LATEST DEVELOPMENT NEWS
- YOUNG MOTORCYCLE RIDER (17) LIVING HIS GLOBAL DREAM
Two years ago, Motorsport South Africa reported on a young rookie motorcycle rider who spoke about never giving up and adopting the same can-do attitude as his idol Lewis Hamilton. Fast forward two years later and 17-year-old Grade 11 learner, Kgopotso Mononyane, ‘the second’ (affectionately known as KJ), is doing just that. This incredible young man, who started racing at the age of 10 and literally eats, sleeps and breathes motorcycle racing, is starting to make exciting waves in the global motorcycle world, having just re-signed with his AGR Racing Team for the 2025 FIM JuniorGP season. He has also… Read more: YOUNG MOTORCYCLE RIDER (17) LIVING HIS GLOBAL DREAM - SOLID DAY OUT FOR TGR JUNIOR ACADEMY DRIVERS AT PENULTIMATE ROTAX REGIONAL
The penultimate round of the Northern Regions Rotax Kart Championships took place at Formula-K Raceway on Saturday, October 12. Once again, the drivers from the Toyota Gazoo Racing Junior Academy (TGRJA) showcased their excellence by achieving podium results and securing heat victories. In the DD2 class, Jason Coetzee narrowly missed the overall class victory by just two points after securing a hard-fought runner-up position. Coetzee finished second in Heats 1 and 2 before ending the day with an impressive win in the final heat. His stablemate, Karabo Malemela, finished fourth overall, following Coetzee over the line in the first and… Read more: SOLID DAY OUT FOR TGR JUNIOR ACADEMY DRIVERS AT PENULTIMATE ROTAX REGIONAL - NELSON MANDELA BAY MOTORSPORT DEVELOPMENT (NPC) REPORT FOR AUGUST & SEPTEMBER
September has been rather an exciting month for motorsport and the development side of things with a visit to the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro from Carte Blanche and the filming of the Daniel Pienaar Technical High School motorsport program. A big thank you must go out to MSA for putting this all together and Cathy Jackson for her hard work coordinating the whole program. Click here to read the full report Published by: Sparky Bright MSA Publishes media releases from a host of different sources on our website as a service to the sport. It is not practically possible to… Read more: NELSON MANDELA BAY MOTORSPORT DEVELOPMENT (NPC) REPORT FOR AUGUST & SEPTEMBER - DP MOTORSPORT REPORT – THE FINAL ROUND
The Tripple L Paardepoort rally marked the final rally for 2023 for DP Motorsport. The day started early with doing the recce on the stages and our drivers and navigators knew it would be no easy task to complete this rally, very rough road conditions would test human and machine relationships to the extreme. Stages were set out through Paardepoort, Glenconnor, and Mayogi areas where spectators could enjoy the thrills of high-speed gravel racing at its best. The first stage stretched from Paardepoort entry and ended at Glenconnor with a distance of around 13km without any problems.Stage two was set… Read more: DP MOTORSPORT REPORT – THE FINAL ROUND - SPARKY ADDS HIS OWN BRAND OF MAGIC TO DANIEL PIENAAR
The small town of Kariega (formerly Uitenhage), about 25 km north of Port Elizabeth, is not only famous for being home to the oldest technical school in South Africa, Daniel Pienaar Technical High school, but is also renowned for its big sporting achievements having been the training ground for world class sportsmen like Chassen Bright, Heino Bezuidenhout, Daniel Saayman (professional rugby in France), Dewald Potgieter, Nantie Hayward and Wernich Van Rensburg. What not everyone may realise however that it is also probably the only school in South Africa with motorsport as an official school sport. With customised cars and the… Read more: SPARKY ADDS HIS OWN BRAND OF MAGIC TO DANIEL PIENAAR - EMPOWERING WOMAN IN MOTORSPORT
Matric Student from Daniel Technical High School that is based in Kariega (Uitenhage) Ashely Pape took another step forward when Timekeeping the National Championship event for SA GT & South Africa Endurance Series for cars held at the Aldo Scribante Raceway on the 5th August 2023. Ashely has been in training at Club & Regional events and was given the opportunity to work at a National Championship event. Motorsport South Africa’s (MSA) Chairman of the Events Safety & Technical Panel, Sparky Bright had the following to say: “Ashley Pape has excelled at the task as a timekeeper of the past… Read more: EMPOWERING WOMAN IN MOTORSPORT - AASHAY NAGURA RACE REPORT
KILLARNEY INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY was brilliantly sun-kissed for the start of the penultimate ROK CUP SA NATIONALS on Friday which began with a bolstering array of free practice sessions. As teams from across the country descended into their pits on Saturday morning, the blankets of mist cloaked a multitude of thoughts, excitement, fears, and expectations,… but today was going to be a great day! NAGURA, fresh off weeks of testing in Cape Town, began his day with a jovial stride and a winning attitude his wake. After a disappointing turn of events in his last NATIONALS, he admittedly felt defeated but… Read more: AASHAY NAGURA RACE REPORT - TROPHIES AND LAP RECORDS FOR TGR JUNIOR ACADEMY
The Toyota Gazoo Racing Junior Academy (TGRJA) had a superb MSA Northern Regions Rotax Karting Championship round at Zwartkops Kart Raceway this past Saturday (10 June) with more silverware to showcase in their 2023 trophy cabinet. The team celebrated two victories, three further podiums, and two lap records. Reagile Mailula finished his day on the Mini MAX podium with third place. The morning’s qualifying session saw him alongside points leader and pole sitter Caleb Odendaal on the grid. Losing positions off the line, he quickly regained second place while running ahead of Odendaal. On Lap 7, he set a new… Read more: TROPHIES AND LAP RECORDS FOR TGR JUNIOR ACADEMY - RUCHE MOODLEY – A 16-YEAR-OLD RACING STAR TO WATCH
16-year-old Ruche Moodley from Port Elizabeth is making waves on the international motorcycle racing circuit by coming in third overall in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup at Le Mans earlier this month, thereby achieving his first podium position in the series. Vic Maharaj, Motorsport South Africa Sporting Services Manager, says that Ruche’s performance at Le Mans marked him out as definitely a talent to watch. Ruche started racing when he was just five years old and his dad Arushen, a champion himself, winning both the South African National Superbike championship and the UAE Superbike championship, bought him a PW50. … Read more: RUCHE MOODLEY – A 16-YEAR-OLD RACING STAR TO WATCH - IF YOUR CHILD HAS BIG MOTORSPORT DREAMS, KARTING IS WHERE TO START
Squadra Corse, a South African outfit dedicated to schooling local motorsport drivers for the world racing stage, believes development programmes have the potential to truly change the fortunes of communities. Squadra Corse’s Team Principal, racing entrepreneur Mpho Elijah Gumbi, is passionate about promoting the sport of karting to young people and creating cost-effective opportunities for involvement. According to Gumbi, karting is generally safer than most people think and it can be a highly beneficial extra-curricular activity for kids. “Whether we like it or not, karting is a highly competitive sport. Everybody wants to be the next Lewis Hamilton, and every… Read more: IF YOUR CHILD HAS BIG MOTORSPORT DREAMS, KARTING IS WHERE TO START - DEVELOPMENT ROUND UP MAY 2023
- RACE REPORT – AASHAY NAGURA 27 MAY 2023
NATIONALS ROUND TWO – FORMULA K BENONI Gearing up for the SECOND ROUND of the MSA | ROK CUP NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS today, eleven-year-old Nagura bolstered onto the track – looking focused and headstrong. Friday welcomed all the athletes with a smile until their fiery spirits turned the track into a gauntlet of hungry drivers all looking for that competitive edge. Having spent the better part of the morning curbing the competition in the practice sessions, Nagura blasted into QUALI with an eleventh-place finish, securing his spot just in front of teammate Aaron Mason. Saturday, albeit grey in essence, could not… Read more: RACE REPORT – AASHAY NAGURA 27 MAY 2023