Four-time Champions Leslie Alleyne and Chris O'Neal (Simpson Motors/Shell Spirax/Shell Rimula/Maxxis Isuz D-Max) are tied in the lead of the Barbados Rally Club’s (BRC) Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship with Jean-Marc Cozier and Andrew Croney (Honda Pioneer) as crews make final preparations for the penultimate round on Sunday (September 17).

  Cozier and Croney kicked off the 2017 season with victory in the March Safari – Alleyne and O’Neal were third – then finished second to the multiple champions in April and June; they are currently tied on 176 points, with Ryan Corbin and Dustin Edwards (Mahogany Ridge/Corbin's Catering Services Toyota Hilux) in third place on 160 points.

  In the new-for-2017 Shelbury Construction Trophy, for which points are awarded in the Driver Challenges on each event, George and Garry Mendes (G & G Sales & Services Inc Mitsubishi Sportero) are the current leaders; with 16 points, they are four ahead of joint second-placed Cozier and Croney, who were the early-season leaders, and Damien Johnson and Justin Lynch (Dce Tuned Suzuki Samurai).

  Dean Springer and Bridget Garity, who finished fifth in last year’s MudDogs Championship in the Eastern Veterinary Clinic Ford Ranger, are route-setters for Sunday September Safari. The first crew will leave the start at Chefette Six Roads, St Philip, at 8.00am, to tackle two routes in the island’s south-eastern parishes; after the lunch halt at Chefette Charles Rowe Bridge, St George, at around noon, crews will head towards the finish by the dirt bike track south of Foursquare, St Philip, where a Driver Challenge is planned for approximately 4.00pm.

  MudDogs Chairman Ricky Holder said: “Thanks to Dean and Bridget for being our new route-setters; it is really good to see someone else who wants to take a shot at setting a rally for us. And it is also great news to have four crews entered in the Novice class – I’d like to welcome them all and wish them good luck. I really hope they enjoy themselves enough on Sunday to want to come back.”

  Sunday’s event is the fourth of five staged between March and November, which qualify for the 2017 Championship. As before, crews are required to compete in four out of the five Safaris to be eligible for year-end Championship points; if they compete in all five Safaris, then their best four scores will count.

Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship & Chefette MudDogs Safari Novice Championship Round 4

September 17 – MudDogs September Safari Pro Class

1 Nicholas Lorde/Brett Barber (Konstruk Caribbean Inc/Comfeet/NL Engineering Inc/First Steps Property Services Land Rover Discovery)

2 Ryan Corbin/Dustin Edwards (Mahogany Ridge/Corbin's Catering Services Toyota Hilux)

3 Michael Ward/Warrick Eastmond (Regional Fire & Security/Quality Tyre/Off Road Solutions Suzuki Jimny)

5 Leslie Alleyne/Chris O'Neal (Simpson Motors/Shell Spirax/Shell Rimula/Maxxis Isuzu D-Max)

7 Jean-Marc Cozier/Andrew Croney (Honda Pioneer)

9 Wayne Manning/Willie Hinds (Black Bess Group Suzuki Samurai)

11 Kerry Renee/Jason Downey (Suzuki Samurai)

12 Chris Armstrong/Wayne Clarke (Toyota Hilux)

13 George Mendes/Garry Mendes (G & G Sales & Services Inc Mitsubishi Sportero)

Novice Class

4 Yousuf Patel/Bilal Patel (Mitsubishi L200)

6 Jason Williams/tba (Toyota Hilux)

8 Zeko Springer/tba (Luma Trading Suzuki Vitara)

10 Dave Lowe/Vaughdeen Harper (Echrisna Solutions/Off Road Junkies Toyota Hilux)

Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship

Positions after round three:

equal 1st Alleyne/O'Neal & Cozier/Croney, 176 points 3rd Corbin/Edwards, 160pts 4th Manning/Hinds, 156pts equal 5th Armstrong/Clarke & Ward/Eastmond, 148pts etc

Shelbury Construction Trophy

Positions after round three:

1st Mendes/Mendes, 16 points

equal 2nd Cozier/Croney & Damien Johnson/Justin Lynch (Dce Tuned Suzuki Samurai), 12pts 4th Richard Hinkson/Kevin-Jon Manning (Windforce Tyres Suzuki Samurai) 10pts etc