DRIVER Maurice Whittingham overcame Mother Nature’s fury and his competition to emerge victorious in Sunday’s Tru-Juice/Drivers Rallysport Club Dexterity #2, at Bybrook, Bog Walk in St Catherine.

“I had to be steady, tight and fast,” Whittingham told Auto.

Before even the downpour, competitors went into the event facing two major changes: the first, a cumulative timing system; and, a course layout that would be modified for each of the three runs allowed.

Then the rains came in random torrents, flooding the venue and making surface grip hard to calculate for many. The lack of grip seemed to enhance Whittingham’s natural sideways driving style and, in the end, he managed a two-second margin over the more powerful Lancer Evolution of second-place finisher Lee Vaz.

“I was actually very comfortable in the car, but I didn’t have any windshield wipers, so thankfully, I spent most of the lap sideways looking through the door glass,” he joked.

Adaptability was the key and Dmitri Dawkins was able to put his 1300cc Mazda Demio on the podium in third place.

“The car is bone stock, so I tried to keep as much speed through the course as possible,” he said.

Leroy Spence and Denise Clarke braved the conditions to complete the event’s top five, in fourth and fifth-place, respectively. Clarke was also the fastest female driver of the day, taking the Ladies Cup in her most successful showing in the series so far.

“On occasions, I’d get into a muddy rut causing the vehicle to go in directions that would take me off course,” she explained.

Despite having to manhandle her SUV to the podium, she bested another rookie Danielle Powell, who was sharing cars with Dawkins. The two seasoned female pros, Tanee Green and Kathryn Chin See, had a tougher time. Green was third in the Ladies category, while Chin See fought to retain fourth.

“The Strong Solutions AutoWorx Swift Sport was well prepared and ready to race, but it was just a lack of focus that made me make several mistakes. We are ready for the next one,” Chin See explained.