Top rally privateer Japie van Niekerk is aiming for that elusive podium on the weekend when he gets behind the wheel of his New Africa Developments Ford Fiesta. Alongside him will be Gerhard Snyman, now back into the routine of calling the shots after missing the opening rounds of the championship due to business commitments.
With the South African national rally championship approaching its halfway point (the Bela Bela Rally on June 19/20 is the fourth of eight rounds), Van Niekerk is lamenting a year which hasn’t panned out as intended. He started off on a high with fifth place on the KZN Rally but a needless accident precipitated by a fellow competitor on the Sasol Rally eliminated Van Niekerk and his Northern Irish navigator, Graham Noble, whilst lying in fourth place overall.
The accident also left Van Niekerk with internal injuries and he had to undergo a spell in intensive care in Nelspruit, where the accident occurred and near where property developer Van Niekerk lives. But he received the all-clear just in time for the Secunda Rally last month, though he was forced to enter his spare Fiesta due to the extensive damage to the regular Ford – which has subsequently been sea-freighted back to the UK for repairs. He also reverted to his previous navigator – Snyman – for the event as Noble was not available at such short notice.
A minor accident, in which they clipped a gatepost hard enough to damage their right front suspension, eliminated them from the event while fighting for a podium finish.
But they’re confident that they can put the Sasol and the Secunda incidents behind them and convert their speed into a solid result on the Bela Bela Rally. The rally in and around the famous resort town is an all-gravel affair and comprises 10 special stages and covers a race distance of 178 kilometres. It gets underway from the Bela Mall in Bela-Bela at midday on Friday, with Saturday’s restart for the remaining six stages at 08h00 from Forever Resorts. The first finisher is expected back there at about 15h00.