By MWANGALA LISELI –
FAROOK Ticklay today goes into the Pembe Rally hoping to extend the lead at the top of the 2015 Zambia Motor Sport Association (ZMSA) standing but will be up against 25 other competitors from Zambia and abroad at Fringilla farms in Chisamba.
Having taken the lead after winning the season-opening rally last month, Ticklay will be hoping to keep his momentum but has to deal with a host of tough drivers like defending champion Jassy Singh, his younger brother Muna junior and Mohammed Essa.
Another exciting driver for the fans will be Tanzanian Ishmail Ibrahimu, who will be taking part in the rally for the first time, driving aToyota Run-X S1600 and will be a regular feature on the Zambian motoring calendar.
The K100,000 budget has been raised by not only the title sponsors, Pembe Milling but also other co-sponsors.
This race has 26 confirmed drivers to take part in the competition with some of the household names in while almost half of the participants are youths under the age of 25 with the youngest being 16-year-old Zubair Essa, younger brother to 2013 African champion Mohammad Essa.
The drivers in the main rally are categorised in three classes with the best being in Class A while the least in C.
The Pembe Rally will cover a distance of 160km and will also have a power stage which will see the two fastest drivers scoring bonus points.
