Fresh from his win in the recent Mega World 4X4 400 at Carnival City, Castrol Team Toyota’s Duncan Vos is determined to close down the points gap between himself and current ABSA Off Road Championship leader Chris Visser in the upcoming Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1 000 Desert Race. Currently just seven points separate Vos, the reigning South African Production Vehicle Champion, from Visser with Vos eleven points ahead of third placed Hannes Grobler.
An added incentive for Vos is the fact that a win in this year’s Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1 000 Desert Race would be his fourth in a row, an unprecedented feat in this off road marathon. “Of all the events in the ABSA Off Road series this is the one that everyone wants to win,” says Vos. “The Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1 000 Desert Race (TDR) has a character all of its own. You go out and complete the prologue on Friday, race 500 kilometres on Saturday and come back on Sunday to do it all over again.
“The team has worked really hard through the year to continually improve the Hilux SP. Both our vehicle and Anthony Taylor’s were on really good form in the Carnival City event. We had the speed and a far better suspension setup in that event and it showed in the way that the Hilux asserted itself at the front of the field. Hopefully we can carry that level of performance through into the TDR and close down the points gap to Chris Visser.
“The TDR is an event that really tests the vehicles’ and the crews’ endurance. For the first time in recent history the event will run in spring rather than winter conditions and that might just make it a bit more of a test. Physical fitness will count more than ever on this year.”
While the points race in the Production Category Drivers’ and Navigators Championships is a close fight, the race for manufacturers’ honours is very much a Toyota benefit with five of the eight events for 2010 run so far. Toyota currently has 406 points to the 130 of Ford and the 105 of Nissan. A strong performance by the Castrol Team Toyota Hilux SPs with support from a seriously competitive group of privateer competitors could put the seal on the Manufacturers’ Championship for Toyota.
“We have made significant progress with the Hilux SP since the mid-year break for the World Cup Soccer,” says Castrol Team Toyota team principal, Glyn Hall. “As ever the changes have been incremental with a performance gain coming with each change. Perhaps the biggest gain came before the Carnival City event when we made a significant step forward with the suspension settings on the Hilux. Prior to the Carnival City event we in fact tested a number of changes that will be incorporated in the new Hilux SP and they have all worked well for us.
“Leading up to the Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1 000 Desert Race we have continued on the same development path and we expect that we will have a very good setup for this really tough event. It’s all about maintaining consistency right through the event. For this one we need to consider that the vehicles do double duty and take the extra strain on them into account.
“We are focused on a win for Castrol Team Toyota and our partners The Innovation Group, and Imperial in this desert classic.”
– Credit: Toyota of South Africa.