Rally

Jamaica’s Jeff Panton slid to victory – twice – in the Barbados Rally Club’s (BRC) double-header Winter Sprint on Sunday (October 8) to maintain his 100 per cent record in the 2017 BRC Driver’s and Class Championships, with one round to go. As drivers dealt with slippery stage conditions, a monumental battle for two-wheel-drive honours was the highlight of a slick event, which drew praise from competitors and officials alike.

Jamaica’s Jeff Panton, who currently leads the Barbados Rally Club’s (BRC) Champion Driver title chase, tops the 31-car entry for Sunday’s (October 8) Winter Sprint in the northern parish of St Lucy. With no dropped-score rule in the 2017 BRC Driver’s and Class Championships, every point counts, as competitors prepare for a double-header, which could prove a turning point for some class battles.

Former World F1 Champion Jenson Button will have his work cut out at next weekend’s (Saturday, October 14) Barbados Festival of Speed. Among a number of challenges accepted by Button and current Sahara Force India driver Esteban Ocon is for the 2009 Champion to race against one of the Silence SA1100 aircraft which will be starring in the Twister Aerobatic Team’s daytime aerial ballet and twilight pyrotechnics displays.

The countdown to Sol Rally Barbados 2018 officially gets under way at midnight on Saturday (September 30) - 5.00am UK time - when on-line entries open on the event web site, www.rallybarbados.net. While many a competitor’s finger will be ready to click ‘send’ seconds after, that was just too long a wait for one British company director who was looking for an unbeatable 60th birthday present for her husband.