The National Rally Championship battle took another twist after the an exciting Kabalega Rally in Hoima.
Hassan Alwi, the event defending champion took the chance to claim his second rally win in the mid western part of the country.
A drama filled final day ensued as crews changed positions through the event.
With Jas Mangat carrying a comfortable lead into day two, the championship leader decided to take an early penalty. He would however steam through the opening stage but bow out in the second stage of the day.
Sebuguzi would claim the lead there after. Turbo trouble would however drop him to fourth place.
Hassan Alwi would claim the lead with one stage to go. It’s a lead he maintained to the end for the rally win.
“The event was quite tough. But we kept a consistent pace from day one to stay close to the guys at the top.
“We maintained third place and took over second place after Jas went off in stage five, 44 seconds behind Sebuguzi,” said Olinga, Alwi’s co-driver.
“we upped our pace and managed to reduce the gap to 26 seconds after stage six. Sadly the battle was cut short when Sebuguzi got problems denying us the chance to fight on till the end,” he added.
Alwi and Olinga registered the fastest time of 1hrs 59mins, 40 seconds. It was the first victory for the crew this season.
“It’s a great feeling taking the win this weekend after a tough season and hope to keep the momentum into the last round,” he asserted.
‘Super lady’ Susan Muwonge was on a mission throughout the event putting up a tight battle among the top contenders.
Navigated by Edmond Kyeyune, Muwonge charged to turn her day one fifth position to second position overall. She was two minutes, 53 seconds behind Alwi.
Muwonge’s performance consolidates her title chaces. She now sits in second place in the NRC standings with 315 points.
“The event has been so fun. We opted for victory but instead finished second. We are not complaining, just contented with the position,” said Muwonge.
“We are still in the title chase and they shouldnot under estimate us because we are targeting title as well. We shall be more determined in the final event,” she asserted.
Hoima ‘home boy’ Musa Kabega survived the event’s challenges to register third place overall.
Ronald Sebuguzi and Leon Ssenyange survived the event woes to settle for fourth position.
The forth position was important enough to earn Sebuguzi and Ssenyange a lead in the championship standings with 340 points.
“The event was moving on smoothly for us. We managed to lead after Mangat dropped out.
“Everything turned round when our turbo got issues in the fifth stage. We couldn’t see ourself drop up just yet. We decided to take it slow till the final finish. It was a very important finish for us,” said Sebuguzi.
Reigning NRC champion Christakis Fitidis registered his first finish after two consecutive DNFs (Did Not Finish) in the previous events.
Fred Busulwa settled in sixth position followed by Ahmed Ashiraf who survived a mechanical challenge in fifth stage only to settled for seventh position.
Ahmed AshrafIsaac Ssozi came in eighth followed by Godfrey Lubega and Peter Kalule who sealed the top ten finisher’s list in ninth and tenth respectively.
The Two-Wheel Drive (2WD) category registered only two finishers with Timothy Gawaya in the lead followed by Charles Ssansa.
Godfrey Nsereko consolidated his chase for the Clubman Rally Championship (CRC) being the only category finisher.
Only twelve crews finished of the 24 that started the event on Saturday.
Jas Mangat and Joseph Kamya’s title chase suffered a big dent when they went off in stage five eventually retiring out of the event. They now drop to third position with 35points behind leader Sebuguzi.
Duncan Mubiru, Andy Musoke, Aine Sodo were among the casualties of the event.
The next and final round of the NRC is scheduled for November 9-11 in Mbale.
Top Ten Finishers
- Hassan Alwi/Enoch Olinga 1:59:40
- Susan Muwonge/Edmond Kyeyune 2:02:33
- Musa Kabega/Rogers Sirwomu 2:04:14
- Ronald Sebuguzi/Leon Ssenyange 2:05:34
- Christakis Fitdis/Eric Nzamwita 2:06:20
- Fred Kitaka/Edwin Kalule 2:11:59
- Dr Ashiraf Ahmed/Edward Kiyingi 2:21:35
- Isaac Ssozi/Lawrence Mwambazi 2:23:22
- Godfrey Lubega/Bashir Mbogo 2:26:38
- Peter Kalule/Mariam Nambasa 2:33:13
Top Five NRC Standings
- Ronald Sebuguzi/Leon Ssenyange 340 points
- Susan Muwonge/Edmond Kyeyune 315
- Jas Mangat/Joseph Kamya 305
- Hassan Alwi/Enoch Olinga 230
- Unissan Bakunda/Umar Kakande 190
Thanks so much for the up dates..
Bless u.