Bay’s Rowe up for East London challenge
VOLKSWAGEN Motorsport is heading to the historic East London Grand Prix Circuit for round four of the Sasol Global Touring Cars championship tomorrow full of confidence after Port Elizabeth’s Daniel Rowe powered his VW Jetta GTC to back-to-back wins at the last two rounds, while Keagan Masters has bagged four victories in his Golf GTi and leads the GTC2 championship.
Rowe sees the formidable, ultra-fast circuit as an exciting challenge to be conquered.
In spite of winning the second race at each of the last two rounds, there is still more to come from the Nelson Mandela University student.
A strong qualifying performance will be key, although Rowe has said he doesn’t mind starting from the first, third or even fifth grid slot as this will allow him to slingshot past his rivals at the fearsome Potter’s Pass on the opening lap.
“I don’t know if it is possible to run flat out through Potter’s in the race. I’ll find out when we get there. It depends on the wind.
“Strong brakes and maintaining momentum are crucial at such a fast track. It’s going to be an awesome experience driving there and hopefully I can bank another victory; after all that’s why I am racing,” Rowe said.
Mathew Hodges has had a challenging start to the season in the second Jetta GTC, having been forced to retire twice from the six races held so far. He remains positive while relishing returning to the track where he scored his maiden victory in 2016.
“I have been driving well and just need all the elements to gel on race day,” Hodges said. “I am up for the challenge and look forward to racing hard at the front of the field.”
Keagan Masters is expecting a tough fight to maintain his winning ways.
The Volkswagen Advanced Driving Golf GTi driver has never finished lower than second and enjoys an eight-point cushion at the head of the GTC2 championship standings.
After a positive test before the Eastern Cape races, Adrian Wood is also eager to return to a track that has delivered strong results in other racing classes.
Driving the second factory-entered Volkswagen Golf GTi in partnership with Kyocera, he is excited to be racing the most powerful car he has driven on the 3.9km track.
“Confidence is a major contributor to a fast lap at East London,” Wood said. “You need faith in the car underneath you, which needs to have very good balance and not lose grip mid-corner.”
VW Motorsport team manager Mike Rowe said: “The whole team is in a good space. They have started to reap the rewards for their hard work. Daniel and Keagan are on top of their game. Mathew is driving as well as ever, while Adrian continues to grow at every race.
“We’re aware we have a lot more work ahead of us to deliver consistently strong results and we are getting to where we’d like to be.”
ý The GTC races are at 12.10pm and 3.20pm.