Vieira expresses gratitude to Sunburst Orange Juice vows to reclaim throne

May 27, 2016 Sports

By Rawle Welch

Once regarded as the best rider in the Caribbean before a cadre of young riders including

Guyana’s Stephen ‘Valentino Rossi’ Vieira poses for a photo op following one of his victories in Jamaica recently.

cousins Elliott and Matthew Vieira took aim at his dominance, Guyana’s Stephen ‘Valentino Rossi’ produced a stirring performance in Jamaica last weekend to resurrect the argument of who is the best in the Region.
Vieira, coming off an average 2015 when he had to watch his dominion in the Superbike category get snatched away from him by ‘new kids on the block’ Elliott and Matthew stamped his authority in the opening leg of the Caribbean Motor Racing Championship at Jamwest Speedway in Jamaica with a master class performance, racing to two wins and a second place from three starts to be crowned Best Rider of the Meet.
Vieira’s display clearly sets the tone for what is anticipated to be an exhilarating year for Superbike racing in the Caribbean and one that many feel will probably provide more entertainment that the cars.
The local speedster, who was astride a Kawasaki ZX6R tore up the field in the first race, relegating last year’s champion Elliott to second place, while Jamaica’s Robert McDonald claimed the final spot on the podium.
He returned in the next race to duplicate his earlier performance, but this time it was Matthew that finished second and McDonald in the same spot as the previous race. However, in the final race in the category, Elliott managed to reverse the positions among the two, managing to beat Stephen with the Jamaican McDonald again ending in third place.
Speaking with this newspaper about his performance, Vieira said it has renewed his confidence in his ability and he is now eagerly looking forward to dominating his rivals once again.
“I am extremely confident once again and looking forward to the next Race Meet where I can show my supporters that Jamaica was no fluke, but rather a resurgence of Stephen Vieira,” he said.
Vieira praised the effort of Elliott and Matthew who he described as the riders of the future, but added that he has no intention of relinquishing his early advantage to them or any other rider in the Championship.
He was full of gratitude to his main sponsor Sunburst Orange Juice, especially Mr. Rakesh Puri and the entire team, while also acknowledging the tremendous support offered by Mr & Mrs Andy and Annalisa Phang and the guys from Pure Racing Team.
“I want to thank Sunburst Orange Juice for its total support over the years I am grateful to them and is determined to make them proud,” Vieira told this newspaper.
Gratefulness was also extended to Fly Jamaica, the airline that made it poosible for the team to travel top Jamaica and Seaboard Marine for its support in getting the machines to all the different destinations.
He emphasized that he is back and all those harbouring ambitions of standing in his way will have to demonstrate their readiness to frustrate his pursuit of reclaiming his throne.