TIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP UNDERLINE COMPETITIVE NATURE OF ABSA SERIES
author: Charmaine Fortune
|
|
Jannie Visser and Joks le Roux 2011 Champions
|
Both the overall and premier SP Class championships hinged on the final event of the season, the RFS Magalies 400, at Tarlton International Raceway. In the end second place overall was enough to give North West crew Jannie Visser and Joks le Roux, in the International Truck Toyota Hilux, the title ahead of former champion Duncan Vos and Rob Howie (Team Castrol Toyota Hilux) and outgoing champions Chris Visser and Japie Badenhorst in the Team Ford Ranger.
The top five were rounded out by the two Regent Racing Nissan Navara pairings of Terence Marsh and George Smalberger and Mike Whitehouse and Mathew Carlson. Seven crews went in to the RFS Magalies 400 with a mathematical chance of winning the title with Thomas Rundle/Juan Mohr (Barden Tyre Service Nissan Navara) and Whitehouse/Carlson classified as non finishers.
In a desperately close SP Class battle Marsh and Smalberger lost out to Visser and le Roux by the slenderest of margins. When all was said and done the gap between the two teams was half a point.
Differing point allocations for overall and class results lead to anomalies with Vos and Howie classified third in the SP Class behind Visser/le Roux and Marsh/Smalberger. Whitehouse/Carlson were fourth and Rundle/Mohr completed the top five.
Class D champions Jack and Sarel Oosthuizen, in the LMC Land Rover, were the only Production Vehicle crew to end the season with a 100 percent finish record on the eight events that made up the championship. The pair had the championship wrapped up before the RFS Magalies event, and finished ahead of outgoing champions Deon Venter and Ian palmer (4x4 Mega World Toyota Hilux) and Louis Weichelt and Francis Boersma in the N1 4x4 Toyota Land Cruiser.
In a close finish in the Class E drivers’ championship Diederik Hattingh (Transcor Toyota Hilux) edged out Dirk Putter (Zizwe Toyota Hilux) by only two points. Teenager Jason Venter, son of Deon, was third in his first season in the 4x4 Mega World Toyota Hilux.
There was a different situation in the co-driver stakes where there were mid-season crew changes. Koos Claasens, who sat alongside Putter, took the title ahead of youngster Vincent van Alleman, who partnered Venter, and Walter Hickley who joined Gerald le Roux in the Ruwacon Ford Ranger late in the season.
Putter and Claassens won three out of the last four events. It was not enough, however, for Putter to overhaul the consistent Hattingh in the driver stakes.
SULLWALDS KEEP SPECIAL VEHICLE CHAMPIONSHIP IN THE FAMILY
A late season revival saw Hermann and Wichard Sullwald keep the Special Vehicle championship in the family with a victory on the RFS Magalies 400, the final event of the Absa Off Road Championship, at Tarlton International Raceway.
|
|
Hermann and Wichard Sullwald Special Vehicle Champions 2011
|
With two events remaining it looked as though Kallie and Quintin Sullwald, in the Elegant Fuel BAT, were headed for back to back championship successes. In a disappointing end to their season the Phalaborwa based father and son team were overhauled by Hermann and Wichard who clinched the title with a win on the RFS Magalies 400.
For the Sullwalds the wheel has now turned full circle. Brothers Kallie and Hermann won the South African title together in the 90s, and now each of the brothers has won the championship with his son.
Third in the overall drivers’ championship went to former champion Evan Hutchison (Motorite Revo) with Marius Fourie (PHB BAT) and Johan van Staden (Atlas Copco BAT) completing the top five. Fourie was the highest placed Class P competitor.
The two Sullwald cousins were followed by Jolinda Fourie in the co-driver championship with James Rossouw and Danie Stassen fourth and fifth. Rossouw sat alongside van Staden and Stassen, who missed one event, co-drove for Hutchison.
Scoring anomalies saw the two Sullwald crews finish ahead of Hutchison and Stassen in the Class A title race. Van Staden and Rossouw and another father and son team, Nick and Ryan Harper, in the Motorite BAT, completed the top five.
A fourth place on the RFS Magalies 400 was enough to clinch the Class P title for Regent Racing Jimco crew Archie Rutherford and Mike Lawrenson. They edged out the Fouries and rookie Richard Fuller and Geoff Minnitt (Atlas Copco BAT) with both crews having the distinction of winning races overall during the season.
Fuller and Minnitt won the Sun City 400 and the Fouries the Human Auto 400 in the Free State. A third Class P crew, Colin Matthews and Alan Smith (Century Racing CR2) won the Adenco 400 and Rutherford/Lawrenson went into the RFS Magalies event as defending champions.
The honours in Class B were split between two families who indulged in a friendly rivalry throughout the season. Keith Makenete (Zarco) won the driver’s championship ahead of Coetzee Labuscagne in the Raysonics Zarco.
In the co-driver championship Coetzee’s daughter Sandra edged out Makenete’s brother Andrew. The Labuscagnes won the final skirmish of the season on the RFS Magalies 400 to give Sandra her championship.
|
|
