PANTON HEADS ENTRY FOR SUMMER SUN & STARS

Posted on August 28th, 2015.

Jamaica’s Jeffrey Panton (Rubis / Sandals / KIG Ford Focus WRC06) is top seed for tomorrow’s (Saturday) Carter’s Pit Stop / Power King Batteries Summer Sun & Stars Rally, heading an entry list of nearly 30 for the combined Barbados Rally Club (BRC) and Motoring Club (MCBI) event. A further 10 cars will run ahead of the main field in the Barbados Historic Rally, organised by the Vaucluse Raceway Motor Sport Club (VR-MSC).

Scrutineering will start at 4.00pm this afternoon (Friday) at the Carter’s Wildey Complex, with tomorrow’s event slated for a 2.00pm start and a finish at around 10.00pm. Twelve stages are scheduled, heading north from the Service Park at Hopewell Plantation during the afternoon, then southbound in darkness, with spectator attention likely to focus on a much-lengthened configuration of the Vaucluse Raceway (VRW), included in each direction in the Hangmans Hill stage.

Panton and co-driver Mike Fennell Jnr arrived in the island yesterday in time for the Briefing Meeting at VRW, where the running order was confirmed. Roger Hill and Graham Gittens (Esso / Nassco / MotorMac / Pennzoil Toyota Corolla WRC) start behind Panton and ahead of Dane Skeete, who makes his 4wd competition debut in father Roger’s Sol / Flow / Automotive Art / WTI Subaru Impreza WRC S12 with co-driver Tyler Mayhew.

He first drove the Impreza at a Bushy Park Track Day two weeks ago, reporting: “It’s an awesome machine, quite different to my usual skate! The launch control is epic, to say the least. Of course, it’s a lot heavier, and that gives it a different feel in the high-speed bends, as well as under braking. Also, it has an oomph more torque!”

Of the chance to go head-to-head with Sol RB15 winner Panton, he added: “I don't expect to be anywhere near his pace, so I'm not too bothered, really. The target is just to finish . . . and have some fun in the process!” And, what advice, if any, has been handed down by ‘The Sheriff’? “Just the usual - have fun and bring it home.”

Even with Skeete’s Peugeot 306 Maxi taken out of the equation, an intense two-wheel-drive battle is still in prospect. Top seed is Rhett Watson (Chefette / Power King Batteries / Gliptone / Stihl in support of Little Pink Gift BMW M3), ahead of Barry Mayers – he’s standing in for brother Roger, who is unwell, in the Chefette / Digicel / Sol / DHL / Hankook / Illusion Graphics WR Starlet - Neil Armstrong (Rubis / Chefette / GUNK / Hankook / Virgin Atlantic Toyota Starlet) and Cliff Roett (Nassco / Paulo’s Churrasco Restaurant / Castrol / Roett's Garage Toyota Starlet).

With three rounds of the BRC Driver’s and Class Championships to run, including tomorrow’s event, the Clubman, Historic, Modified 6, M7 and SuperModified 10 and SM12 classes are all fully-subscribed, meaning there is still a long way to go before the various titles are settled.

Carter’s Pit Stop / Power King Batteries Summer Sun & Stars Rally - Saturday, August 29

11 Jeffrey Panton – JAM/Michael Fennell Jnr – JAM (WRC-1 Rubis / Sandals / KIG Ford Focus WRC06)

12 Roger Hill/Graham Gittens (WRC-2 Esso / Nassco / MotorMac / Pennzoil Toyota Corolla WRC)

14 Dane Skeete/Tyler Mayhew (WRC-1 Sol / Flow / Automotive Art / WTI Subaru Impreza WRC S12)

15 Rhett Watson/James Hutchinson (SM12 Chefette /Power King / Gliptone / Stihl / The Unknown Entity in support of Little Pink Gift BMW M3)

16 Barry Mayers/Sean Corbin (SM10 Chefette / Digicel / Sol / DHL / Hankook / Illusion Graphics WR Starlet)

17 Neil Armstrong/Barry Ward (SM10 Rubis / Chefette / GUNK / Hankook / Virgin Atlantic Toyota Starlet)

18 David Coelho – TRI/James Harris – ENG (GpN Total / Lubetech / Zanzibar / Kaizan Sushi / www.machinerysalestrinidad.com / Quipsol Ltd Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX)

19 Mark Thompson/Kurt Seabra - GUY (GpN Valvoline / Stag Beer / Glassesco / NKM Clothing / Bio Beauty Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX)

20 Cliff Roett/Joshua Plaza - TRI (SM10 Nassco / Paulo’s Churrasco Restaurant / Castrol / Roett's Garage Toyota Starlet)

21 Avinash Chatrani/Andrew Skeete (GpA iShop Barbados / PowerBass / Lenovo / 1 of K / Copocabana / Sign Station Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI)

22 Daryl Clarke/Russell Brancker (M7 MQI Collision Repair / Amir’s Chicken / Roberts Manufacturing / Valvoline Honda Civic)

23 Justin Campbell/Juan Watts (SM12 Hilton Barbados / Itstaboo.com / Biz Needz / Dream Solutions / Castrol Racing / Acton Finance BMW M3)

24 David St Hill/Ian Grimes (SM12 BMW M3)

25 Neil Corbin/Jeremy Gonsalves (M6 Nassco / Jason Jones / BG Products / Auto Solutions / Valvoline / Emtage Electrical Toyota Starlet)

26 Paul Horton - TCI/Dwayne Forde (M7 Java Island / Real / Sky Motorsports Ford Escort MkI)

27 Jamal Brathwaite/Dario Hoyte (M7 Platinum Motors / Valvoline / Automotive Art / R S Electrical / Ellesmere Quarries Honda Civic Type-R)

28 Kurt Thompson/Adam Straker (M7 Glassesco / NKM Clothing / Bio-Beauty / Digicel 4G / Beacon Insurance Honda Civic)

29 Wayne Archer/Derek Edwards (Hist Diamonds International / Archer’s Hall Design Centre / RW Water Inc BMW 325)

30 Shareef Walcott/Jan-Yves Hinds (SM9 Novus Tech / F1RST / MMXI / Sunshade Tinting Toyota Corolla)

31 Jeremy Croney/Andrew Croney (Club Warrens Lubricants / Sign Station / SRG Engineering Peugeot 206XS)

32 Clifford Cox/Scott Bentham (SM9 Hilti / Multigrip / Yanmar / Hankook / JLG / Snorkel / Williams Equipment Toyota Starlet)

33 Jonathan Ince/David Armstrong (Hist Ocean Fisheries / Hankook / Urban Kitchen Daihatsu Charmant)

34 Paul Inniss/Jason Tull (M6 Sun General Insurance / Durex / Illusion Graphics / Caribbean Villa Chefs / Drive-a-Matic /Hugh Autobody / Chicken Stop Inc / JJ Racing Team / Rallymaxx / HIV Aids Commission Honda Civic)

35 Chris Williams/Reuben Nelson (M6 Cutters Barbados / Solo / Royal Chinese Restaurant Ford Fiesta)

36 John Corbin/Owen Proverbs (Hist Valvoline / Prosales Toyota Corolla)

37 Trevor Mapp/Alister Nurse (Club JSB Motorsport / Chicken Pen Racing / AS Autostop Mitsubishi Colt Mivec RS)

38 Rommell Martin/Rashid Phillips (Club Winston Enterprise / Fusion Boutique / Hal’s Car Park Bar / VV&K Rentals / B3 Imaging / Candy Lane / Rallymaxx Toyota Starlet)

39 Pierre Clarke/Ezra Gibbs (Club SDRR Hydraulics / Martindale Garage Honda Civic)