The Sasol Rally 2002, the fourth round of this year’s South African Rally Championship, kicks off with the pre-event Coca Cola Mardi Gras at the Lowveld Showgrounds, Nelspruit, on Thursday (6 June). –
– A number of top rally teams and privateers will be on hand to mingle with the public in the festival atmosphere, including music, food stalls and a variety of other automotive stalls. –
– The rally proper, with a record (now) 72 entries, begins at the Sabie Market Square at 11h00 on Friday and concludes at the Lowveld Showgrounds at 15h30 on Saturday. Special spectator stages are sure to be a major attraction again, beginning with a tar stage in Graskop at 12h30, followed by the “VW Golf Gas” in White River at 20h00. –
– The “Sasol TurboDiesel Twister” will be run at 16h30 in Sabie on Friday. The “Subaru Super Special” takes place at 07h45 on Saturday and the “Sasol DualFuel Dash” at Nelspruit Airport (09h00) is the last of the tar stages, but by no means the end, with a further 100kms to be rallied before the Flying Finish that afternoon. –
– A fierce battle is set to rage in the lush forests around Sabie, Graskop and White River between the leading Class A8 works-teams and drivers. Jan Habig leads the championship in his Sasol DualFuel VW Golf 4, while reigning champion, Serge Damseaux (Team Castrol Toyota Corolla Rsi) will want to make up lost ground after two non-finishers this season. –
– Their biggest threat, and possibly the dark horse in the event, is Enzo Kuun in the second of the Sasol DualFuel VW’s. –
– There will, furthermore, be an onslaught from the four-wheel drive Group N4 Subaru Impreza WRX and Mitsubishi Lancer Evo of Johnny Gemmell and Fernando Rueda. The late entry of African Rally Champions, Schalk Burger and Piet Swanepoel, in the Bridgestone/Sasol-backed Subaru, is sure to throw the cat amongst the pigeons. –
– Members of the public who cannot make it down to Mpumalanga can nevertheless stay in touch with all the rally information and results by going to www.sasolrally.co.za or phoning 08 22 33 4321. –
– SMS stage results can also be obtained by e-mailing your cell number to [email protected]. –
– See Jan Habig and event Clerk of the Course / MSA Rally Commission President, Willie du Plessis, chatting about the “Sasol” and the 2002 South African Championship on M-Net’s Supersport AM from 07h00 on Thursday. –
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