Sluggish Roy claims title

JAKARTA (JP): Roy Nirwan won the National Sprint Rally Championships with a poor sixth place in the series' final race at Bumi Serpong Damai circuit in Tangerang, West Java, on Sunday.

But Muhammad Bintang stole the spotlight, overcoming drizzle and the muddy track to win the race in 12 minutes and four seconds for his first win of the season. The victory moved Bintang to third place in the final standings. Rifat Sungkar finished second in the series after finishing second in Sunday's race.

Roy, the season's pace setter, earned six points in Sunday's race to accumulate 56 points in the series. Rifat finished with 47 points in the series, and Bintang had 38. (amd)