The premier SP Class is also going to be no place for the faint of heart this year. Phenomenal growth over the last two seasons has seen the SP Class swell to no less than 15 entries, from four manufacturers, for the pipe-opener. Perennial champions Nissan along with Ford and Toyota have been joined by a lone entry from Land Rover with a bevy of privateers now running alongside the factory teams.
Nissan, aiming for their eighth championship in a row, will once again start the favourites. But the factory Toyota and Ford teams came up with enough evidence last season to suggest that Nissan will this season have a battle on their hands.
There are familiar faces in the Nissan Navara factory teams with Juan Mohr who takes over co-driving duties for veteran Hannes Grobler the only new face. Driver’s champion Duncan Vos again teams up with Ralph Pitchford with Norwegian Ivar Tollefsen and Briton Quin Evans in the third factory entry.
Fly by wire throttle control will be a new innovation from Nissan. For the rest the team will rely on tried and tested professionalism and reliability.
Toyota’s hopes will rest mainly with Castrol Toyota Hilux factory crews Mark Cronje/Chris Birkin and Bevan Bertholdt/Robin Houghton. There will be solid back up from Chris Visser/Japie Badenhorst in another Castrol Toyota and Hugo and Jaap de Bruyn in the Micaren Exel Dealer Team Toyota Hilux.
Visser/Badenhorst and the de Bruins inherit last year’s factory vehicles and, in turn, their cars have gone to George and Sharon Barkhuizen (Ruwacon Toyota Hilux) and Jaco Swanepoel/Keith Solomon in the IDM Cement entry. Both teams make a quantum leap from Class E.
After two near misses last season Cronje and Birkin have a point to prove. Bertholdt and Houghton are in much the same boat and there is no doubt that in terms of pace the Toyotas are a match for the Navara entries.
Ford’s line-up also has a familiar look about it – with one exception. The ex Mark Ferguson Ford Ranger will now be campaigned, in Motorite colours, by off road legend Alfie Cox and Hennie ter Stege.
They join the factory cars of former champions Neil Woolridge and Kenny Skjoldhammer and Mark Ferguson/Craig West with another ex factory car, the Unifreight Ford Ranger, again in the hands of Kobus van Tonder and Riaan Guelpa.
The Fords may be outgunned in terms of sheer pace, but Woolridge/Skjoldhammer and Cox/ter Stege are proven winners and hugely experienced. It is a tough combination to beat.
The lone Land Rover is the ex Cliff Barker car, rebuilt by Rob Green Racing, in the hands of Harold and Tiaan Coen. Powered by a BMW motor the Land Rover is indecently quick, and could give the more fancied vehicles an anxious moment or two.
Class D will be a straight Toyota versus Nissan fight with the odds evenly matched. Reigning drivers champion Cliff Weichelt has plenty of experience but will have a new navigator in the N1 4×4 Toyota Hilux D4D in Jimmy Goch.
Also in Toyota Hilux colours will be last season’s rookies of the year in Ramon Bezuidenhout and Stefan Lock. With a new 3,4 motor in the Hilux they should be more competitive than ever.
Taking up cudgels on behalf of Nissan will be Coetzee Labuscagne and Johan Gerber, in the Raysonics Nissan Hardbody, and brothers Henri and Maurice Zermatten in the Ryobi Hardbody. They also have plenty of experience and the Toyota/Nissan confrontation could turn into one of the highlights of the year.
Class E is a mixed bag with familiar faces mingling with unknown quantities. Team Ford Racing pair Jack Peckham and Lucio Santoro will renew hostilities with Jannie Visser and Joks le Roux in the Team Barberspan Toyota Hilux. Thomas Rundle and Brian Roberts could give them a few problems in the Barden Tyres Services Nissan Hardbody, along with Deon Venter and Ian Palmer in the 4×4 Mega World Toyota Hilux.
For the rest Toyota Hilux crews Johan Fouche/Wentzel Pretorius and Wynand van der Linde/Sefie van Schalkwyk are an unknown quantity.
The first salvos of the season often set the battle lines for skirmishes over the rest of the season. All the indications point towards a vintage year.