Branch tops SA motorsport charts
Kabelo Boranabi | Friday July 15, 2016 11:04
The local race, widely referred to as ‘Mantshwabisi’, formed the third and fourth rounds of the MSA championships. The local team made up of Ross Branch, Lebogang Mosope and Motsumi Lekone fully utilised home ground advantage to improve their rankings in the series.
In the motorcycle category, local rider Branch moved to the top of the OR1 category rankings after a clean sweep at the Jwaneng event.
Branch, who went to the race sitting on position three, won the first loop in a time of 02:20:09 hours and the second loop with 02:45:44 hours to over lap the former pole sitter Kenneth Gilbert of South Africa who came in second in both rounds.
“We worked very hard for the race, trained hard. I am happy for myself and the other guys because we did a very good job at the race,” he said. Branch further said most local riders enjoy the best competition in the MSA events rather than the local event.
“Actually we compete in both the local and South African events. It is just that the politics in the local series makes the championships a little bit shorter hence why most guys opt for the MSA event,” Branch said.
After the Jwaneng victories, Branch leads the championships with six points ahead of second- placed Gilbert. “I stand a very good chance of winning. If I avoid injuries, should not strain my back or crash my bike then I think I would make it,” he said.
Another local rider, Lekone has moved up the rankings to third position on the quad master section. Lekone went to the race sitting on fifth spot, but did not have the best of the two-day series after his bike broke down on the first day. However, he managed to finish second in a time of 03:13:44 hours.
The Metsimotlhabe native managed to win round four after clocking 03:39:10 ahead of defending champion George Twiggie. However, Twiggie holds a healthy 37-point advantage at the top while Lekone, in third, is 42 points adrift.
Lebogang Mosope moved from ninth position to sixth. However, Tshepo Mbakile had a championship to forget after he finished last in both rounds of the competition.
Lekone and Branch still have a chance to improve their standings, as there are only two of the seven rounds left in the series. A local rider has never won the championships, but Branch came close after finishing third in the 2014 and 2015 series.