Toyota wins in Desert Race
FACTORY TEAM LEAD THE WAY IN THEIR GAZOO HILUX ENTRIES
Everything kept going right for Toyota on last weekend’s Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1 000 Desert Race, when the factory team took first and second places with their Gazoo Toyota Hilux entries.
The Giniel de Villiers/Dennis Murphy pairing led home Leeroy Poulter and Rob Howie by just six seconds in the overall and FIA Class category.
Third, winning Class T, were the Horn brothers Johan and Werner, in their Malalane Toyota Hilux, leading home Lance Woolridge/ Ward Huxtable (NWM Puma Lubricants Ford Ranger).
Fifth overall went to the Elf Renault Duster of Johan van Staden/ Mike Lawrenson, just 28 seconds ahead of Gareth Woolridge/Boyd Dreyer in a second NWM Puma Lubricants Ford Ranger.
Reigning Class T champions Jason Venter/Vince van Allemann finished seventh in their 4x4 Mega World Toyota Hilux, followed by Deon Venter/Jaco van Aardt in the second 4x4 Mega World Toyota entry.
Ninth were Hennie de Klerk/ Achim Bergmann (Treasury One/ Atlas Copco VW Amarok).
They also won the Dakar Challenge, which earned the crew a free entry to next year’s Dakar Rally in South America.
The top 10 was rounded out by former South African champion Jannie Visser and his son Chris in a privateer Toyota Hilux.
They won Class S from David Huddy and Rodney Cook in a Nissan Navara.
Huddy and Cook were the last of the classified overall finishers.
Marius and Jolinda Fourie (PHD BAT) topped the overall Special Vehicle leader board, followed by Coetzee and Sandra Labuschagne, in their 4x4 Mega World Porter.
John Thomson and Maurice Zermatten, in a Zarco Magnum, fought their way up to third spot after a slow start.
They finished just 40 seconds ahead of Class P winners Nic Goslar and Andrew Massey in another Zarco Magnum.
Fifth place went to Stefan van Pletzen and Jaco Pieterse (Live Lesotho Chenowth), followed by Werner Kennedy/Thinus Venter (Live Lesotho Aceco) and Shaun van Rooyen/Gene Rogers (VCR Century CRT).
The Desert Race offered teams an attractive package with 60 points – twice that of a normal race – on offer.
Crews who failed to grasp the opportunity included Gary Bertholdt/Philip Herselman, whose Atlas Copco VW Amarok caught fire, and Chris Visser/Japie Badenhorst, whose Atlas Copco Toyota Hilux broke down.
Other top crews to drop out were Evan Hutchison and Danie Stassen (King Price Extreme BAT Viper), John Telford/Victor Ntsekhe (Calcamite Hellcat), Schalk Burger/Elvéne Coetzee (King Price Extreme Porter) and Kobus/ Miranda Fourie (BAT).
The next event on the South African Cross Country championship calendar will break new ground.
The Eeram Farmers 400 will be run near Harrismith, in the Free State, on July 28 and 29. –