Round five of the Vodacom Sports Prototype at Zwartkops (26 June) ended in controversy after a number of messy protests.

 

After finishing first and second in the first heat, championship contender Garth Waberski and reigning champion Neil Lobb were excluded from the results after a protest by Francois Gerber due to irregularities regarding the rear wheel rims fitted to each car. Waberski appealed the decision saying their wheels do comply with the rules and the matter has more to do with the interpretation of the regulation rather than anything else.

 

Lobb, on the other hand did not appeal and without spares or time to make the necessary changes to his car had no option but to sit out the rest of the day.

 

With the top two excluded, Francois Gerber (Autohaus) inherited the win from Donovan Roscoe (Protea Playing Cards). Alan Eve (Powerseal Gaskets/Odes Autobody) was third with Ruan Pretorius (Nusol/John Abbot Motorsport) fourth after a late race spin.

 

In her VSP debut, lady racer Cindy Evans finished a very creditable fifth, comfortably clear of Richard Wood.

 

As expected, Waberski took an easy win in race two, even waving to all and sundry to prove a point, while Pretorius drove with verve and determination to hold off Gerber for second place. Roscoe strolled home to fourth ahead of Porsche racer Rui Campos (Boltt/Carrera Sunglasses) who had retired from the first race with a broken gearlever. It was Campos’ first race in the category and he impressed with his performance.  Wood was sixth after Evans started eight laps behind thanks to a driveshaft breaking on the way to the grid and the John Abbot team quickly changing the offending item with the help of former champion Bernard Tilanus.

 

Then came another bombshell. Gerber put in another protest and Waberski was excluded again, this time it was deemed that his gearlever was illegal. The offending item has been in the car since round two, and as with the issue regarding the wheels, was common knowledge to the association chairman and technical committee as well as the Clerk of the Course.

 

The nett result of the day is that Gerber still leads the title race, but the results are provisional due to Waberski appealing his exclusion.