The Renault KEC 400, the seventh and final round of the 2024 SA Rally-Raid Championship (SARRC) that took place from Legends Adventure Farm in the Pretoria / Bronkhorstspruit area, not only produced almost 450 kilometres of action-packed racing over two days, but it was also the event where Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings claimed their fifth overall victory of the season and secured their fourth SARRC championship together.
With the terrain traditionally known for fast and flat racing, competitors were tested a bit different this time and had to keep their wits about them as tricky navigation and a route that delivered something of everything added to the intensity of chasing victories and championship titles.
In the end, it was Lategan/Cummings (Toyota Gazoo Racing Hilux IMT EVO), who received the chequered flag as the race winners with a total race time of 06:10:13 after they started the final day from second position, a minute and 55 seconds behind the Blignaut brothers, Fouche and Bertus (#TeamHilux Rally-Raid Toyota DKR Hilux T1+) who were the leaders after the first day. It was the team’s fifth victory this season and resulted in Lategan/Cummings adding the Ultimate T1+ championship title to their overall title. It is the team’s fourth SARRC title.
The Blignauts finished second (06:10:37), a mere 27 seconds behind the winners after a good run that saw them winning the Castrol Qualifying Race as well as Stage One on Friday. It was a new experience for them, opening the road as the leading vehicle on the final day, and they encountered a few closed gates, but despite adjusted times, they still had to settle for the runner-up position. The podium was rounded off by Lance Woolridge/Kenny Gilbert (Neil Woolridge Motorsport Ford Ranger T1+) who finished only 19 seconds further back to clinch their third podium of a see-saw season after a solid performance over the two days.
The podium achievers opened somewhat of a gap to the rest of the field. The outgoing Adventurer T1 champions, Eben Basson/Leander Pienaar (#TeamHilux Rally-Raid Toyota Hilux) moved to the Ultimate T1+ Class and finished fourth overall (06:15:30) with Gary Bertholdt/Danie Stassen (Toyota DKR Hilux T1+) fifth (06:21:15) after starting the final day in fifth place with a more conservative approach to ensure a finish and good result for the team.
There was also a good result for SARRC newcomer, 2024 SA Rally Champion Johannes Potgieter and the experienced rally and rally-raid navigator, Carolyn Swan (SVR) who finished their first event together in sixth place (06:27:30) with the first of the two Farmers Meat two-wheel drive CR6 teams, Lood du Preez/Juandre Kruger in seventh place (06:36:07). Their team-mates, Eugene Bierman/Chris Visser Jnr, finished 12th overall (06:49:12) and were eighth in the Ultimate T1+ class.
Four Adventurer T1 teams were sandwiched between the two CR6 teams and it was an all Red-Lined Motorsport podium with Philip Botha/Andres Mynhardt (Red-Lined VK56) taking their first class win of the season (06:38:40). Only 48 seconds separated them from Danie Ludick/Denzil Williamson in a similar vehicle who claimed their first podium result as SARRC newcomers this year. A third place in the class for Gerhard and his dad, Rudi Heinlein, was, however, enough to secure the Adventurer T1 crown – they were on the class podium after each race this year – with just under two and a half minutes covering the three teams.
The German driver, Jϋrgen Schröder, together with his SA navigator, Rikus Fourie (Nissan Navara VK50) had a solid performance to finish 11th overall and fourth in the Adventurer T1 Class (06:47:52). There were two more finishers in this class. Johan de Bruyn/Adriaan Roets (Red-Lined REVO T1) were vying for a podium result but finished fifth in the class after experiencing some difficulties. They were placed 17th overall with Johan and Sean van Staden (KEC Racing Renault Duster) finishing 20th overall.
The SSV Class produced new winners with newcomers of the season, Ruperd Fourie/Morné van Rensburg earning their first victory (07:05:40). They started the final day from second position in class, just under four minutes behind Geoff Minnitt/Rodney Burke (Hydro Power Equipment Can-Am Maverick) and brought their Can-Am Maverick home as the winners while finishing 13th in the overall standings. Werner Mostert/Tim Botes (KEC Racing Can-Am Maverick) were second in the SSV Class (07:44:59) followed by KEC team-mates, the Rutherford brothers, Justin and Kent (07:50:09). Minnitt/Burke could not finish the event.
Two tough days of racing saw three more determined Ultimate T1+ teams reaching the finish despite their challenges. The outgoing overall and Ultimate T1+ champions, Gareth Woolridge/Boyd Dreyer (Neil Woolridge Motorsport Ford Ranger T1+) could not complete the first day’s racing due to technical issues resulting in the team starting the final day way down the field from where they pushed hard to post the second-best time of the day, 27 seconds behind Lategan/Cummings. Their time penalty for not being able to complete the first day resulted in the team being placed 18th overall while they scored points for finishing ninth in the Ultimate T1+ Class.
King Price Xtreme’s Jayden Els/Johan Swemmer competed in a Red-Lined REVO T1+ GTR. Power-steering issues saw them not seeing the first day out, but the youngsters came back guns blazing to achieve the fourth best time on day two, just under a minute behind the winners. Their total time resulted in them being placed 18th overall and 10th in the Ultimate T1+ Class.
It was an eventful weekend for the Horn brothers, Johan and Werner (#TeamHilux Rally-Raid Toyota DKR Hilux T1+) who were in the top five after the Castrol Qualifying Race on Friday, but the team ended up in a ditch during Stage One with the damaged vehicle not able to reach the finish. They then started from the back of the field and were the last finishers after a tough day.
The two TGRSA Toyota Hilux IMT EVO teams of Giniel de Villiers/Elvéne Vonk and Guy Botterill/Dennis Murphy competed, but did not score points towards the various championships as they were testing for the upcoming Dakar Rally. Botterill/Murphy did not finish while De Villiers/Vonk had a good run to post the best time for the race.
Published by: SA Rally Raid Championship (Charmaine Fortune)
Photography by: Dave Ledbitter
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