Johannesburg, 1st June 2019: With two rounds under the belt and an eight week break for the Mobil 1 V8 Supercars, it’s back to business on Friday (7th June) and Saturday (8th June) at Phakisa Freeway in Welkom.
The abrasive and dusty 4,2 kilometre track will pose it’s own challenges for the 16 racers, with the battles heating up. Terry Wilford (Ford Falcon) is leading the pack after four heats with 85 points, followed by Thomas Reib (Chevrolet Lumina) at 81 points and reigning champion Mackie Adlem (Jaguar XKR) in third, just 8 points adrift from Reib.
Franco Di Matteo (Jaguar XKR) returns to the series after sacrificing the second round to win his class at the Knysna Speed Festival in style.
Thus far, Wilford, Reib, Adlem and Di Matteo have taken home all the spoils – but there are some top-runners who are keen to mingle into the fight for the wins.
Phakisa Freeway sees the return of Riaan Botma, who competed in the V8’s in the early 2000’s. Riaan has been given the opportunity to race the Ford Mustang, belonging to Izak Spies. Spies, who is currently 8th in the Championship, is building a new car and preferred to wait for it to be completed. This shows, once more, that the Mobil 1 V8 Supercars are gaining popularity.
This popularity also reflects in the number of invitations the series has been receiving. Earlier last month it was announced that round 4 of the championship will be hosted at the Festival of Motoring at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit. (23th – 25th August)
Straight after the announcement of the Festival of Motoring, the Mobil 1 V8 Supercars were able to share the news that round 1 of the 2020 championship will take place at the Passion of Speed Festival at Zwartkops Raceway.
Round 3 also sees the start of the newly introduced Triple Crown. The Triple Crown is a “sprint” series, or mini championship, within the running season. Three rounds – namely Phakisa, Kyalami and the final round at Zwartkops Raceway, will form a separate point scoring championship. This gives numerous drivers the opportunity to join the Mobil 1 V8 Supercars running this season, and still stand a chance of walking away with big prizes. Moreover, the drivers who had a slow start to the season now have a second shot at a separate title to end their year on a high.
On Friday morning the biggest challenge for the V8’s will be track conditions at Phakisa Freeway. The current track surface and the dusty surroundings will pose it’s challenges for the drivers. The three practice sessions on Friday should give the squad enough time to take on the Saturday morning qualifying practice. Action is guaranteed for the two races on Saturday, with the second heat starting on a reversed grid.