Mike Barker has continued his love affair with the Rob Roy in the Motorsport Australia Victorian Hill Climb Championship, after securing yet another victory at the north Victorian track.
With more than 80 drivers taking part in the championship’s first round for 2020, Barker was easily the most consistent driver of the day, recording a number of top-three times in the four available runs.
Facing pressure from 2019 South Australian champion David Mahon and fellow Victorian star Alan Foley, Barker managed to break his own personal best record twice, including his eventual winning time of 19.18 seconds.
Starting off with a strong run around the 20 second mark, a second run write-off only inspired Barker to continue pressing hard, in which he was able to take the outright lead after the third run with the first of his personal best times of 19.36 seconds.
The 72-year-old then knocked off the contest on his final run with the second personal best time – one that saw him claim the track’s fourth fastest ever time, however the fourth run was later abandoned due to the weather conditions, meaning Barker won using his third run time.
With Mahon finishing second and Foley rounding out the podium, a grateful Barker believed he was lucky to get the win over his highly touted opponents.
“We are really thrilled with the win, especially since I did a personal best time, which now put’s me as the fourth fastest ever at Rob Roy,” Barker said.
“I thought David Mahon was going to finish me off in the final run, but he had a moment which put him back a bit. Both he and Alan weren’t able to get their best on the day. Which is why I think I was a bit lucky on the day.
“The conditions were also ideal for quick times because you need a balance of atmospheric environment for engine performance and heat for the tyres. The weather was good until late afternoon when it started raining.
“Rob Roy is one track where if I am going to go well anywhere, it’s going to be there. It suits the car and I know the track, so it’s great to come away with the win here and it sets me up quite nicely for the rest the season.”
Click here to view the full results.
The next round of the Motorsport Australia Victorian Hill Climb Championship takes place at Bryant Park on 15 February.