Postby sio » March 28th, 2011, 10:34 am
John 'Penti' Powell will be defending his Rally Trinidad title in none other than his 2006 ex-works Subaru S12B WRC car (Shell Helix / Intercontinental Shipping).
When Powell entered Rally Trinidad in a new Group N Mitsubishi Evo X, most people thought he was a bit ambitious to be contesting one of the biggest rallies in the region in a car that in no way matches the capability of the Jamaican Fords, or the SX4 out of Barbados. Worse yet for Powell the regional competitors behind those machines just happen to be Gregg, Panton, and Gill.....names that would intimidate most regional competition no matter what they were driving. So the question for the last few weeks was 'is there even a Trini capable of winning Rally Trinidad?' Coupled with the fact that the Evo X would be a new platform for Powell, he also does not have seasoned co-driver Nicholas Telfer by his side due to other commitments. So with 1 week to go and the WRC cars already in Trinidad, Powell as they say 'buss de mark'. The decision is purely a strategic one as John will be right at home behind the wheel of his Suby that he won with a year ago against a top field which included Mark Higgins and Nicky Grist (Grp N Evo IX).
It should be very interesting to hear the responses of Gregg, Panton, and Gill, although i am sure all of them have been expecting this move from Powell all along, and have already geared up for Rally Trinidad knowing that they each have to drive an almost perfect rally to end up topping the leader board on Sunday. Powell's entry with the Suby moves the WRC class to 4 entrants - the most ever for a Rally Trinidad event. Hopefully this will be the start of a well established WRC class in years to come, and local fans will finally see the Roger the Sheriff 'Skeete' and the Roger the 'Ninja' Hill in Trinidad, along with a return from Paul the Surfer Bourne. And who could forget the ever electric Trevor 'Micey' Manning as another of Barbados' best.
Now if you were following the article, you would probably be wondering exactly what we all are - if Powell is driving the Suby - who's behind the wheel of the new Evo X??? hmmm...as they say - 'Watch this space' Details are sketchy but we can confirm that the new Mitsubishi will not be stuck in a garage this coming weekend. Stay tuned for more details as the excitement of Rally Trinidad 2011 unfolds.
So if you were thinking about coming to see this action next week, you probably want to sure up your plans because when the green light flashes on the clock for the first stage of Rally Trinidad, its going to be the start of a major Caribbean Rally Showdown.