At AA Kyalami on Sunday, American Colin Edwards scored a dream debut for the new Vee-twin Honda in the first 25-lap race, winning a spectacularly close three-bike battle and holding off world champion Carl Fogarty on a Ducati and Japan's Noriyuki Haga on a Yamaha.
Watched by a crowd of 50 000 in warm and sunny conditions, Haga bounced back to win the second race by a comfortable margin from Edwards, followed by Italy's Pierfrancesco Chili on an Alstare Suzuki.
Edwards, who had qualified his Castrol Honda second in Saturday's Superpole, shot into the lead at the start of the first race and pulled out a gap of just over one second in the early laps. Behind him, a dice raged between Haga, Englishman Fogarty and Italy's Chili on a Suzuki, with pole-setter Troy Corser from Australia gradually slipping back into a lonely fourth place on his Aprilia.
Around lap 15, Chili lost touch with the leaders and the last 10 laps were a straight three-bike fight for the lead. Haga, power-sliding his Yamaha in his inimitable spectacular style, clung to Edwards like a leech for lap after lap, with the two bikes often side by side into the corners. "King Carl" Fogarty, riding with an injured shoulder, played a waiting game in a close third place, hoping for one of his rivals to make a mistake.
Haga finally muscled his way past Edwards in Clubhouse corner on the second-last lap, only for the Castrol Honda rider to retake the lead on the last lap with just three corners to go. In a frenetic sprint for the line, Edwards took the chequered flag just one tenth of a second in front of Haga, with for-time world champ Fogarty a further one tenth in arrears.
Corser was fourth, 7,8 seconds adrift, after having passed a slowing Chili two laps earlier. Gregorio Lavilla on a Kawasaki was more than 30 seconds back in sixth place, in a result that saw six different motorcycle makes in the top six.
South African Lance Isaacs finished an impressive 13th on his NCR Ducati, after qualifying in a lowly 22nd place. What made his feat notable was that he crossed the line one place ahead of works Castrol Honda rider Simon Crafar, who was standing in for Aaron Slight as Edwards' teammate. The only other South African, Jonnie Ekerold, was 21st on a Honda.
In the second race, Haga took the lead from Edwards on the second lap and held the front spot until the end. The Yamaha rider was closely chased by Edwards and Chili for the first half of the race but opened the gap to lead the American across the line by a large 6,4-second gap, with Chili nearly 12 seconds back in third.
Fogarty was the major casualty of the race when he dropped his bike at Clubhouse bend on lap 10 while lying fourth. He returned to the pits uninjured. Ekerold was 19th, and Isaacs finished two laps down in 20th place after pitting for two laps.
- Austria's Klaus Klafenbock with passenger Adolf Hanni of Switzerland won the supporting 25-lap event for sidecars on their Suzuki. It was the first Sidecar World Cup race in South Africa, and treated Kyalami fans to a teamwork spectacle where the passengers shift their weight from side to side in the corners, often hanging mere millimetres above the track.