As Jan Hettema used to sing at the start of the Economy Run: “On the road again”, it was pretty much the same old story with the Imperial Toyota Rally in Cullinan. Mark Cronje in Ford Dealer Ford Fiesta S2000 did what he has done so many times in the past, by winning stage one. But the win came at a price. He struck a stone on the stage and arrived at the end weith a damaged gearbox with oil pouring out of it.
Second on the stage, as usual, was Leeroy Poulter in the Team Castrol Toyota Yaris S2000, but only just. In spite of having a slight off on the stage he finished only three seconds behind Cronje. Cronje’s time for the 8.20km stage was 05:20.8.
Third on the stage, 6.9 seconds behind Cronje and right on the tail of Poulter, was Hergen Fekken in the other Team Castrol Toyota Yaris.
Henk Lategan, in the Sasolracing Volkswagen Polo, who is running first on the road, was fourth some 6.9 seconds off the pace. Fifth was the Sasolracing imported team of Hans Weijs and Bjorn Degand, 7.5 seconds off the lead.
Japie van Niekerk in the NAD Ford Fiesta S2000, was next up in 6th +9.3 followed by Giniel de Villiers in the Imperial Toyota Yaris +11.3. In 8th position on the stage was the Sasolracing Volkswagen driver, Gugu Zulu +11.3.
Competing in the S2000 Challenge Cup, Wilro Dippenaar from Namibia in a Toyota Auris was 9th +14.3 and 10th was another Namibian, Thilo Himmel in a Sasolracing Volkswagen Polo +20.0
In the S1600 class, Chad van Beurden won the stage from Guy Botterill. He was 33.8 seconds slower than the leader, and Botterill was 39.8 seconds off the pace.
The competitors will do six stages today 77.75km in total. The overnight stop is at the Zonderwater Correctional Facility. Altogether 34 cars started this morning of which 22 compete in the national championship. The rest of the field consist of NRC2 older specification cars and10compete in the regional championship of the Northern Regions.