Jayde Kruger, Formula
VW Champion 09

26/09/09 - Cape Town, Saturday – Round eight of the WesBank Super Series at Killarney today, the penultimate round of the national circuit racing championship, threw a whole heap of championship situations into the melting pot.
With a bunch of championships now in the balance the final meeting of the season at Kyalami next month is going to be charged with drama. A more charged finale to the season could not have been better scripted.

Only two championships have so far been decided with Sheridan Morais (Emtek Kawasaki) already having clinched the Interfile Supersport title. Morais also has a foot in the door in the Interfile Superbike series while Jayde Kruger (Motul/First Freight FVW) has also wrapped up the Formula Volkswagen title.

For the rest, however, it is going to be white knuckle time – particularly for one or two competitors who had the opportunity today to virtually wrap up titles.

It was a cold, wet and windy day in Cape Town but there was non stop drama on a day that also produced a trip down memory lane from a contingent of South African motorsport legends.
Veteran home town boy Lance Isaacs (Portable Shade Honda) stole the individual honours with two commanding performances in the Interfile Superbike heats. Isaacs has taken a new lease on life this season and his brace of wins kept alive his hopes of pipping Morais at the championship post.
In race one he led home Greg Gildenhuys (Race Nation Honda) and Morais with former champion Arushen Moodley (PS Honda) and Chris Leeson (Team Yamaha) completing the top five. In the second race Morais and Gildenhuys swapped places with Moodley and Leeson again fourth and fifth.
The upshot saw Isaacs close to within 24 points of Morais in the championship. With 50 points at stake at Kyalami, the odds are slightly in favour of Morais but motor racing is a funny old game.
Morais won the opening heat of the Supersport event to complete his 14th win in 16 starts. Eddie Alberts (Race Nation Honda) and Jaques Peskens (PS Honda) were third and fourth with Morais taking control over the last four laps.
The second heat was run in tricky conditions and produced a superb scrap between teenager Steven Odendaal (Mitsubishi Electric Suzuki) and Peskens and an extraordinary result. Odendaal and Peskens crossed the line, separated by less than a bike length, ahead of local rider Michael Wahl on the Ocean Basket Yamaha.
Clerk of the course George Portman then hit Odendaal and Peskens with time penalities for a “race incident.” The penalties saw Odendaal, Peskens and Wahl finish in a unprecedented three-way dead heat, with a subdued Morais fourth and John Oliver (Stunt SA Yamaha) fifth.
A win and a third for Hennie Groenwald (Timken Jaguar) threw the Wesbank V8 Supercar championship wide open. With brothers Marc and Brandon Auby, both in ELT International Jaguars, arriving in Cape Town firmly in control of the championship Groenewald’s quest for a fourth title looked to be dead and buried.
Groenewald’s good day, combined with a nightmare meeting for the Auby brothers and father Deon, in the ELT Holden, set up a mouthwatering finale at Kyalami. Groenewald is now only five points behind Marc Auby with Brandon a further five points in arrears.
Groenewald won the opening race ahead of Jaco Correia (Liqui Moly Chev Corvette) and Deon Auby. The Auby siblings both ran into gearbox problems but worse was to come.
Tricky conditions and a reverse grid worked together to provide an interesting second race. Correia took an early lead followed by local driver Neil Hawkins in the Cars Unlimited Opel Astra and, apart from a brief attack from Groenewald, the lead pair were untroubled.
Terry Wilford (Fuchs Jaguar) and Franco di Matteo (Varta Batteries Jaguar) were fourth and fifth. As for the Aubys father Deon and Brandon were nowhere with Marc finishing 10th with his championship challenge now under severe threat.
Both the Class A and Class T championships in th Bridgestone Production Car series will go to the wire at Kyalami. A second and a win took local favourite Johan Fourie (Indy Oil Audi) ahead of Anthony Taylor (Afrox BMW) in Class A, with Gary Formato (Ford Racing Nando’s Ford Focus) moving ahead of Graeme Nathan (Indy Oil) in Class T.
The first heat win went to Shawn Watson-Smith (Xtreme Team Audi) ahead of Fourie and Michael Stephen in the second Xtreme Team Audi. Melvill Priest (VMP Audi) and Taylor were fourth and fifth.
Heat two was an Audi benefit with Fourie, Stephen and Watson-Smith leading home Leeroy Poulter (GP Windscreens Nissan 350Z) and Taylor. With Stephen not yet out of the picture Kyalami will be interesting.
Nathan and Formato shared wins in Class T. A puncture in the second heat hit Nathan where it hurts, and a third in the opening race gives Formato a slight advantage going to Kyalami.
The Engen VW Cup championship is also poised for a dramatic finale with Mathew Hodges (PG Glass VW Polo), Gennaro Bonafede (Champion VW Polo) and team-mate Devin Robertson set to fight it out. Robertson and Bonafede looked to have seized the initiative in race one when they finished first and second with championship leader Hodges out of the points via a gearbox problem.
But Hodges hit back in a wet second heat with a faultless display. A lap one rush of blood put Robertson out of the running, and Bonafede had an adventurous ride to fourth behind local Kosie Weyers (Xtreme Team VW Polo) and Kieran Quarmby in the Interfile/Gallardo VW Polo.
Two polished wins from Wesleigh Orr (Globla/Bravo Holdings FVW), the second in atrocious conditions, saw him close the gap on Formula VW championship leader Jayde Kruger in the Motul/First Freight FVW. Kruger did not have a happy day with a fifth and a seventh but they were enough to put him out of reach of Orr in the championship stakes.
Orr won the opening heat ahead of Tasmin Pepper (PG Glass/VW Racing FVW) and Phakisa winner Tschops Sipuka in the Southern Sun Oakley car. Race two saw Orr run away from Gordon Connelly (Bravo Holdings/Cowan Signs FVW) with the impressive Pepper taking a second podium.
A bevy of motor racing legends also dished up some top class entertainment in two celebrity races to celebrate 25 years of Volkswagen Motorsport. Race one saw Chris Aberdein lead home multiple Touring Car champion and Dakar Rally winner Giniel de Villiers and Terry Moss, also a former Touring Car champion, with the entire field out in standard Citi Golfs.
Race two saw Moss lead home de Villiers with the legendary Sarel van der Merwe third. A coming together with rally navigator Guy Hodgson put van der Merwe out of the race one running.
Results:
WesBank V8 Supercars: Heat 1 – 1 H Groenewald (Jaguar); 2 D Auby (Holden); 3 J Correia (Chev Corvette); 4 T Wilford (Jaguar); 5 F di Matteo (Jaguar). Heat 2 – 1 J Correia (Chev Corvette); 2 N Hawkins (Opel Astra); 3 H Groenewald (Jaguar); 4 T Wilford (Jaguar); 5 F di Matteo (Jaguar).
Bridgestone Production Cars: Heat 1 – 1 S Watson-Smith (Audi); 2 J Fourie (Audi); 3 M Stephen (Audi); 4 M Priest (Audi); 5 A Taylor (BMW). Class A – S Watson-Smith (Audi); Class T – G Nathan (Golf GTi); Class B – K Swanepoel (Toyota RunX). Heat 2 – 1 J Fourie (Audi); 2 M Stephen (Audi); 3 S Watson-Smith (Audi); 4 L Poulter (Nissan 350Z); 5 A Taylor (BMW). Class A – J Fourie (Audi); Class T – G Formato (Ford Focus); Class B – K Swanepoel (Toyota RunX).
Engen VW Cup: Heat 1 – 1 D Robertson (VW Polo); 2 G Bonafede (VW Polo); 3 K Weyers (VW Polo); 4 M Pasqualli (VW Polo); 5 D Nathan (VW Polo). Heat 2 – 1 M Hodges (VW Polo); 2 K Wyeres (VW Polo); 3 K Quarmby (VW Polo); 4 G Bonafed (VW Polo); 5 K Barnes (VW Polo).
Formula Volkswagen: Heat 1 – 1 W Orr (FVW); 2 T Pepper (FVW); 3 T Sipuka (FVW); 4 G Connelly (FVW); 5 J Kruger (FVW). Heat 2 – 1 W Orr (FVW); 2 G Connelly (FVW); 3 T Pepper (FVW); 4 T Sipuka (FVW); 5 S Moss (FVW).
VW Celebrity Race: Heat 1 - ! C Aberden VW Citi); 2 G de Villiers (VW Citi); 3 T Moss (VW Citi); 4 G Hall (VW Citi); 5 M Lupini (VW Citi). Heat 2 – 1 T Moss (VW Citi); 2 G de Villiers (VW Citi); 3 S van der Merwe (VW Citi); 4 G Hall (VW Citi); 5 M Lupini (VW Citi).
Interfile SA Superbikes: Heat 1 – 1 L Isaacs (Honda); 2 G Gildenhuys (Honda); 3 S Morais (Kawasaki); 4 A Moodley (Honda); 5 C Leeson (Yamaha). Heat 2 – 1 L Isaacs (Honda); 2 S Morais (Kawasaki); 3 G Gildenhuys (Honda); 4 A Moodley (Honda); 5 C Leeson (Yamaha).
Interfile SA Supersport: Heat 1 – 1 S Morais (Kawasaki); 2 E Alberts (Honda); 3 J Peskens (Honda); 4 B Estment (Yamaha); 5 S Odendaal (Suzuki). Heat 2 – 1 S Odendaal (Suzuki)/J Peskens (Honda)/M Wahl (Yamaha); 4 S Morais (Kawasaki); 5 J Oliver (Yamaha).