The penultimate round of the Absa Off Road Championship is set to be a nail biting affair. Taking place in the Lydenburg area, the Toyota Dealer 400 gets underway on the weekend of October 10 and 11th with much anticipation surrounding this year’s premier SP Class championship.
Neil Woolridge and Kenny Skjoldhammer are currently lying in second place in the Class SP championship battle and will be aiming to overhaul rivals Duncan Vos and Ralph Pitchford.
The Ford crew are just four points shy of claiming the lead in the title chase and are looking forward to making up that deficit on the upcoming Lydenburg event. Thanks to the outstanding reliability of the Ford Ranger, Woolridge and Skjoldhammer have enjoyed an impeccable run this season with not only a 100 percent finishing tally, but achieved podium finishes at each event.
“The Ranger has been faultless this season. We’ve had no major drama and if we can continue with our current form in the remaining two rounds of the season we are looking very strong in the championship race,” explains Woolridge.
Kenny Skjoldhammer remains the firm favourite to take the navigators title, while his rivals have sat out certain events, Skjoldhammer has extended his championship lead to nine points.
“There’s no margin for error in the remaining two rounds,” says Woolridge. “While we will be aiming to gain the lead in the points standing we also have to watch out for the third placed Nissan crew who are also within striking distance.”
The leading Ford crew will find support in the form of team-mates Mark Ferguson and Craig West in the sister SP Ford Ranger. Ferguson and West made their debut in the SP class at the start of the current season and have recorded some strong finishes along the way.
“It’s hard to believe that there are only two rounds remaining this season. We learnt a lot throughout the year and are showing progress all the time. We’ll be looking for a drama free run and hoping to score some valuable points,” says Ferguson.
Reigning Class E Champions Jack Peckham and Lucio Santoro competing in the Class E 3.0 TDCi Ford Ranger have had their fair share of difficulties this season.
“We’ll be looking to end the season on a high note,” comments Peckham. “The Class E title is now out of our reach but we’d like to have a good run in the car and start looking towards next season. “
“It’s a very tense battle at the moment. There are only two rounds remaining and three teams in the reckoning for the championship. To make things more complicated we will all drop a round from our points tally. It is therefore imperative that we are on top of our game in Lydenburg and continue with the good form we’ve shown throughout the season,” concludes Woolridge.
Team Ford Racing recognises the following sponsors for their commitment and belief in the team: Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa, Time Freight, Special Steels, Ferguson investments, Hugo’s Panel Shop – Pietermaritzburg, Eibach Springs, Sign Solutions and Donerre Dampers.
