While the title could be settled after the first race, lower down, the overall picture isn't as clear.
With the last round in East London almost eight weeks ago having been the halfway point, the Toyota GR Cup returns to action this weekend for the sixth and penultimate round at the Killarney Circuit in Cape Town.
Aside from being the second last round of the season, and of the National Extreme Festival, the final coastal race meeting represents a crucial point heading into the season finale at Zwartkops next month.
Not over yet
In the media challenge, a victory in the first race will all but crown runaway championship leader Nabil Abdool as the new champion.
Heading to Killarney, Abdool holds a lead of 23 points after having amassed a full house of points with victory in every single race this year.
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Behind the SuperSport man, the picture is less clear-cut as TimeLive’s Phuti Mpyane leads Car Magazine’s Kyle Kock by two points, with AutoTrader’s Lawrence Minnie a further 12 points behind the latter in fourth.
Having finished fourth in the rain-hit East London round, I find itself seven points behind Minnie and a similar margin ahead of IOL/Independent’s Willem van de Putte.
As a reminder, points are awarded on a 7-5-4-3-2-1 basis, the solitary race last time at East London having been a double points affair and over a single 12 lap stint rather than the pair of eight lappers.
Learning the ropes.. again
Despite the prospects of a new champion being named before the weekend ends, and rightfully so, the second visit of the year to Killarney also signifies the first time with the new, more powerful GR Yaris’ fitted with the eight-speed Direct Automatic Transmission (DAT).
Only introduced at the third round at Aldo Scribante, the self-shifting ‘box will require a different approach to a circuit where the season commenced with the now pre-facelift six-speed manual equipped models.
Although lessons learned from the season opener will most certainly be applied, and fine-tuned during the three practise sessions on Friday, the combination of the track and a new car, plus race rustiness gathered over the eight-week winter break, will take a while to master.
Adding even more jeopardy is the possibility of it being a damp race as preliminary weather forecasts show cloudy conditions for Friday’s practise, followed by rain overnight that will make Saturday morning qualifying a bit tricky, even with four-wheel drive.
Expected to dry out throughout the afternoon though, the varying conditions promises the same delicate balance of speed and caution as East London, albeit without the challenge of Potter’s Pass and Rifle Range Bend.
Big field = all-out action
As from the fourth round at Zwartkops, a field of 25 cars, the most of any National Extreme Festival discipline, will again take to the track split into the GR Academy in the front-running GR86s, and the media mixing it with the Dealer Challenge piloted GR Corollas.
The site of many drivers finding the gravel during the first visit, the open but tight layout of Killarney promises considerable action now that the season has almost reached its end.
And with the fight in the media challenge far from being decided. bar the number one slot, it makes for a meeting not to be missed.
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