whose victory in 2010 was his 11th in the 21-year history of the Barbados Rally Club’s premier event; ‘The Sheriff’ is among the entries already received on-line on the official web site – www.rallybarbados.bb - entered in the Virgin Atlantic/Da Costa Mannings Auto Centre/Michelin Subaru Impreza WRC S12, in which he won last year with co-driver Louis Venezia. Last Saturday (February 12) Bird once again proved how quickly he can adapt to a new event, when he finished second in the Team GMF Wyedean Forest Rally, opening round of the UK’s BTRDA Rally Championship; it was the first outing for the Focus in its new livery, although the extremely muddy conditions meant that only those who saw the car early in the day could enjoy the full impact. ‘Birdy’ had not contested a gravel event for nearly a year, and had never before driven the high-speed stages in the rarely-used Forest of Dean; after a steady start as he reacclimatised himself with the car on the loose, Bird gradually upped the pace as an enthralling battle for the lead was fought out between multiple Wyedean winner Andy Burton in his radical Peugeot Cosworth and the Ford Focus of regular BTRDA front-runner Hugh Hunter. After Hunter and Burton had claimed one stage win apiece, Bird went fastest on stage three - Speech House, at 12.76 miles comfortably the longest of the day – then one more stage win from Burton left a spread of only six seconds across the three leading crews, with just the final three stages to run. Burton's experience proved invaluable – he had won the Wyedean five times previously - and he claimed victory by 19 seconds, while Bird added a second stage win at the end of the day. At the end of the event, the Kawasaki World Superbike Team boss said: "All things considered, I have to be delighted with second place behind a driver of Andy's capability and reputation on this event which he has won six times now. It was my first time on gravel since last year's Malcolm Wilson Rally so I was a bit rusty but doing the Jack Frost Rally at Croft certainly helped. I'd heard a lot about these stages and indeed they were unique and very fast so to set two quickest times was also pleasantly surprising." Bird's next outing will be the Malcolm Wilson Rally in his native Lake District (March 5), which he has won three times. This year, he'll be hoping to avenge the disappointment of 2010, when he was leading going into the penultimate stage only for a puncture to deny him a record-breaking fourth victory. Sol Rally Barbados (June 4/5, 2011) and Shell V-Power King of the Hill (May 29) are organised by the Barbados Rally Club, which celebrated its 50th Anniversary in 2007; Sol RB2011 is the 22nd running of the Club’s annual International All-Stage Rally and marks the start of a second three-year term of title sponsorship by the Sol Group, the Caribbean’s largest independent oil company. For further media information: e-mail - robin@bradfax.com web site: www.rallybarbados.bb