The final round of the 2019 Car Care Clinic SuperHatch Championship will take place at Zwartkops Raceway, west of Pretoria on Saturday, 9 November it is still all to play for. Nic Martin (Rex Diff & Gearbox Peugeot 207) holds an 18-point advantage at the top of the overall championship standings and should be able to reclaim the title he last won in 2017. The battle for the runners-up spot is, however, far from decided. There are seven drivers within 10 points of each other and all of them will be out to grab as many points as possible. Andre Dannhauser (Pro Auto Rubber/Jestik Opel Corsa) leads the way there, just a point ahead of Brett Garland (autObarn/Incco/Sabat Honda Civic). Shane Forget (4Js Auto Opel Cub) is next up, four points behind Garland and three ahead of Tyler Scott (Episerve/EBC/Jestik/Lopec Opel Kadett TS) who occupies fifth place. Louis Scholtz (Car Care Clinic Honda Civic) and rookie Nathi Msimanga (Squadra Corse VW Polo) are in joint sixth place just a point behind Scott with Wouter Roos (Nathan’s Motorsport VW Polo) a further point back in eighth.
Last time out at Port Elizabeth’s Aldo Scribante circuit, Garland had to be content with three third-place finishes in Class A while Scott and Jonathan du Toit (Trans Africa Racing Honda Civic) shared the wins and will be looking for a better performance than that in his quest to ensure he claims the Class A title. He has a seven-point lead over Scott with Scholtz just a point further back in third. Despite missing a few races this year due to work and family commitments, du Toit is still fourth in the standings and could move up the standings if he produces his usual Zwartkops performance. Trevor Stringer (Citrine Designs Peugeot 206), Shaun Smith (Pretoria Noord Toyota RunX), Tiaan Smith (SPS Racing VW Golf) and Francois Henning (Select Registration/River End Trading VW Polo) will all be aiming to end the season on a high while Robert Stoltz (Episerve/Jestik/Lopec/EBC Opel Kadett) has indicated that he will be making the step up from Class C to Class A and it will be interesting to watch his progress.
Martin has already made sure that the Class B title is his but, as with the overall title, the minor placings are yet to be decided. Forget is currently in second place, five points ahead of Roos with Zane van Zyl (Credit Guarantee Golf) likely to end the season in fourth as he is too far back to have a realistic chance of getting the better of them. Bryce Pillay (VW Motorsport Polo) and Mel Spurr (iTre Cugini/ATT/Meta/AKA/Wealth Avenue VW Polo) are separated by two points in fifth and sixth with Ishmael Baloyi (Trans Africa Racing Honda Civic) in seventh. Hennie Swanepoel has rebuilt his VW Polo motor and should rejoin the field.
Since moving to Class C at the second event of the year, Dannhauser has dominated the class and has built up a seven-point lead over Msimanga at the head of the standings. The title will go to one of them. Msimanga’s teammate, Baksi Komane, is in third place, four points ahead of Freddy Watkins (LNF Racing VW Polo) Reno van Heerden (Taurus VW Polo), Craig Priestley (Tactical Fluid Ford Laser) and Roux van der Colff (Alimtech Waterproofing/Alignment Masters Ford Laser) will all be in the hunt for points as will Andre de Lange (ADL Ford Fiesta) and Carel Vos (Select Registration/River End Trading Toyota Conquest). Nolan Fleetwood (Electro Whizz VW Passat) will claim Class D. After Friday’s practice sessions, qualifying will get underway at 08h25 on Saturday with the opening 8-lap heat scheduled to start at 11h15. The second heat, also an 8-lap affair, should begin at 14h40