Northern Ireland's Kris Meeke won the Sol Rally Barbados 2008 last weekend, despite problems with his Red Bull-backed Toyota Corolla World Rally Car on the final day.
Meeke set the pace from the start, beating reigning Barbados Rally Club champion Paul Bourne by 1.21seconds on stage 1. Although Meeke saw his advantage cut over the next two stages, when Bourne crashed out in his Impreza in stage 4, Kris was left way out front and he eventually ended the opening leg 53 seconds up on Gary Gregg.
That lead became crucial on the final day, as Meeke suffered a prop-shaft failure in the opening test and with no spare, had to make do with two-wheel drive, something that saw his lead cut back to just 17 seconds at the finish.
"Rallying in this country in infectious," Kris told his personal website. "Never have I seen so many enthusiastic fans. There are just amazing people, and have made me and Paul [Nagle – my co-driver] feel more than welcome.
"To be honest, I was gutted when the propshaft broke. I thought for sure the rally was over, but all credit to the mechanics. A little bit of improvisation, and off we went.
"I wasn't expecting to hold the lead, but after a couple of stages, I was able to just carry enough speed without stressing the drive-train too much. It's a credit to all involved in organising the event."
Paul Bird meanwhile took the runners-up spot in his
Subaru Impreza WRC, with Gary Gregg third, Steve Perez fourth and Sean Gill fifth. Trevor Manning and Roger Hill were sixth and seventh, while Ryan Champion came in eighth and took the Group N win. Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship regular Rob Swann was 15th.
