Arjun Balu clinches maiden title

India's Arjun Balu gave ample proof of his class and skill to clinch the fourth leg of the Asian Zone rally championship, shattering teammate and hot favourite V R Naren Kumar's dream of a fourth successive win in the process, on the concluding day of the Changchun Rally in Cangchun, China, on on Wednesday.

Naren, who had already assured himself of the Asian Zone title, having secured an unbeatable 46 points, quit in the ninth stage with a gear box problem to give his MRF teammate a chance to pick his maiden title on the international circuit.

Balu, who was leading the field after the first six special stages on Tuesday, continued with the same consistency to finish the rally with a timing of 2:02.58 hrs, taking a comfortable 3 minutes 10 seconds lead over second placed Russian team of Diamantidi Aristotel and Skliar Vladimir, who did reasonably well to make amends after finishing the first day in the fifth posiition.

The 26-year-old Balu, who had failed to finish the first two rallies in Coimbatore and Indonesia with gear box problems, has now assured himself of the second position in the five-leg rally.

Balu's victory fetched him 16 points, taking his tally to 27.

"It is a fantastic feeling. I have been waiting for this day for a long time and I am glad that it came today. I had come quite close in the last leg in Thailand, but finally I did it today," a beaming Balu told reporters after his triumph.