SPIRITED?DRIVING by Group 2B’s Quincy Jones helped him to capture the Monster Energy Handicap on the opening day’s racing of the Barbados Auto Racing League (BARL) at Bushy Park last Sunday.
Helped too by the league’s reintroduction of the “reverse grid”, Jones, driving the Structural Systems/R&I Deliveries/Castrol/Discount Auto Repairs Toyota Starlet, set the tone earlier in the day by picking up two wins in the keenly-contested Group 2B.
This group included drivers such as Steven Watson, the other driver to find winners’ row during the day, Carlos Edwards, Harry Thomas, Peter Small, Robert Gill, Eric Ward and Kevin Griffith.
The reverse grid, according to race director Kurt Seabra, was an initiative which gave drivers a chance to find winners’ row as the first five cars were reversed in keeping with how they would have finished the previous race.
“Spectators like it, it’s a plus for them as it gives drivers a chance to win and past winners having to start at the back of the field to try to get past the cars in front of them and go on to win,” Seabra explained.
According to the race director, drivers liked it and the format would be tweaked and kept for the rest of the season as it made winning more widespread.
After early leaders Daniel Wiles and Jermaine Pope led the field for nearly eight laps, Jones was able to get to the front-runners and take the lead before getting home ahead of a fast-finishing Carlos Edwards in the 1Finance (Courts)/Enermax Ltd Toyota Starlet and Seaboard Marine Caribbean Group 2 champion Mark Thompson in the Stag/NKM Clothing/Champion Spark Plugs Toyota Starlet.
Apart from Jones, Dirk Gray in the RT’s Trucking/Kermit’s Bar/Hunte’s AutoSpares/Carifs Opel Corsa had drivers such as Pope, Stuart Knaggs, Paul St Hill, Vere Forde, Roger Rowe, Junior Benskin and William Jones juggling for positions during the day’s action as he scored two wins.
Mark Thompson performed a similar feat in Group 2C, beating two former champion drivers Jason Harewood and Edward Corbin, and Kenrick “Snappa” Husbands in the process.
In the merged Group 3 Classes 1 and 2, Jerry Leach grabbed two wins against drivers such as Kurt Thompson, Andre Waithe, Greg Catwell, Windell Holmes and Simon Gillmore, who prevented him from making a sweep.
Honours in Group 1 were shared among Kevin Armstrong, Corie Jordan and Charles Lynch, who was back in action after a long lay-off.
