Petron star driver Rivera rules slalom, autocross

MANILA, Philippines — With 12 rounds scheduled for this year, the RACE Motorsports Club National Slalom Series resumed action and hosted its seventh leg Sunday at Robinsons Novaliches, where the parking lot-turned-race track provided an action-packed battle up until the late evening. 

Ultimately, reigning four-time National Slalom Champion Milo Rivera of Petron Motorsports-Federal Tyres emerged victorious over Iñigo Anton and Richard Gallardo. 

Rivera clocked in a winning time of 49.02 seconds, 0.22 seconds clear of Anton who clocked a 49.24, with Gallardo managing 49.28. 

Rivera, who was able to extend his overall championship lead with the win, admitted that the day did not come easy at all. 

“We made some major adjustments during the break, and we still haven’t perfected the formula. Good thing we were able to discover some problems with the car’s handling and luckily, it paid off in the end, especially with how blistering quick the other guys were. As usual, it took us until around seven in the evening to declare a victor. A great win for us, but the development continues if we want to emerge as overall champions again this year,” said Rivera, who is also backed by Federal Tyres-PPC Asia, United Auctioneers, and AutoPerformancePH-Brembo. 

The RACE Motorsports Club National Slalom Series now shifts to Tarlac Circuit Hill this Sept. 9 for its eighth leg. 

Also, Rivera was able to inch closer to the 2018 Philippine Autocross Championship Series crown after a second place finish during its fifth leg the day before. He now leads closest rival Carlos Anton by nine points with three races to go.