GUY Wilks is determined to hang on to his lead in the junior world rally championship after he went top of the leader board following his victory in last weekend's Rally Mexico.

The Suzuki driver led the junior class from start to finish on the North American event, beating his team mate Per-Gunnar Andersson by a comfortable nine minutes.

The 24-year-old Darlington ace topped the times on 11 of the 14 stages and finished an impressive 11th in the overall event rankings.

Wilks now has a one-point advantage at the top of the junior drivers' standings over Andersson after two rounds of the championship with fellow Briton Kris Meeke third.

Meeke won the opening round in Monte Carlo but chose Mexico as his dropped event of the series, with just a point now separating him from Andersson.

It was Wilks' first time out across the gravel event and he admitted that he found the stages tough but he was pleased to keep hold of his lead right to the end.

''This rally was even more difficult than I expected. One of the biggest problems was the inconsistency of grip, meaning that it was very easy to make a mistake,'' said Wilks.

''When you have a big lead there is almost more pressure than when you are fighting for tenths of seconds, as you have everything to lose and little to gain.

''It was a very punishing event for the car but our Ignis has been incredibly reliable and superbly strong.

''The only problems we had were overheating brakes, but I think that was the case for everybody. I'm absolutely delighted to be leading the championship, and my plan is to keep it that way.''

The junior world championship will return to action for its third round in the Rally Sardinia next month, although Wilks and Andersson will be taking part in Rally New Zealand as they are competing in all 16 rounds of the championship this year in order to gain experience.

Published: 15/03/2005