Africa Rally Championship glory is all but in sight for Manvir Baryan and Drew Sturrock after they secured another Pearl of Africa Uganda Rally victory over the weekend.
The Multiple Racing Team (MRT) had a dominating race in their Skoda Fabia R5; leading from the start to final stage in the victory by by four minutes; eights seconds. It was their second Pearl Rally victory in two years.
“It was a nice day. We drove well, only had one slight issue. We broke a rim which got stuck on the caliber and took us time to change. But it was ok for us,” said Baryan.
The crew is now at 75 points after five rounds. Uganda’s Jas Mangat finished second overall in the weekend rally; moving to second position with 33 points on the leaderboard.
With a large point’s difference, Baryan is now on the verge of a second ARC title with two races to go.
“True, the championship is ours to lose at the moment. But we need to do Tanzania and see how it comes out. Incase Piero wins and we drop out, then its game on in Rwanda.
“So maybe after a win in Tanzania we can say its sealed,” said Sturrock, Baryan’s navigator.
Baryan and Sturrock have featured in four ARC events this year. Pearl Rally is their third victory after South Africa and Zambia; with a non finish in the home event Safari Rally.
Top three ARC standings
- Manvir Baryan/Drew Sturrock 75 points
- Jas Mangat/Joseph Kamya 33
- Piero Cannobio/Silvia Frigo 29