DANIEL Barritt and David Higgins have retained their lead of the British Championship after the Ulster Rally - but only just.

The pair overcame driveshaft problems on the opening stage to finish ninth overall in their SGP-prepared Hyundai Accent WRC.

The result left Barritt, from Hapton, and his Welsh driver with a slender one-point lead in the series with just two rounds to go.

"We had a problem when a rear driveshaft popped out, and we had to complete several stages before getting the car back to service," said Daniel.

"The SGP guys did a great job on keeping us in the rally by changing the shaft and the rear differential - as a precaution - in the short time we had."

They emerged from the service area down in 36th place, but clawed their way back up the leaderboard to claim a well-earned ninth on the tricky asphalt roads.

"We knew tarmac would be our weakness, having only completed two rallies in two years on a sealed surface," he added.

"But we can now look forward to two gravel rallies with confidence."