In the Production Vehicle category there is a tie at the top of the overall championship, while in the Special Vehicle category only five points separate the leading drivers and co-drivers. It is much the same in the class championships, and predictions that this season could see a repeat of 2005 – where all but one championship went all the way to the final event – could be right on the money.
In the overall Production Vehicle championship a win and a second apiece sees former South African champions Hannes Grobler/Francois Jordaan (Proudly SA Nissan Navara) and Neil Woolridge/Kenny Skjoldhammer (Ford Racing Ranger) locked together with 44 points. Twenty points adrift in the drivers championship are Bevan Bertholdt (Castrol Toyota Hilux 4.0 V6) and Class E leader Manfred Schroder in the Ford Racing Ranger.
Third in the drivers championship are Class D leader Coetzee Labuschagne (Raysonics Nissan Hardbody) and Class E frontrunner Brian Martin in the Castrol Toyota Hilux. Among the co-drivers Castrol Toyota pair Robin Houghton and Ockie Fourie, who sit alongside Bertholdt and Martin, are third and fourth with Fourie tied with Johan Gerber.
Reigning Special Vehicle champions Terence Marsh and Mike Whitehouse, in the Nashua Mobile BAT, lead the Special Vehicle drivers and co-drivers championships. The pair have picked up finishes in both the Nissan Dealer 400 and Nissan Sugarbelt 400, and it looks as though consistency is one again going to be their forte.
Among the drivers Marsh leads Nissan Dealer 400 winner Brandon Harcus (Motorite BAT) and Nissan Sugarbelt 400 winner Evan Hutchinson, with Will Battershill (Jimco) and John Moore (Chenowth) third and fourth ahead of Alfie Cox and Colin Mathews. On the co-driver front Achim Bergman, paired with Hutchison, and Reg Sutton, paired with Battershill, are second and third, ahead of Ashley Thorn who partners Moore, with Juan Mohr and Hennie Ter Stege up next.
In the Super Production Class the Woolridge/Skjoldhammer combination have a one point lead over Grobler/Jordaan. Third are Bertholdt/Houghton with Duncan Vos/Ralph Pitchford (Proudly SA Nissan Navara) and Mark Corbett/Juan Mohr (Century Property Developments Nissan Hardbody) sharing fourth place.
Two solid finishes sees Labuschagne/Gerber leading Class D with Nissan Dealer 400 winners Chris Visser/Japie Badenhorst (Tyco Trucks Toyota Hilux) and Nissan Sugarbelt winners Cliff and Louis Weichelt (Bosal Toyota Hilux) sharing second place. Sharing third place among the drivers are Kobus van Tonder (Unifreight Mitsubishi Pajero) and Jurie Du Plessis (BB Auto Nissan Hardbody) with Rian Guelpa and Andre Du Plessis level in third place among the co-drivers.
Reigning Class D champion Manfred Schroder leads the drivers championship in Class E ahead of Brian Martin, while Ockie Fourie leads the co-drivers stakes ahead of Graham Bishop.
Former track race Jaco Swanepoel (IDM Cement Toyota Hilux) and Mark Moffat (Bosal Toyota Hilux are third and fourth among the drivers. Jack Peckham, who has competed In only one event, is in third Place with Ward Huxtable and Stuart Moffat sharing fourth place.
Marsh and Whitehouse also sit at the top of the Class A standings in the Special Vehicle category. Among the drivers there is a three-way tie for second place Harcus, Hutchison and Moore while in the co-drivers championship Thorn and Bergman are tied for second place ahead of Sutton.
Consistency is also paying off for Swaziland crew John Thompson and Clinton McNamara (Zarco) who lead Class B ahead of Jan and Hendrik Kraaij (BAT) and Nissan Dealer 400 winners Bez Bezuidenhout and Johan de Bruyn in the Adenco Sandmaster. Veteran Ernest Corbett and Warwick Goosen (Century Property Developments BAT) are fourth after a good result on the opening event of the season in the Western Cape.
Sitting pretty in the drivers championship in Class S is Nic Goslar (Kopanong Hotel Super Team Raceco) who has a nine point lead over reigning champion Richard Schilling in the Plastotech Aceco. Third is Nissan Dealer 400 winner Archie Rutherford in the Nashua Mobile Raceco.
It is a slightly different story among the co-drivers where reigning champion Chris Davies, who partners Schilling, has a four point lead over Craig Doubtfire who sits alongside Rutherford and George Bowie who has made a single appearance this season with Goslar on the Nissan Sugarbelt 400 where they finished second in class to Schilling and Davies. Third is Richard Carolin who partnered Goslar on the opening round of the season the Nissan Dealer 400 in the Western Cape.
There is also a tight situation in the prestige SA Manufacturers Championship where another perennial Nissan versus Toyota battle is developing. After two events Nissan hold a slender three point lead with Ford in third spot.
Overall Points
Production Vehicles: Drivers – 1 H Grobler and N Woolridge 44; 2 B Bertholdt and M Schroeder 24; 3 C Labuschagne and B Martin 17; 4 D Vos 15; 5 M Corbett and C Visser 11.
Production Vehicles: Co-drivers – 1 F Jordaan and K Skjoldhammer 44; 2 R Houghton 24; 3 O Fourie and J Gerber 17; 4 J Peckham and R Pitchford 15; 5 J Badenhorst and J Mohr 11.
Special Vehicles: Drivers – 1 T Marsh 30; 2 B Harcus and E Hutchison 25; 3 W Battershill 19; 4 J Moore 17; 5 A Cox and C Matthews 15.
Special Vehicles: Co-drivers – 1 M Whitehouse 30; 2 A Bergman 25; 3 R Sutton 19; 4 A Thorn 17; 5 J Mohr and H Ter Stege 15; Classes:
SP Class: Drivers – 1 N Woolridge 33; 2 H Grobler 32; 3 B Bertholdt 24; 4 D Vos and M Corbett 12. Co-drivers – 1 K Skjoldhammer 33; 2 F Jordaan 32; 3 R Houghton 24; 4 R Pitchford and J Mohr 12.
Class D: Drivers – 1 C Labuschagne 32; 2 C Visser and C Weichelt 20; 3 K van Tonder and J du Plessis 13. Co-drivers – 1 J Gerber 32; 2 J Badenhorst and L Weichelt 20; 3 R Guelpa and A du Plessis 13.
Class E: Drivers – 1 M Schroeder 36; 2 B Martin 33; 3 J Swanepoel 24; 4 M Moffat 16; 5 F Tafani 13. Co-drivers – 1 O Fourie 33; 2 G Bishop 24; 3 J Peckham 20; 4 W Huxtable 16 and S Moffat; 5 M Baron 13.
Class A: Drivers – 1 T Marsh 27; 2 B Harcus, E Hutchison and J Moore 20; 3 W Battershill 16; 4 A Cox and C Matthews 13. Co-drivers: – 1 M Whitehouse 27; 2 A Thorn and A Bergman 20; 3 R Sutton 16; 4 J Mohr and H Ter Stege 13; 5 M Brown 12.
Class B: Drivers – 1 J Thompson 33; 2 J Kraaij 28; 3 B Bezuidenhout 20; 4 E Corbett 16; 5 R van Graan 13. Co- drivers – 1 C McNamara 33; 2 H Kraaij 28; 3 J de Bruyn 20; 4 W Goosen 16; 5 P Van Graan 13.
Class S: Drivers – 1 N Goslar 29; 2 R Schilling 20; 3 A Rutherford 16; 4 G Gibson 13; 5 N Moosajee 12. Co-drivers – 1 C Davies 20; 2 C Doubtfire and G Bowie 16; 3 R Carolin 13; 4 N Motif 12.
Manufacturers Championship. 1 Nissan 93, 2 Toyota 90, 3 Ford 68.
