Jan Habig Rallying

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Close battle in Polokwane

19 Oct 2013

It was tight at the top on Friday after the opening day of the Polokwane Rally, the penultimate round of the South African National Rally Championship.

At the end of 68 kilometres of special stages, reigning champions Mark Cronjé and Robin Houghton (Dealer Team Ford Fiesta), had eked out a tenuous 1,3 second advantage over Leeroy Poulter and Elvéne Coetzee (Castrol Toyota Yaris) in the premier S2000 class. Completing the top three, made up of a trio of different manufacturers, were former South African champions Hergen Fekken and Pierre Arries in a Sasol Racing VW Polo.

Fourth were Johnny Gemmell and Carolyn Swan (Castrol Toyota Yaris) ahead of Japie van Niekerk and Gerhard Snyman (NAD Ford Fiesta). That gave van Niekerk and Snyman the lead in the S2000 Challenge for older specification four-wheel-drive cars.

Next up in the overall classification were two other S2000 Challenge crews in Wilro Dippenaar/Kes Naidoo (Toyota Auris) and Cape pair Jean-Pierre Damseaux and Hilton Auffray (Total Toyota Auris). Behind them and completing the top eight were former South African champions Enzo Kuun and Douglas Judd (Sasol Racing VW Polo) who were fifth in Class S2000.

A good battle was developing in Class S1600 for two-wheel-drive cars where there is a tight fight in the overall championship. Honours on day one belonged to Thilo Himmel and Armand du Toit (Toyota Etios) ahead of Clint Weston/Christoff Snyders (Reef Citroen C2) and Marko Himmel and Francois Schoonbee in a Toyota Corolla.

Among the big guns who ran into problems on day one were Jan Habig and Robert Paisley (Basil Read Ford Fiesta) and Henk Lategan & Barry White (Sasol Racing VW Polo pair). Both ran into suspension problems but were due to enter under Super Rally regulations on Saturday which gives them a chance of salvaging championship points.

Also in the Super Rally shootout will be Giniel de Villiers and Greg Godrich in the Imperial Toyota Yaris who ran into a drive shaft problems.

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