Jas Mangat was announced the provisional winner of the second round of the Nationa Rally Championship; the SMC Masaka Rally on Sunday night but he may have to wait to have that victory confirmed.
Mangat in the Hyundai i20 took command of the event sweeping all the stage wins until the event was halted in stage six on Sunday.
The rally ended abruptly after a crew got stuck in section six blocking all the behind pack. The delays also caused the cancellation of the powerstage.
After the stage was flagged off, Mangat’s Hyundai developed mechanical issues as he went through to the next control. It took the crew time to fix the car and it was alleged to have received outside assistance to solve the issue.
However, the crew later made it to the service to claim their second victory of the season.
Mangat’s victory did not go down well for some crews including second-placed Nasser Mutebi.
The 2010 national champion did not hesitate to express his feelings on the provisional results.
“It was a surprise for my team seeing the provisional results with Mangat as the winner,” said Mutebi.
“I remember Mangat even congratulating me at the point where he got stuck which means he knew he could not leave by all means. Second, he got back to the services way too late. There is no way he was not time-barred,” he added.
Mutebi not only expressed his disappointment but he also coupled it with a protest.
“I put in my protest. But officials tell me I was late to protest. And yet, they posted the results in the middle of the night when you expect everyone asleep. We thought by morning we will have a chance,” said Mutebi.
Mutebi was not the only crew that was dissatisfied with the officials’ decision from the Masaka rally.
By publication, the Masaka Rally results remain provisional and the officials are yet to announce final results following a meeting on Tuesday.
After Masaka Rally, crews will now switch focus to the third round which will be the first round of the Africa Rally Championship; the Pearl of Africa Rally Uganda next month