Defending champions Mark Cronje and Robin Houghton (Ford Dealer Team Fiesta) took immediate control of the Toyota Cape Dealer Rally in the Western Cape this afternoon, winning three of the first four special stages and leading current championship front runners Leeroy Poulter and Elvéne Coetzee (Castrol Team Toyota Yaris) by 18,6 seconds at the overnight stop in Brackenfell near Cape Town.
The Toyota pair, with three victories out of five rounds of the South African National Rally Championship under their belts to date compared to the champions’ two, won special stage four on their way to edging third-placed Enzo Kuun and Gerhard Snyman (New Africa Developments Ford Fiesta) by 20,1 sec. Kuun, twice a former champion and competing in only his second event this season, is making a guest appearance in the spare Fiesta of Snyman’s usual driver, Japie van Niekerk, who had to withdraw because of business commitments.
Fourth is the Toyota Motorsport pairing of Giniel de Villiers and Greg Godrich (Imperial Toyota Yaris), who completed today’s route 42,4 seconds behind the overnight leaders. They are running first on the road and found the going more difficult than their rivals behind them as they ‘swept’ the stages of loose sand and gravel.
Gugu Zulu and Carl Peskin in the first of the factory Volkswagen Sasolracing Polos are fifth 56,7 seconds in arrears. Close on their bumper are team-mates Henk Lategan and Barry White in a second Sasolracing Polo, just 2,6 seconds behind and, in turn just 2,1 seconds ahead of seventh-placed twice former champion Hergen Fekken and Carolyn Swan in the second Castrol Team Toyota Yaris.
The visiting Dutch/Belgian duo of Hans Weijs Jnr and Bjorn Degandt are eighth in a third factory Sasolracing VW Polo, 1 min 15,3 sec behind the day’s winners. Completing the top 10 are Namibian Thilo Himmel and Armand du Toit (VW Polo) in ninth (+1:45.6) and Piet Bakkes and Shaun Visser (Toyota RunX) 10th (+3:00.5).
Bakkes and Visser are the only surviving contenders in the S2000 Challenge for older specification four-wheel drive cars after the early retirement of Namibia’s Wilro Dippenaar and Kes Naidoo (PZN Panelbeaters Toyota Auris) on special stage two.
Leading the S1600 Championship for two-wheel drive 1,6-litre cars are championship front runners Guy Botterill and Simon Vacy-Lyle (Yato Tools Toyota Etios R2), who won all four special stages on their way to accumulating a 28,2 second lead over Ashley Haigh-Smith and Damian van Ass (Castrol Ford Fiesta R2). Third are the continually improving Ernie van der Walt and his experienced co-driver James Aldridge in a Ferodo Ford Fiesta R2, 6,4 seconds behind Haigh-Smith and Van Ass and 24,6 seconds behind the leaders.
Marko Himmel, brother of Thilo, and Francois Schoonbee are fourth in a VW Polo (+31.1) followed by Paulus Franken and Henry Kohne (Manitou Group VW Polo) +51.3s, Chris Coertse and 16-year-old Mari van der Walt (Electrothread Toyota Etios R2) +52,5 sec, Matthew Vacy-Lyle, brother of Simon, and Schalk van Heerden (Fragram Tools Toyota Etios R2) +52,7 sec, AC Potgieter and Tommy du Toit (VW Polo) +1:14.6 and ninth Andrew Heine and former S1600 champion co-driver Robbie Coetzee (VW Polo R2) +3:41.7.
Notable retirement was the Beurden Construction VW Polo of Chad van Beurden and Nico Swartz, currently second in the S1600 championship after winning the most recent Imperial Toyota Cullinan Rally in Gauteng in August, who retired after a slow opening special stage.
Tomorrow’s action gets underway at 08:00 with seven gravel special stages and a total of 128 kilometres of high speed racing awaiting. The finish and podium prize-giving ceremony is at the Meerendal wine estate outside Durbanville at 16:00.