The 18^th of February marks the start of the South African national motorsport season, and similarly the first round of the Shelby Can-Am Championship. The action takes place at the Kyalami Grand Prix circuit in Midrand, Johannesburg and is the first of 10 scheduled events for 2006.

 

Goodyear has confirmed it will be back in 2006 to support the growing Shelby Can-Am series. Having sponsored the event for the past five years the Goodyear / Shelby Can-Am association has proved successful for both parties.

 

Neil Lobb (Caltex Havoline) the reigning series champion will be going all out in 2006 to defend his title against the likes of Ruan Pretorius (Castrol) and Donavan Roscoe (Stanley Tools). Lobb dominated the series last year while Roscoe and Pretorius battled it out for the runner-up spot, with Pretorius clinching it at the final round.

 

Pretorius and Roscoe will no doubt be determined to put Lobb's dominance to end. They'll also have to watch out for the likes of Alan Eve (Kelizia Group) and Rui Campos (Boltt) whom could also throw a spanner in the works.

 

Youngster Darryn Lobb will surely be out to prove his worth in his D.K. Woodcraft car. Lobb displayed some impressive performances last year and will be hoping to challenge the front runners from the outset.

 

A new youngster set to make his debut in the Shelby Can-Am series at Kyalami is Chris Hart of Plettenberg Bay. Having previously competed in both Formula GTi and Formula Ford, the Shelby Can-Am championship will provide a fresh set of challenges for the newcomer.

Kyalami will see some past competitors making a return to the series.  After sitting out for the whole of last year Ben Havenga (Panel-Rite) is making a welcome return as is Trevor Frost (Strocam Mining) who only participated in some endurance events last year.

Also making an appearance at Kyalami will be Sascar stalwart Deon Auby. Auby looks set to hire a car for the opening event, which could provide a stepping stone to him being a regular competitor in this formula.

 Another pleasant surprise is the Italian entrant Marco Jacoboni (Pablo Clark Racing) of Bologna Italy who will be making his Shelby can-Am debut. Although unable to compete in the full series, Jacoboni is likely to compete in various rounds during the course of the year.

 Much development is expected for the 2006 season, a new body design project is fairly far advanced with the first dummy body already completed. Hopefully this upgraded Le Mans spec design will be seen on the track midway through the season.

Further developments are also underway; a Porsche gearbox has been installed into Peter Bailey's Fuchs sponsored Shelby . Its progress will be watched with much interest and anticipation. As will the progress of Colin Frost's Strocam car, which will be fitted with a 'paddle shift' gearbox modification for the first time at Kyalami.