Albatec Racing team principal Andy Scott is set to compete for the first time in the Sol Rally Barbados (2-4 June), as well as the seeding event Flow King of the Hill (28 May), at the wheel of Paul Horton‘s Mk1 Ford Escort, with experienced co-driver Rashid Phillips at the pacenotes.
Although not Andy’s first-ever rally (he took part in the Galloway Hills Rally in 2000, taking his Honda Civic to class victory), the Barbadian event marks the Scot’s first competitive outing of the season, as he juggles his role as team principal for Tommy Rustad and Jere Kalliokoski in the FIA European Rallycross Championship and Philippe Maloigne in the Rallycross France series.
The striking MkI Escort of Horton has been in Barbados since 2012, but prior to that was a class winner in the 2009 Targa Newfoundland Rally in North America. With Horton at the wheel it has three times claimed an overall finish in Rally Barbados, with its best overall finish, 14th in 2014.
Barbadian Phillips has also claimed an overall finish three times, with three different drivers, David Brewster, Paul Inniss and Rommel Martin. His best overall finish came in 2009 sitting alongside Brewster in his Peugeot 205 GTI when he finished 38th.
“I’m very excited about returning to the driving seat to compete on Rally Barbados, Scott said. It’s been on my bucket list for a few years. Having listened to the stories from Kevin Procter for many years and during a holiday in Barbados in February I got chatting to Mark Hamilton and decided that as this year I celebrated my 60th birthday, now was a good time to do it.
“Previously it’s clashed with a rallycross event, but as Albatec is not competing at Lydden this year, I thought it was an ideal opportunity to return to competition in a country I really like and where I very much like the culture. I’ve done a couple of rallies before, but I’ll be relying heavily on my co-driver Rashid Phillips. He has a tough job ahead of him!
“The biggest challenge is likely to be getting to grips with rear wheel drive (again). While I want to be competitive, this first time in the event is very much a learning exercise, a chance to have some fun, and to share it with some friends and family. My aim is to enjoy it, get to the finish and bring the car home in one piece.”
Albatec’s next outing in the European Rallycross Championship for Supercars is set for 9 June, at the Norwegian round of the FIA World Rallycross Championship.
