By Rawle Toney

As days flit by towards the final leg of the 2009 Caribbean Motor Racing Championships, one of the Caribbean’s biggest names in the sport, Mark Vieira, is all excited about competing at the event.

The war machine! Mark Vieira’s Shell V-Power, Digicel-sponsored Mazda RX8

Ever since he acquired his new car last year, the Shell V-Power, Digicel-sponsored Mazda RX8, the speedster has been unable to get the best of times on the track as he is yet to mesh with his machine.

This situation is a far cry from when Vieira drove his conventional Mazda RX7 which is now being driven by his brother Paul.

Speaking yesterday with Stabroek Sport Vieira said that he was awaiting the arrival of an engine from Miami having been told by the relevant authorities that it should have arrived yesterday.

“Well I just want to get that (engine) in and begin my work. It’s not going to be easy, I can tell you that but I’ll see what happens when it (engine) gets here because once I get it today (yesterday), I’ll be able to work on it overtime and go out on Sunday and give my best,” Vieira said.

This year the man known for his hunger to win on the track and his death defying driving skills has not really featured and his presence was certainly missed from the racing arena.

In Barbados for the second round of the CMRC, his name rang out at every corner as word of the Guyanese contingent arriving spread as racing fans are aware of the drama Vieira brings to the Bushy Park Circuit and his rivalry with the Maloney crew (Doug, Mark and Stuart).

Already Bajan Roger Mayers, driver of the Ford Focus which many believe will be the car to beat, has publicly thrown out a challenge to the Guyanese saying that he is coming to battle and  the race veteran says that once he has his car up and ready and working well, the showdown will certainly be on.

“You know, the cars now are all-wheel drive turbo-charged and the rules now are somewhat bent towards them, but hey, I think they will add a lot towards having more spectators and add to the excitement of the races, so when that engine comes we’ll do whatever to get it ready in time and we’ll certainly have a good race on Sunday,” said Vieira.

No Guyanese has yet been able to finish on top of the podium in the CMRC and this Vieira says is very strange.

He is hoping that he can change this situation in the final leg.

“Strange that none of our guys were able to win a race in the entire series, so I think that would be my number one thing right now, to at least win a race on Sunday, but it’s going to be a lot of work from my end of the track as well, so we’ll see how things go when the engine comes and to give the people a good show come Sunday,” Vieira declared.

Vieira will be competing in the Group Four category alongside Andrew King, Kevin Jeffery, Gavin Gayadin, David Summerbell of Jamaica and of course the Bajan invasion, Douglas and Mark Maloney and Roger Mayers.