05/04/08 - Cape Town, Saturday – For the second meeting in a row former South African Superbike champion Sheridan Morais walked away with the individual honours at round two of the WesBank Super Series national championship outing at Killarney today.

The diminutive Morais, the 2005 SA Superbike champion, turned in two more polished performances to blitz the opposition in both heats of the CitiBike Superbike Championship. Morais (Emtek Racing Kawasaki) is unbeaten so far this season after also scoring a double at the opening round at Kyalami last month.

As was the case at Kyalami it was Clinton Seller (Lanova/Nashua Mobile/Daikin Yamaha) who provided the major opposition for Morais. In the second heat, in particular, Seller managed to pressurise Morais and even led for a lap.

Morais, however, had the ability to put Seller in his place whenever he was of a mind to demonstrate his superiority. Behind Morais and Seller there were two impressive third places for young Chris Leeson, the reigning CitiBike Supersport champion, on a second Emtek Racing Kawasaki.

In only his second outing in the bigger and faster 1 000cc class Leeson looked the part and looks to have a good future ahead of him. For reigning champion Arushen Moodley (Dynamic Express Suzuki) a disappointing start to the season continued and he had to be content with a sixth and a fourth.

Cape rider Graeme Green (Leatt Brace Yamaha) took advantage of local knowledge to win heat one of the CitiBike Supersport event for 600cc motorcycles. Second and third were James Egan (Time Freight/Thundersport Yamaha), who had a huge crash here last year, and Dane Hellyer on the Kyocera Kawasaki.

Race two saw Hellyer simply disappear into the distance to take his second win of the year. Green was second with Egan again in third place.

Not far behind Morais in terms of individual honours was reigning WesBank V8 Supercar champion Hennie Groenewald in the Timken Chev Lumina. A double took his tally to three wins in four starts.

Race one saw Groenewald cruise home ahead of team-mate Robert Briggs, in the Timken Jaguar, who survived an early off-road excursion to fight back from 10th place. Veteran Willie Hepburn, still going strong at the age of 65, was third in the Project Orange Chev Corvette.

There was a dramatic end to the race with the new Fuchs Jaguar driven by Terry Wilford catching fire before the finish line. Wilford slowed and moved to his right immediately after taking the chequered flag but, with loss of visibility because of flames and smoke in the car, did not see Danie Correia (LiquiMoly Chev Corvette) who slammed into the Jaguar.

The Jaguar hit the pit exit wall with neither driver hurt. The Jaguar, however, was severely damaged.

The customary inverted grid for race two put additional pressure on Groenewald with the formula for working out start positions made a little difficult for the two Timken cars. Briggs started from 13th and Groenewald was 14th on the grid.

Then to make it even more difficult the race was cut by two laps with a beached Briggs one of two cars in what was deemed to be dangerous positions in gravel traps. For all that Groenewald came storming through the field and, on the penultimate lap, went from fifth to the front in a couple of easy moves.

Groenewald is now firmly entrenched, as expected, at the top of the points table. Second in race two was Marc Auby (Jonnesway Chev Lumina) with Larry Wilford (Fuchs Ford Mustang) coming in ahead of Hepburn and Richard Pinard in a third Timken car.

There was plenty of drama in both Bridgestone Production Car Championship races with race one cut by a lap and finishing under safety car conditions. The safety car was called out when a broken pipe saw Class B champion Ben Morgenrood (Zoom Zoom Mazda RX8) drop oil at turn one.

Cars were skidding off in all directions with the situation a little shambolic when the safety car also took evasive action. When matters settled down the win was finally credited to reigning champion Shaun Watson-Smith (Extreme Team Audi A4) who led home team-mate Michael Stephen and Leeroy Poulter in the Sasol Nissan 350 Z.

Race two saw Watson-Smith go off on lap one and the early deployment of the safety car when the unfortunate Morgenrood, Gary van Heereden (Webcom/Soviet VW Golf GTi) and Andre van der Merwe (Renault Sport Megane) were involved in a big accident on the main pit straight. When racing resumed after two laps under the safety car, with a partially inverted grid adding spice to proceedings, local hero Johan Fourie (Indy Oil Audi A4) produced a stirring charge that took him to his first win of the season.

Fourie came from fifth to just get the better of Etienne van der Linde (Afrox BMW) and Stephen who picked up another good finish. For his troubles Watson-Smith was later excluded from the race two results for a rapid charge around the circuit, after a pit stop, as he tried to catch up with the rest of the field which was still under safety car conditions.

Reigning champion Iain Pepper (PG Glass VW Golf GTi) took both Class T wins ahead of Kyalami double winner Graeme Nathan (Seat/Kaye-Eddie Supra) and Mark Silverwood in the OKI Mini Cooper. There was also a double in Class B where Danie van Niekerk (Stanger Auto Ford Fiesta) took two comfortable wins.

Another double went the way of Gavin Cronje (Jonah Finance Formula VW) in the fledgling Formula VW category. The formula has national challenge status this season with Cronje making it four wins in four starts.

In race one Cronje came in ahead of Formula Ford champion Jayde Kruger (Formula VW) and Engen VW Cup champion Lee Thompson in the Terry Moss Racing entry. Race two saw Cronje cruise in ahead of Thompson and Cristiano Morgado (Morgado Racing Formula VW) who, like Cronje, is a former Rotax Max kart world champion.

Provisional results:

CitiBike Supersport – Heat 1: 1 G Green (Yamaha); 2 J Egan (Yamaha); 3 D Hellyer (Kawasaki); 4 J Oliver (Suzuki); 5 D White (Yamaha). Heat 2: 1 D Hellyer (Kawasaki); 2 G Green (Yamaha); 3 J Egan (Yamaha); 4 J Oliver (Suzuki); 5 D White (Yamaha).
CitiBike Superbike – Heat 1: 1 S Morais (Kawasaki); 2 C Seller (Yamaha); 3 C Leeson (Kawasaki); 4 S Whyte (Yamaha); 5 R Portman (Suzuki). Heat 2: 1 S Morais (Kawasaki); 2 C Seller (Yamaha); 3 C Leeson (Kawasaki); 4 A Moodley (Suzuki); 5 R Portman (Suzuki).

Formula VW – Heat 1: 1 G Cronje (Formula VW); 2 J Kruger (Formula VW); 3 L Thompson (Formula VW); 4 F van der Merwe (Formula VW); 5 T Pepper (Formula VW). Heat 2: 1 G Cronje (Formula VW); 2 L Thompson (Formula VW); 3 C Morgado (Formula VW); 4 F van der Merwe (Formula VW); 5 D Perel (Formula VW).

Bridgestone Production Cars – Heat 1: 1 S Watson-Smith (Audi A4); 2 M Stephen (Audi A4); 3 L Poulter (Nissan 350Z); 4 A Taylor (BMW 330i); 5 J Fourie (Audi A4). Class A – S Watson-Smith (Audi A4); Class T – I Pepper (VW Golf GTi); Class B – D van Niekerk (Ford Fiesta). Heat 2: 1 J Fourie (Audi A4); 2 E van der Linde (BMW 330i); 3 N Stephen (Audi A4); 4 A Taylor (BMW 330i); 5 T Sipuka (Nissan 350Z). Class A – J Fourie (Audi A4); Class T – I Pepper (VW Golf GTi); Class B – D van Niekerk (Ford Fiesta).

WesBank V8 Supercars – Heat 1: 1 H Groenewald (Chev Lumina); 2 R Briggs (Jaguar); 3 W Hepburn (Chev Corvette); 4 M Auby (Chev Lumina); 5 F di Matteo (Jaguar). Heat 2: 1 H Groenewald (Chev Lumina); 2 M Auby (Chev Lumina); 3 L Wilford (Ford Mustang); 4 W Hepburn (Chev Corvette); 5 R Pinard (Jaguar).

Go to http://www.wesbankmotorsport.co.za for more news on Wesbank Super Series