New badge adds extra spice to Sugarbelt 400

Chris du Plooy and Thinus Janse van Rensburg will add a new factor to this weekend's Sugarbelt 400, the third round of the 2010 SA Off-Road championship. They'll be driving a BMW X3, the first Blue Propeller Buggy to join Ford, Toyota and Nissan in the premier SP Class.

And, like factory Ford Ranger of Neil Woolridge and Kenny Skjoldhammer, it's a diesel.

It will be one of record field of 18 SP Class entrants in the race, to be run in the Eston area near Pietermaritzburg in kwaZulu-Natal over May 21/22.

But, while Du Plooy and Janse van Rensburg will give BMW its competition debut, the car is earmarked for former South African champions Hannes Grobler and Hennie ter Stege.

Grobler and ter Stege have a 100 percent finish record so far in 2010; they'll use their "old faithful" Toyota Hilux in the Sugarbelt to pick up points and strengthen their early hold on the 2010 championship while Du Plooy and Janse sort out any teething problems on the X3.

Local heroes, Neil Woolridge, and Kenny Skjoldhammer, will fancy their chances of consecutive wins in the Ford Racing Ranger TDCi after their historic victory in the Toyota Dealer 400, the first by a diesel.

Back-up for the factory Ford will come from the Rangers of Kobus van Tonder/Freddie Kriel, Louw de Bruin/Riaan Greyling and Graham Leith/Mike Lawrenson. De Bruin and Greyling are one of only three SP Class crews with a 100 percent record so far in 2010 and will want to keep the momentum going.

The appearance of another local legend, former Special and Production Vehicle champion Alfie Cox, in a Nissan Navara with German co-driver Jurgen Schroder, will also add extra spice to an already enticing menu.

Toyota holds the numerical advantage with nine SP Class entries but, of those, only Grobler and Ter Stege have an unblemished finish record in 2010, putting extra pressure on Hilux crews Duncan Vos/Rob Howie and Anthony Taylor/Robin Houghton.

Another non-finish for either crew would be a hammer blow in terms of championship prospects. It all adds up to a difficult weekend for team boss Glyn Hall and his charges.

Adenco 400 winners Chris Visser and Japie Badenhorst (Toyota Hilux) have shown plenty of pace in 2010 and will want to bounce back after dropping out of the Toyota Dealer 400.

Nissan's championship challenge is being led by Mike Whitehouse and brother-in-law Mathew Carlson in a Navara. The pair has enviable reliability records in Special and Production Vehicle categories and is the third crew to finish both events run so far in 2010.

Reigning Class D champions Dewald van Breda and Johann du Toit will give their new Toyota Hilux its first outing. They won the opening event of 2010 and missed the next race but, teething problems aside, look set to add to their championship tally.

Pikkie Labuschange/Rickus Erasmus (Toyota Hilux) and Etienne Bezuidenhout/Hanro Visser (Adenco Ford Ranger) also missed the previous race but will be back in the Class E mix in the Sugarbelt, to give locals Lance Woolridge and Ward Huxtable (Ford Racing Ranger), who took class E honours in the Toyota Dealer 400, a run for the silverware.

SPECIAL VEHICLES

The Class A brigade will be looking to reassert their authority on the Special Vehicle category after having their noses bloodied at the Dealer Team 400, when Pretoria pair Johan van Staden n and James Rossouw, in a BAT, became the first Class P crew to win an SA Off-Road race overall

Each team is required to drop one result at the end of the season so a number of Class A crews are skating on thin ice after early-season retirements.

Among them are reigning champions Evan Hutchison and Achim Bergmann (BAT), Porter crew Shameer Variawa and Siegfried Rousseau, Colin Matthews and Alan Smith (BAT) and the father and son crew of Nick and Ryan Harper, also in a BAT.

Class A is a blend of out-and-out chargers and those who approach their racing with a little more circumspection. The Sugarbelt route, however, has rapid changes in terrain and surface and sudden drop offs; the more cautious crews will probably carry the smart money.

RARE NON-FINISH

Reigning Drivers' champion Johan Bezuidenhout and brother Deon (BAT) will be back in Class P after missing the Toyota Dealer 400, while winners Van Staden and Rossouw will simply want to keep the momentum going.

Class B champion Derick du Toit, partnered by Rod Jeffrey in a BAT, will be looking to bounce back after a rare non-finish in the Toyota Dealer 400.

Race headquarters, the start/finish and the designated service area will be at the Beaumont Eston Farmer's Club outside Pietermaritzburg. There will be numerous spectator vantage points within easy reach of race headquarters and public access to these areas will be free.

The prologue to determine starting order will start at 11.30am on Friday, May 21 and the race itself at 8.30am on Saturday, May 22.