After a three-month winter break, the SuperGP Champions Trophy competitors return to action for the fifth round of the 2018 championship which will take place at the newly resurfaced Aldo Scribante circuit on 24 and 25 August 2018.
The leading duo in the SuperGP championship, Michael White (Consortium Shipping Yamaha R1) and defending champion Clint Seller (King Price Extreme / Bikefin Yamaha R1), didn’t rest on their laurels during the break. White headed to Europe where he finished on the podium in the Italian Yamaha R1 Cup at Misano while Seller headed east to compete in the Suzuka 8 hours, a round of the FIM Endurance World Championship. The pair will resume their battle for the championship with White holding a slight advantage as they head for Port Elizabeth. Daryn Upton, on the Uncle Andy Racing Suzuki GSXR 1000, is next up comfortably ahead of David McFadden (RPM Centre/Stunt SA Kawasaki ZX10R), who has also been competing on the international stage during the winter break, and Dylan Barnard (Shop #74 Yamaha R1). After missing the East London round as he was still recovering from the crash he had at Killarney back in March, Morne Geldenhuis (NCA Plant Hire / Hi-Tech Racing Yamaha R1) bounced back at Kyalami taking two podium finishes. He will be hoping to continue in that vein and move up the standings from his current six place. Gavin Upton (Turn Skill Engineering Yamaha R1), the leading SuperMasters competitor, is in seventh in the SuperGP standings.
After a slow start to the 2018 season, Blaze Baker (King Price Extreme / Bikefin Yamaha R6) has won the last four Super600 races and moved to the top of the championship standings. His lead is not a comfortable one, however, as Adolf Boshoff (Uncle Andy Racing Suzuki GSXR600) is just 15 points behind. Hayden Jonas (Samurai Racing Yamaha R6) announced his withdrawal from the national series at Kyalami leaving Byron Bester (Hi-Tech Racing Kawasaki ZX6), Jared Schultz (Uncle Andy Racing Suzuki GSXR600) and Brandon Staffen (AJH Cooling/Keating & Jansen Kawasaki ZX6) to take up the chase.
The Super300 brigade didn’t compete at Kyalami but most of them haven’t been idle in the break, competing in various local and international events. The leading trio in the championship, led by Dino Iozzo (King Price Extreme/Bikefin Honda), has opened up a substantial gap on the chasing pack and the 2018 championship is almost certain to go to one of the three. Kewyn Snyman (The Mag Workshop KTM RC390) is only six points behind Iozzo with Taric van der Merwe (Evolve Nutrition Yamaha R3), who took two victories last time out in East London, not far behind. Behind them, Chase Hulcher (Uncle Andy Racing / Motul KTM RC390) leads the way followed by Deegan Claassens (Nine Nine Racing Kawasaki Ninja 300), Clinton Fourie (Yamaha R3) and Ryno Pretorius, landed his first Super300 podium last time out on his Pretorious Blomme Yamaha R3.
The BOTTS riders will be the main supporting category to the national classes and there the way is led by Tomas Brown (Rehab Racing Ducati) from James Harper (Moto Uno Ducati) and Mick Landi (Rehab Racing Ducati). The Eastern Cape-based Superbikes and Historic Motorcycles will also be in action.
In a slight change to the normal programme, both the Super300s and BOTTS will have three races on Saturday while all the other categories will have their normal two races. The first warm-up session gets underway at 08h00 with racing proper starting at 10h00.
