Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club (GMR&SC) Bryan Mackintosh has assured that all systems are in place for the Seaboard Marine Caribbean Motor Racing Championships at the South Dakota Circuit on Sunday. In a brief comment yesterday Mackintosh said that some competitors from the Caribbean have already started to arrive for the final stage of the event.
Additionally, he said that over 200 Barbadian spectators have already arrived for the event and more are expected to come.
And with three days to the event he also disclosed that today at 13:00 hours there will be a news conference with some of the competitors at the GMR&SC’s club house on Albert Street.
At this press conference organizers of the meet will also outline other plans and expectations relating to the international meet. The meet will see teams coming from the USA, Canada, Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago and Suriname.
The event starts at 08.00 hours with the traditional lap of honour. Twenty-four races are scheduled for the day with three races each for the Rookies, Group 2A cars, Group 2B cars, lightweight motorcycles, superbikes and the Shifter 125cc go-karts. The GP-3 and GP-4 races will be merged and there will be two chequered flags.
Admission price to the event for adults is $2,000 and children $1,000. Vehicles are free.
Meanwhile, when Stabroek Sport spoke with Group 4 driver Kevin Jeffrey yesterday he said that he and his mechanical crew were fine tuning his Mitsubishi Evolution at the South Dakota. Jeffrey, who is currently second behind Jamaica’s David Summerbell in the drivers championships, said that all is well with the machine.
He also stated via telephone that Sunday is an important day and therefore it is vital for his team and his car to be prepared for the competition. In his team are Omar Crespo of Orlando, Florida, who is also the tuner at the Area 51 Puned Company in Florida, Brian Tempou, John Seabra, Leon Persaud and Rajiv Ragaram and according to Jeffrey they have been working “tirelessly” on the vehicle.
Jeffrey also revealed that the car had a complete overhaul and it was recently brought in from Barbados.
On the other hand, Jeffrey emphasized also that he will not be putting any unnecessary pressure on himself to win the drivers championships. His main focus at this time is winning the team championships that Guyana currently lead with 124 points.
However, “if Lady Luck strikes” during the event while he is representing Guyana to also take the drivers championships he will seize that opportunity since that will be a ‘bonus.
Summerbell leads the points standing with 56 points while Jeffrey has 44 points.
Jeffrey, who has been churning out impressive performances this year, maintained that the quality of competition is high and therefore he cannot focus on one competitor and “miss the bigger picture”.
“I will be focusing on getting on the podium and winning for my country. I cannot focus on David [Summerbell] when there are other competitors that may be faster and stronger on that day and miss the big picture,” Jeffrey explained.
On the same note Jeffrey said that the time trials on Saturday at the circuit will be “critical”. He explained that he is looking to be consistent and to ensure that he gets a good grid position. Commenting about race day he indicated also that consistency will be the key, especially as it relates to finishing the race.
All of these components were considered yesterday during the fine tuning exercise at the circuit. He concluded that “so far so good” and he expects it will stay that way until the end of the event on Sunday.
Results of the drivers championships: David Summerbell- Jamaica (56 points), Kevin Jeffrey- Guyana (44 points), Peter Rae- Jamaica (42 points), Paul Vieira- Guyana (34), Mark Maloney- Barbados (30 points), Barry Mayers- Barbados (28 points), Mark Vieira- Guyana (22 points), Andrew King- Guyana (10 points) and Shawn King- Guyana (8 points).
Country championships: Guyana (124 points), Jamaica (118 points) and Barbados (83 points).
The event’s main sponsors are Seaboard Marine, Guyana Telephone & Telegraph (GT&T), Carib Beer, Princess Hotel, Kings Jewellery World, E-Networks, Skyline Mortgage, Auto Fashion, Ready Mix and Rent-A-Tent.
