Anastasi maintains Maltese domination in Sicily

Joshua Anastasi stole the limelight again last weekend by winning the Adrano Hillclimb, in the process extending Malta's perfect record to four wins in four events held in Sicily over the past few months.

Despite the highly competitive entry, which included two Italian champions, Anastasi topped the timesheets with a comfortable margin to secure his second win in Sicily.

The newly-crowned ICC Hillclimb champion was unrivalled at Adrano, posting a time almost four seconds better than champion Giuseppe Spoto in the first run, then cruising in the second after being informed that nobody had bettered his time.

Anastasi was driving his JBR3 Kawasaki for the last time in a season that has seen him win several races, both locally and in Sicily. The car, built by Anastasi himself, is sponsored by Grimaldi Group, John Bull Racing, Ryans Irish Pub, Dunlop and Shell.

Only three Maltese drivers made the trip to Sicily last week, the number being lower than usual due to the fact that the Island Car Club was due to promote the last round of the local championship on the same weekend.

As it turned out, while the sun shone brightly over Adrano and the Etna, the weather at Ġnejna was wet, forcing the organisers to postpone the event for this weekend.

David Anastasi was among the three Team Malta Grimaldi drivers who chose to compete in the Sicily event, again driving his crowd-pulling Mini Doda, powered by a Honda Blackbird 1200 engine. He needed just a few points to secure the championship class in Sicily, so heroics were certainly not on the agenda. In fact, he produced two mature and calculated runs, placing well in his very competitive class and assuring himself the championship.

The same cannot be said of the third Malta driver, Edward Calleja, whose Sunday was marred by problems and disappointments. On arrival at the hill early Sunday morning, his Honda-powered Lotus Elise would not start on the button.

After rolling to the bottom paddock, attempts were made to sort out the electrical malfunction, many Italians also joining in with help and advice, but still the car was not keeping its charge. Then, to cap it all, a slight miscalculation on the first run saw the Lotus clip a wall, requiring yet more repair work for the last run, on which again the electrics played up.

"It was one of those days you'd rather forget," said a disconsolate Calleja who, despite his misfortune, still finished a commendable third in class.

The Sicily season has now come to an end and our own Malta season closes on Sunday at Ġnejna, weather permitting.

You could say that 2008 has been the best year in a long time for local motorsport.