Racing event roars back to life
The roar of sprint cars is expected to fill the Windhoek Tony Rust Race Track this weekend for the fourth leg of the national karting racing event. The event follows the recently-held Rotax Max National Go-Kart championship Swakopmund in April, which included topclass performances from drivers competing in the various classes.
Seven Namibians, who also recently took part in the Rotax Max National Karting Championship held at Formula K, Benoni, Johannesburg, are expected to bring innumerable fanfare and excitement to the iconic Windhoek racetrack if their performances in South Africa are anything to go by. The South African championship was held from 27 to 29 April and local participants included Bambino sensation Russell Josephat and the Kaiyamo twins Nande and Mandume who competed in the Micro Max division.
Other Namibians who participated in Benoni included Kobus Reinecke (senior max), Justus Beulker (DD2) and Mark Vilinger (DD2 master). It was the first time that all the Namibian drivers were competing on the Benoni race track, with Villinger getting a podium finish. Russell won the earlier race at Tony Rust and will be hoping to score another victory this time around. His proud father JP Josephat said the South African experience will be instrumental in the upcoming races. “Russell took part in the RMC nationals where the best drivers in Africa were invited to showcase their talent,” he said.
Although it was his first competitive race outside the country, racing commentators were impressed by his performance. “In his group, he was amongst 21 drivers of which he was the only Namibian and he demonstrated his talent by starting 10th in heat 1 and managed to make his way up to 6th. In heat 2, he started 6th and ended the heat in position 5. He was unfortunate to have been given a 10-second penalty to finish heat 3 in 9th position. Russell was hailed by both parents and organisers for showing true character and determination by instantly becoming a crowd favourite.”
Saturday’s racing event will kick off at 07h00, while the entry fee is capped at N$20 per person, while children under 10 enter for free.