Championship leaders Guy Botterill and Simon Vacy-Lyle (Yato Tools Toyota Etios) scored their fourth consecutive victory in the SA National Rally Championship for two-wheel drive S1600 cars in Port Elizabeth on Saturday after winning 10 of the 15 special stages that made up the two-day VW Rally, halfway point of the eight-round championship.
They have now accumulated a full-house 100 points and a healthy lead of 44 points over their nearest rivals. But it was no easy victory. They were given a full run for their money by a resurgent Chad van Beurden and Nico Swartz (Beurden Construction VW Polo R2), who recorded their second runner-up finish of the year and were only 11 sec in arrears after nearly 180 kilometres of high-speed racing over 12 gravel and three tarmac stages.
Van Beurden won four stages and led the rally at the end of Friday’s seven stages by 18 sec, the first to better Botterill at the end of any day of the championship so far.
Third, 2 min 36 sec behind the winners, were Ernie van der Walt and James Aldridge (Ferodo Ford Fiesta R2), who achieved their best result of the year to date together. It was also Van der Walt’s best performance since joining the championship full-time from circuit racing in 2013.
AC Potgieter and Tommy du Toit (VW Polo) improved their overnight fifth place to fourth with their best result of the season, finishing 5 min 21 sec in arrears. Andrew Heine and former S1600 co-driver champion /Robbie Coetzee were fifth in a VW Polo, ahead of Chris Coertse and 16-year-old Mari van der Walt (Electrothread Toyota Etios R2), who were the last of the ten S1600 entries to complete the full event.
Classified seventh under the Super Rally rules although they only completed Saturday’s first three stages were Ashley Haigh-Smith and Damian van Ass (Castrol Ford Fiesta R2). They were carrying a three-minute penalty for a technical infringement on Friday.
Matthew Vacy-Lyle and Schalk van Heerden (Fragram Tools Etios R2) were classified eighth after rolling their car on Saturday’s stage nine, while Paulus Franken and Henry Kohne (Manitou Group VW Polo R2) came ninth after going off the road on stage 10.
Tenth and last were the unfortunate Richard Leeke Jnr and Rikus Fourie (ATS Ford Fiesta R2), who lost four minutes in stage four on Friday with gearbox problems while lying third and then were forced out on Saturday’s stage nine when the gearbox failed altogether.
The next round of the championship is the Cullinan Rally on August 15 and 16.