Mixed fortunes in Algoa National Rally

JJ Potgieter and Tommy du Toit in their Hyundai i20
JJ Potgieter and Tommy du Toit splash their way through the water in their Hyundai i20
Image by Marisha Viljoen

JJ Potgieter and Tommy du Toit stormed to a runaway win in Friday’s round 3 of the National Rally Championship in their 4-wheel drive Hyundai i20 in perfect weather conditions, ending their run of six non-finishes in previous rallies through the Longmore Forest outside Jeffreys Bay. It also puts the pair in a commanding position in the 2023 National Rally Championship with a hat trick of wins thus far. Main rivals Jono van Wyk and Nico Swartz, unfortunately, retired their Gazoo Toyota Starlet during stage 2 when the engine dropped a valve, forcing them to call it a day along with local heroes Nick Davidson and Ashley Bezuidenhout after their Toyota Auris S2000 developed overheating problems. The Mazda 2 1600 of Chris Coerstse and Greg Godrich developed an intermittent misfire early on in the rally, but they managed to bring it home in second place just ahead of a hard-charging Benjamin Habig and Barry White in the giant slaying 1 litre VW polo GTI.

In the regional classes, it was the reigning Western Province Rally Champions that grabbed a dominant win in their very impressive 4-wheel drive Subaru Impreza from Johan Viljoen and Riaan van Huysteen in a VW Polo 250 2 litre in second and third place going to Juan and Tarryn van Rooyen in their Innova sponsored VW Polo 250 1600.

The overall class results for round 3 were as follows:

National Rally Championship 2 (2-wheel drive)

  1. Benjamin Habig and Barry White VW Polo 250 1litre GTI
  2. Gerald Klopper and Johan Aucamp Toyota Etios
  3. Gustav Potgieter and Tommy Coetzee Ford Fiesta

National Rally Championship 1 (4-wheel drive)

  1. JJ Potgieter and Tommy du Toit Hyundai i20
  2. Chris Coerstse and Greg Godrich Mazda 1600
  3. Mandla Mdakane and Kes Naidoo Toyota Starlet

Algoa Rally Club Championship ARC5

  1. Riekus Schmidt and Marco Griesel VW Polo A13 1400
  2. Gary Heine and Demi Kretzman VW Polo 250 1400
  3. Ulrich Roberts and Wesley Schultz VW Golf A1 1400

Algoa Rally Club Championship ARC4 

  1. Juan and Tarryn van Rooyen VW Polo 250 1600
  2. Deon Kretzman and Jason Schrieber Toyota Etios 1600
  3. Jeandre Marais and Tegan Taljaard Toyota Conquest 1600

Algoa Rally Club Championship ARC3

  1. Johan Viljoen and Riaan van Huysteen VW Polo 250 2litre
  2. Jody van Zummeren and James Johnson Datsun 510 Coupe 2 litre
  3. Etienne Malherbe and Patrick Vermaak Datsun SSS 2 litre

Algoa Rally Club Championship ARC1

  1. Owen Jones and Ashley Bredekamp Subaru Impreza 4wd

Algoa Rally Club Championship Clubmans

  1. Etienne Malherbe and Patrick Vermaak Datsun SSS 2 litre
  2. Eddie Banks and Morris Brown BMW E36 2 litre
  3. Ulrich Roberts and Wesley Schultz VW Golf A1 1400

Round 4 of the Rally championship on Saturday saw a storming comeback drive from Jono van Wyk and Nico Swartz after the Gazoo Toyota Team worked until 3 am on Saturday fitting a new motor to the car following the dropped valve in round 3 with them blitzing the rest of the field to take the overall win. An equally impressive performance from Mandla Mdakane and Kes Naidoo secured them the second spot on the podium, giving the Gazoo Toyota Team their first one-two finish in many a year. Mdakane, who swopped his usual GTC circuit racing seat for a rally seat, certainly made the crowds take note of his impressive pace in only his third rally ever. Another consistent performance from the Mazda 2 of Chris Coertse and Greg Godrich saw them finish in third place overall.

Round 4 of the regional rally championship proved to be a rally of attrition, with many competitors retiring with mechanical issues. Still, it was a stunning performance from Jody van Zummeren and James Johnson in a Classic Datsun 510 coupe, who triumphed over Juan and Tarryn van Rooyen in second and a brilliant show of consistency from Deon Kretzman and Jason Schrieber in their Toyota Etios in third.

Juan and Tarryn van Rooyen were not only the winners of the Tissot watches that were sponsored by Gabriels Jewellers at Fountain Malls for their combined performance from both rounds of the rallies but also claimed the Algoa Rally Clubs King of the Longmore for setting the fastest stage times in the forest.

The overall class results for round 4 were as follows:

National Rally Championship 2 (2-wheel drive)

  1. Benjamin Habig and Barry White VW Polo 250 1litre GTI
  2. Gustav Potgieter and Tommy Coetzee Ford Fiesta
  3. George Smalberger and Robbie Coetzee VW Polo 250 1litre GTI

National Rally Championship 1 (4-wheel drive) / Overall

  1. Jono van Wyk and Nico Swartz Gazoo Toyota Starlet
  2. Mandla Mdakane and Kes Naidoo Gazoo Toyota Starlet
  3. Chris Coerstse and Greg Godrich Mazda 1600

Algoa Rally Club Championship ARC5 

  1. Riekus Schmidt and Marco Griesel VW Polo A13 1400
  2. Ulrich Roberts and Wesley Schultz VW Golf A1 1400
  3. De Villiers Wessells and Francois Anker VW Polo 250 1400

Algoa Rally Club Championship ARC4 

  1. Juan and Tarryn van Rooyen VW Polo 250 1600
  2. Deon Kretzman and Jason Schrieber Toyota Etios 1600
  3. Francois Loubscher and Mark Irvine  Toyota Conquest 1600

Algoa Rally Club Championship ARC3 

  1. Jody van Zummeren and James Johnson Datsun 510 Coupe 2 litre
  2. Oliver de Man and Craig Step Toyota Corolla 2 litre
  3. Eddie Banks and Morris Brown BMW E36 2 litre

Algoa Rally Club Championship Clubmans

  1. Francois Loubscher and Mark Irvine  Toyota Conquest 1600
  2. Eddie Banks and Morris Brown BMW E36 2 litre
  3. Ulrich Roberts and Wesley Schultz VW Golf A1 1400

The National Rally Championship makes its way to Mpumalanga, where the next round will be held in the forests around Tzaneen on the 25 and 26 August.

Upcoming Events

Other News