Duncan Mubiru Shines On Day One of The NRC Fort Portal Rally

Duncan Mubiru and co-driver Musa Nsubuga in their Ford Fiesta proto took the first day of competition by storm with a time of 32:37.9 in a competitive distance of 40.54 for the day. The UMC Fort Portal rally dubbed the Tourism city rally saw the Kikankane rally team put on a spectacular performance right from the start where only twenty-two cars were to compete after scrutineering took place.

Duncan Mubiru doing his round at the circuit at Kyakaigo

There were two stages to be run twice; the Harugongo stage and the circuit rounds at the Kyakaigo grounds. Mubiru had one stage win; the first section, with 16:02.0 out of the four. The team did 06:45.7 in the second section, 04:50.2 in the third, and 05:00.0 in the last one. The rally delayed to start as the event managers gave the Muslim competitors time to go to the mosque for Eid prayers; but when it all started the outpouring of the many rally fans and locals in the stages took precedence.

The man that everyone was talking about was Mike Mukula Jr., whose speed and car handling are phenomenal and improve by the day! Mukula and co-driver Edward Kiyinji were overall second and right on Mubiru’s tail throughout the whole day; they had three stage wins out of the four and completed the day with a time of 33:03.8 in their Subaru Impreza. The youngster is competing in the Clubman Rally Championship category (CRC) but out-performed so many of his competitors and he is proving a force to be reckoned with in this sport. He is on his way to winning the CRC category and everyone should be on the look out for him and his talent.

The rising youngster Mike Mukula Jr at Kyakaigo

Another young driver holding his own and taking strides, is Charlie Lubega’s son, Mark Lubega, who finished in third place in his colorful Subaru Impreza alongside his co-driver Daniel Mbabazi. They did a time of 34:40.1 and had a lot of cheers from fans in the different stages. Mark Lubega also keeps getting better as the competition moves along and these young men will be the future of the motorsport industry if they keep steady progress moving forward.

Jonas Kansiime and co-driver Ivan Tushabe came in fourth place in their Mitsubishi Evo8 with a time of 35:37.8 and Samuel Bwete with co-driver Urban Mulindwa closed out the top five in their Mitsubishi Evo9 with a time of 35:53.4.

Samuel Bwete on his first run through Harugongo

The leader on the National Rally Championship (NRC), Ponsiano Lwakataka retired in the first section after engine failure, which left many disappointed as they were looking forward to seeing him in the circuit. Jas Mangat pulled out of the rally after his chief mechanic lost his mother, he did not take part in the rally. Ronald Sebuguzi on his debut in his new Ford Fiesta proto had fans in a frenzy but unfortunately, he retired after three sections after a mechanical issue befell his car. Others to retire for the day were Andrew Musoke with co-driver Aaron Nsamba, Godfrey Aine Sodo, Julius Semambo, Dr. Henry Maseruka, and Moustafa Mukasa. Day two and the final day will have three sections repeated and it will be a real treat to see if Duncan Mubiru will take home this win.