With two of the five rounds of the SA National Cross Country Championship for Motorcycles and Quads now something of the past, the pressure will be on the class leaders when the series goes to Botswana where competitors will enjoy proper desert racing for the next round of the 2016 championship.
Some interesting battles have developed during the first two events and the current championship standings predicts even more interesting racing for the rest of the season.
In OR1 (Open) in the motorcycle category, double victor Michael Pentecost (Proudly Bidvest Yamaha) has an eight point lead over Ross Branch (Brother Leader Tread KTM) and the defending champion, Kenny Gilbert (Kargo Racing Husqvarna) who are on equal points. Altus de Wet (BCR Arrow Yamaha Racing) is six points behind the pair and only five points ahead of both Ruan Smith (Sherco SA Racing) and Charan Moore (Super Moose Yamaha) who are also level pegging.
A mere four points cover the first three riders in OR2 (250cc) with consistency paying off for Cameron Becker (KTM Centurion Liqui Moly Racing) who is leading the class albeit by a single point. Defending champion, Louw Schmidt (Brother Leader Tread KTM) had a bad start to the season, but has moved to second place behind Becker with Brendon Fourie (Sherco Racing SA) only three points behind him. They have a little breathing space to the rest of the pack with Shaun Mostert (KTM) fourth, six points adrift and Jaycee Nienaber (D&H Engineering Works Yamaha) one point in arrears after winning the opening round, but not able to finish round two.
As expected, the OR3 (200cc) fight between current champion, Brett Swanepoel (Proudly Bidvest Yamaha) and the 2015 runner-up, Jarryd Coetzee (Brother Leader Tread KTM), continued this season with Swanepoel leading Coetzee by six points. Taki Bogiages (KTM) is third, 10 points behind Coetzee and only one point ahead of two riders, Calvin Wiltshire (Droomers Yamaha) and Wilhelm Schönfeldt (BCR Arrow Yamaha Racing) who round off the top five.
Consistency has paid off for Wynand Kleynhans (Yamaha) in the Senior Championship where two runner-up results place him in the lead, eight points ahead of Lodewyk Jansen van Vuuren (KTM Centurion Liqui Moly Racing) and the defending champion, Juan ‘Bollie’ van Rooyen (Brother Leader Tread KTM), who overcame a dismal start to the season to move onto the podium after the second event.
Wayne Farmer (Doorzone Bikers Warehouse Husqvarna Racing) has built a fairly comfortable lead of 12 points in the Master Class where he is being followed by Justin Broughton (Sherco Racing SA) who leads third-placed Martin Poole (Yamaha) by nine points.
Two victories in the High School Class have placed Adriano Catalano (D&H Engineering Works) in the lead, but the eight points to both André Basson (Yamaha) and Stefan van Deventer (Alfie Cox Junior Racing KTM) only predicts more exciting racing between the youngsters. Maarten van Jaarsveld (Doorzone Bikers Warehouse Husqvarna) trails Basson and Van Deventer by eight points. The forthcoming Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1000 will be a big test for these competitors.
Only Izak Mans (Droomers Yamaha) and Michael Glöckle (D&H Engineering Works Yamaha) scored points in both rounds in the 125cc Class with the experienced Mans leading the scholar by only one point. Ryan Pelser (KTM) who did not finish the Vryburg race won the Battlefields Race and is third.
Mans’ wife, Riki (Droomers Yamaha) leads Karen Jansen van Vuren (KTM) by four points, but they will have to keep an eye on third-placed Taye Perry (KTM) who missed the second event, but will be back for the Desert Race.
Riaan Prinsloo (Yamaha) leads the Silver Inter Provincial Challenge ahead of SJ Bester (VANS Racing Division KTM).
Consistency is what it is all about in the quad category where Dewald Theron (Yamaha) – the only rider who could manage to score points at both events – is leading the Open Quad Class. He has an 11 point lead over André Park (Yamaha), who won the opening round and John Aylward (Yamaha), who did not compete in the first event, but won the recent Battlefields Race. They share the same amount of points.
Anything can happen in the Open Quad Championship. Stefan Swanepoel fills fourth place, but has retired from racing while Brian Baragwanath (Proudly Bidvest Yamaha) missed the second round as he participated in the Donaldson Cross Country Motor Racing Championship and Hannes Saaijman (Yamaha), who finished third at the Battlefields Race (he missed the opening round) have the same amount of points (16 points off the leader). The entry list for the Botswana event and the results will play a major role in the outcome of this championship.
Two victories place defending Master Class champion, George Twigge (Yamaha) in the lead, 10 points ahead of both Petrus van Heerden (Honda) and Stef Bester (VANS Racing Division Yamaha) with LJ Erasmus (Yamaha) three points behind them.
Morné Jansen van Vuren (Yamaha) is ahead in the High School Class where Keenan Hammon (Yamaha) is second despite winning the Battlefields Race as he could not finish the Vryburg event. Megan Stander (Suzuki) is third.