Captivating Kart racing

This year’s Northern Regions Karting championships will start at the Zwartkops Kart Circuit this Saturday, with the Rand Kart Club to host six separate racing classes.

Heading up the day’s activities will be races for DD2 125cc gearbox karts, reaching speeds of 150km/h on the short Zwartkops circuit. Top drivers should include Philippe Chapat, brothers Brandon and Jamie Smith, Nathan Hammond, Nicolas Spanoyannis, Carlo Gil, Dayne van Rensburg, JeanPierre Joubert and Anton Pommersheim.

The Senior Max category will sport improved Rotax engines and stickier tyres this year, with Wayland Wyman, Carlo Olivier, Baksi Komane, Ian Allnutt, Damian Hammond, Farhaan Basha and Taiibi Tucci to make the running upfront.

The under-15 Junior Max class will be strong this year, with 2016 World Mini Max champion Jayden Els facing a challenge from the likes of 2017 SA Mini Max champion Leyton Fourie, 2017 SA Mini Rok champion Kwanda Mokoena, Jarrod Waberski, Daniel De Paiva and Ethan Coetzee.

The under-11 Micro Max category will see SA champ Muhammad Wally up against people like Mohammed Moerat, Joshua De Paiva, Rayn Asmal, Moosa Kajee and Luke Hill.

The under-13 Mini Max class should have Josh Le Roux, Reece Fuller, Mandla Malangeni, Troy Snyman, Taya Van der Laan and Melandri van Wyk in front.

The under-eight-year-old Cadet class is set to grow due to new cost-saving measures and re-configured specifications this year. Cyril Jacobs, Tshepang Shisinwana and Adam Kajee are likely to star.