Team Gazoo lives up to the hype
FAVOURITES: WIN RACE AND FIA CLASS TITLE
Round five of the Cross Country Championship thrills fans in Mpumalanga.
Local racers Johan and Werner Horn, also winning Class T for vehicles over four litres with solid axle rear suspension, delight with great showing.
The pre-event favourites won and the local heroes delighted their fans.
Those were the two main stories at the weekend’s Nkomazi 450, round five of the 2016 Donaldson Cross Country Championship in Mpumalanga.
The overall winners of the race, also taking the FIA class, were Leeroy Poulter and Rob Howie in their factory Gazoo Toyota Hilux.
Second were local racers Johan and Werner Horn, also winning Class T for vehicles over four litres with solid axle rear suspension in their Malalane Toyota Hilux.
Third place went to Johan van Staden/Mike Lawrenson in a RedLined Nissan Navara, leading home Gareth Woolridge/Boyd Dreyer (Neil Woolridge Ford Ranger).
They were followed by Jason Venter/Vince van Allemann (4x4 Mega World Toyota Hilux), Gary Bertholdt/Philip Herselman (Atlas Copco VW Amarok) and Chris Visser/Ward Huxtable (NWM/ Ford Ranger).
Otto Graven/Bobby Brewis (Graven Toyota Hilux) were eighth, winning Class S for vehicles under four litres with solid axle rear suspension.
Rounding out the top 10 were Luke Botha/Andre Vermeulen (Red-Lined Nissan Navara) and Japie van Niekerk/Robin Houghton (Red-Lined Nissan Navara).
Reigning champions Evan Hutchison and Danie Stassen (Motorite BAT Viper) won the Special Vehicle category overall, ahead of John Thomson/Maurice Zermatten (Zarco Magnum), and the father and daughter team of Coetzee and Sandra Labuscagne (4x4 Mega World Porter).
Fourth and fifth, rounding out the classified finishers, were Dave McShane/Elvene Coetzee (Fox Racing Porter) and Shameer Variawa/Zaheer Bodhanya (Cobalt Racing Stryker).
The race, backed by Malalane Toyota and RCL Foods, drew spectators in their droves.
The next round of the Donaldson series sees national championship cross country racing return to the Pilanesberg with the running of Sun City 450 on September 30 and October 1.