Pearl Rally: Baryan draws first blood in Busiika

Rally driver Manvir Baryan showed his intent of winning the Shell V-Power Pearl of Africa Rally by beating his opponents in the special stage at Busiika on Friday.

Manvir beat Jas Mangat by three seconds in a tightly contested day one of the two-day rally.

Manvir posted a total time loss of three minutes and 17 seconds, while Mangat finished second with three seconds less Baryan. 

Local drivers put up an impressing start giving fans hope that they would be in a position to put up a good fight in the competitive sections on Saturday.

Jas Mangat in action during the Super Special Stage. Photo by Johnson Were

Yasin Nasser in a Subaru GVB put up the best show exciting fans with his whips in the corners, while Doctor Ashraf Mohamed shocked many as he finished 12th in a tightly contested race at a dusty Busiika.

Ambrose Byona who returned after a year's sabbatical seemed to still be getting to grips with the New Mitsubishi Evo10 he drove for the first time.

Former winner Hassan Alwi finished third, while Tanzania's crew Pandya Dharam was fourth ahead of Yasin Nasser.

The drivers now take the fight to Kayunga on Saturday.

Super Special Stage results

1. Manvir BARYAN / Drew STURROCK 03:17.0

2. Jas MANGAT / Joseph KAMYA  03:20.0

3 Hassan ALWI Jr. / Sirajih KYAMBADDE 03:22.0

4. Dharam PANDYA / Darber RATNAVEER 03:22.0

5. Yasin NASSER / Ali KATUMBA 03:23.0

6. Adam Rauf ESSA / Aaron NSAMBA 03:26.0

7. Arthur BLICK Jnr / George SSEMAKULA  03:27.5

8. Ronald SEBUGUZI / Leon SSENYANGE  03:28.0

9. Omar MAYANJA / Hussein MUKUYE  03:30.0

10. Unissan BAKUNDA / Umar KAKANDE 03:33.0

11. Duncan MUBIRU / Musa NSUBUGA  03:33.6

12. Dr. Ashraf MOHAMED / Shameer YUSUF 03:37.0