The Mega World 400 at Carnival City, the fifth round of the ABSA Off-Road Championship, promises to deliver another close contest in the Production Vehicle category. While Toyota leads the Manufacturers’ Championship by an almost unassailable 310 points to the 118 of Ford, the position in the Drivers’ and Navigators’ Championships is extremely close.
Chris Visser and Japie Badenhorst are the current leaders in their Hilux with reigning champion Duncan Vos and navigator Rob Howie just 13 points behind them in second place in their Castrol Team Toyota Hilux SP.
Hannes Grobler, with all his points to date scored in the RFS Hilux, is just one point adrift of them locked in a tie with Neil Woolridge and Kenny Schjoldhammer. With three events still to run off-road enthusiasts can expect a grand stand finish with the result likely to go down to the wire in the final event in the Magaliesburg in October.
“The Mega World 400, staged on the East Rand with Carnival City as its hub, is notorious for throwing up a wild card result,” says Castrol Team Toyota team principal, Glyn Hall. “The terrain is relatively flat and the speeds quite high and competitors can quite easily get lulled into a sense of comfort with the conditions only to be caught out by concealed obstacles on the route.
“This is largely a farming terrain with some historic mining areas thrown in for good measure. Rocky sections and a proliferation of concealed old fencing posts are always a threat to the over confident. This is one event where the crews need to really balance their speed against risking damage to the vehicle.
“For Castrol Team Toyota and our partners Imperial Toyota and the Innovation Group, we are looking for a good clean run, especially in the prologue. Our two Hilux SPs have the speed and the reliability to lead the field. Our form has been frustrated this year by the fact that we have not been able to get to the front of the field after the prologue.
“We are usually right there with at least one of the vehicles, often just a second or so off the pace, but the dust is a huge impediment (all the events have been run in dry conditions) if you are not out in front when the competition is as close as it is this year. A puncture or even the smallest error on the route in the prologue can put you well back in the pack eating dust to ruin your day in the race itself.
“As ever we have been concentrating on small but incremental improvements to the Hilux through the season. The two Castrol Hilux SPs are now pretty well honed in terms of performance and Duncan and Robbie are well placed in the championship with four events to go.”
The race winning performance of the Hilux is mirrored in the lower classes as well with leadership in Class D of the series. Here Dewald van Breda and Johann du Toit have established themselves as the class leaders in their Northam Toyota Hilux with Deon Venter and Ian Palmer in their 4X4 Mega World Hilux running second in the class.
– Credit: Toyota of South Africa.