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 | ABSA 2011: Sullwalds keep South African SP BAT Championship in the Family.
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A late season revival saw Hermann and Wichard Sullwald keep the Special Vehicle championship in the family with a victory on the RFS Magalies 400, the final event of the South African Absa Off Road Championship, at Tarlton International Raceway.
With two events remaining it looked as though Kallie and Quintin Sullwald, in the Elegant Fuel BAT, were headed for back to back championship successes. In a disappointing end to their season the Phalaborwa based father and son team were overhauled by Hermann and Wichard who clinched the title with a win on the RFS Magalies 400.
For the Sullwalds the wheel has now turned full circle. Brothers Kallie and Hermann won the South African title together in the 90s, and now each of the brothers has won the championship with his son.
Third in the overall drivers’ championship went to former champion Evan Hutchison (Motorite Revo) with Marius Fourie (PHB BAT) and Johan van Staden (Atlas Copco BAT) completing the top five. Fourie was the highest placed Class P competitor.
The two Sullwald cousins were followed by Jolinda Fourie in the co-driver championship with James Rossouw and Danie Stassen fourth and fifth. Rossouw sat alongside van Staden and Stassen, who missed one event, co-drove for Hutchison.
Scoring anomalies saw the two Sullwald crews finish ahead of Hutchison and Stassen in the Class A title race. Van Staden and Rossouw and another father and son team, Nick and Ryan Harper, in the Motorite BAT, completed the top five.
A fourth place on the RFS Magalies 400 was enough to clinch the Class P title for Regent Racing Jimco crew Archie Rutherford and Mike Lawrenson. They edged out the Fouries and rookie Richard Fuller and Geoff Minnitt (Atlas Copco BAT) with both crews having the distinction of winning races overall during the season.
Fuller and Minnitt won the Sun City 400 and the Fouries the Human Auto 400 in the Free State. A third Class P crew, Colin Matthews and Alan Smith (Century Racing CR2) won the Adenco 400 and Rutherford/Lawrenson went into the RFS Magalies event as defending champions.
The honours in Class B were split between two families who indulged in a friendly rivalry throughout the season. Keith Makenete (Zarco) won the driver’s championship ahead of Coetzee Labuscagne in the Raysonics Zarco. In the co-driver championship Coetzee’s daughter Sandra edged out Makenete’s brother Andrew. The Labuscagnes won the final skirmish of the season on the RFS Magalies 400 to give Sandra her championship.
2011/11/21 | 20:09 CET | ARTICLE: MR/SY/FORTUNE
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