Tight racing, big crashes and unexpected winners typified Rounds 17 and 18 of this year’s South African Production Car Championship at AA Kyalami on Saturday (November 2). –
– In the process, the title chases in four of the five contested classes were left wide open. –
– The panel-crunching got underway seconds after the start of the opening race when the Castrol BMW 330i of Etienne van der Linde was punted off the track and hit the inside wall in the first corner. The bent Beemer was stuck on the edge of the track, and the race was stopped. Then, after the restart, Jesse Adams (VW CitiGolf), Nico de Waal (Opel Corsa 140i) and Francois van Zyl (Opel Corsa 140i) crashed in unison at the same spot, causing another red flag. After the second restart, Shaun van der Linde (Castrol BMW 330i) led from flag to flag in Class A, chased by Richard Sorensen (Compaq BMW 330i), Reghardt Roets (Kaye-Eddie BMW 330i) and Steve Wyndham in his Ford Credit Falcon XR8. –
– Van der Linde and Sorensen staged an action replay in Race 2 but things proceeded less smoothly behind them. On the second lap, Reghardt Roets’ BMW and Steve Wyndham’s Ford made contact through the Superbowl Sweep. Wyndham’s car spun, to be violently collected by the Castrol Toyota Corolla RSi of Mark Cronje. Both cars retired on the spot, as did the Castrol BMW of Michael Briggs, its radiator punctured by pieces of Ford. That left Hennie Groenewald (Kaye-Eddie BMW) to take third place, ahead of the ever-improving Champion EON Mercedes-Benz C320 of Leeroy Poulter. –
– Martin Steyn (LG Flatron Honda Ballade V-TEC) won the opening Class B race ahead of Castrol Toyota Corolla RSi twins Charl Wilken and Mark Cronje, plus Mario da Sousa (Imperial Toyota Corolla RXi). Following Cronje’s crumpled departure from Race Two, Wilken led to the finish in his Corolla, leading home Da Sousa’s Corolla, Steyn’s Honda and the similar Ballade V-TEC of veteran Brian Luyt. –
– Class C saw some serious paint-swapping, with Lawrence Boshoff (Orbit Coach Honda Ballade 180i) winning the first race from Honda Spares Ballade 180i trio Ian Long, Mike O’Sullivan and Greame Nathan. Long won Race Two, ahead of O’Sullivan, Boshoff and Doug Reekie (Ray Ban Honda Ballade 180i). –
– Phillip Kekana drove his Sasol Toyota Tazz 1600 faultlessly to win both of the day’s Class D races, chased on both occasions by the Honda Ballade 160i of Miguel Pasqualli. In the first heat Etienne du Toit (M&R Ford Fiesta RSi) and Clint Weston (Makita Ford Fiesta RSi) finished third and fourth, with the respective placings going to Weston and Dawie de Villiers (Castrol Daihatsu Sirion) the second time. –
– Dave Compton (Toyota Tazz 1300) won the first Class E race ahead of Riyad Jaffer (Castrol Toyota Tazz 1300) and Darren Murphy (Motorhouse VW CitiGolf). Following off-road excursions by just about everybody in the class, Jody Powell won Race Two in his STER Opel Corsa 140i. He led home Darren Murpy’s CitiGolf and Compton’s Toyota. –
– After the race, Powell was awarded the coveted CAR Magazine Rookie of the Race accolade.
