Shaun van der Linde and Martin Steyn are locked in a tense battle for the Class T Production Car championship, and following heated skirmishes between the opposing Mini Cooper S teams at Kyalami last month, Phakisa is sure to be a battlefield on Saturday.
Shaun van der Linde and Martin Steyn are locked in a tense battle for the Class T Production Car championship, and following heated skirmishes between the opposing Mini Cooper S teams at Kyalami last month, Phakisa is sure to be a battlefield on Saturday.
There is currently a gap of only 9 points between championship leader Steyn (Bosal Cooper S) and Van der Linde (Castrol Cooper S). Class T newcomer Clinton Weston, who was tasked to help Van der Linde win the championship title, scored his first victory in only his second race for the Castrol team at Kyalami.
Weston finished second behind Van der Linde in the first race after giving up the chase on the last lap, allowing the latter to close the gap between him and Steyn to just 3 points. However, Van der Linde was denied victory in the second race following a collision between his car and the Sabat Cooper S of Craig Nicholson.
Van der Linde recovered to finish third, but Steyn finished second and the gap between the pair rose to nine points.
“Unfortunately, the tussle with Craig and the subsequent puncture hurt our championship battle, but that’s racing. Clint prevented Martin from taking full advantage. With the Class T championship still up for grabs, we’re going to do our level best to take steps towards securing it at Phakisa,” said Van der Linde.
The penultimate round of this year’s Vodacom Power Tour should also see 16 drivers representing four manufacturers in Class A of the Production Car field. Castrol BMW driver Anthony Taylor has already been crowned the champion and will be the man to beat. He’ll be supported by Castrol team-mates Hennie Groenewald and Etienne van der Linde in identical BMW 330i models.
The BMW pilots will face a furious challenge from two directions… After 16 of the season’s 20 races, Gary Formato (Sasol AE Nissan 350Z) and Reghardt Roets (Samsung Alfa Romeo 147 GTA) are virtually locked in second place on the points ladder. Both drivers will be more than determined to win at Phakisa – something that Formato has already managed in April this year, during the Power Tour’s previous visit to the Free State venue.
“We’re hoping to strike gold again this weekend,” Formato said. “We can run with the established teams at the front and probably should have a few more wins under our belts. But the penalty weight rules have hit us hard this season and we have battled under braking and with grip and speed out of corners.
“When the weight has been more reasonable we have had more realistic results. We won’t be carrying any penalty weight into qualifying for this weekend after our Kyalami results last month, so we should be able to post good qualifying times,” he added.
Formato will be supported by Duncan Vos in the works team’s second Sasol AE Nissan 350Z, and Roets from fellow Samsung Alfa 147 GTA drivers Morne Jurgens and Marc Auby.
Nissan and Alfa’s plans could be scuppered by mid-season arrivals Audi, however. They will field works Engen Xtreme A4 3,2 quattro models for Michael Stephen and Tschops Sipuka, plus an identical Four Rings-backed Audi for privateer Melvill Priest. Observers expect the all-wheel drive Audis to be particularly efficient through Phakisa’s tight infield sections, with the Nissans, Alfas and BMWs quicker through the circuit’s fast sweeps.
Meanwhile, Dave Compton (Sasol Toyota RunX RSi) has already clinched the season’s Class B title. Behind him, four drivers in three makes of car will fight for the runner-up spot.
Phillip Kekana (Sasol Toyota RunX RSi), Brian Martin (Caltex Havoline Toyota RunX RSi), Garth Waberski (Seagull Mercedes-Benz C270 CDI) and Angus Thompson (Topcar Fiat Stilo Abarth) are covered by ten championship points. With 26 points on offer during the day, any one of the four could leave Phakisa at the head of the group. Others who could interfere should include Marco dos Santos (Tubelar Tech Fiat Abarth), Hector North (Tommibar Mercedes C270 CDI), Motorola Fiat Abarth pilots Mike O’Sullivan and Dawie Brough, plus Steve Wyndham in the new Ford Credit Fiesta ST.
Eckhart Schoenknecht (Caltex VW Polo TDi) and Theunis Eloff (Motorola Fiat Palio 1,6) will continue a season-long fight for top honours in Class C. Schoenknecht’s turbo-diesel car will have an advantage at Phakisa’s altitude, but Eloff could benefit from the support of his Motorola Fiat Palio team mate, Trevor Tuck.
John Kruger (Ford Fiesta 1,6i), Shane Williams (M&R Ford Ikon 1,6i), Guy Botterill (Bigfoot Express Fiat Palio 1,6), Francois van Zyl (Inspecta Car VW CitiGolf 1,6) and local driver Danie Correia (Omega Spares VW CitiGolf) complete the Class C field.
