The Toyota Gazoo Racing Junior Academy (TGRJA) team is eager to build on their early success in Round 2 of the MSA South African Rotax MAX Challenge Karting Championship this coming weekend (28-29 April) at the Formula-K Kart Circuit in Benoni.
Following the Idube Raceway season opener, the team leads two of the four classes in which they compete, with all six drivers entering the weekend in excellent form.
Reagile Mailula holds a 3.33-point advantage in the Mini MAX class over defending champion Caleb Odendaal. From three starts, Mailula leads the race wins statistics, with the pair being the only two drivers to have crossed the finish line first. However, the recent regional round at the same circuit saw Mailula playing second fiddle to Odendaal. Mailula will want to turn the tables this weekend to hold onto his lead.
Emma-Rose Dowling trails Mailula by 24 points and occupies the fifth place, eager to improve on her single podium in the year’s first race. Unlike the rest of the TGRJA line-up, she did not compete in the regional round but has a good track record at the venue.
Kent Swartz, who only scored points in two of the season opener’s three heats, will channel the form that saw him take the first Junior MAX overall win for 2023. He occupies an eighth place on the points table, but despite recording one less score, he only trails the leader by 21.67 points. Swartz showed good pace in the regional round, marred by many misfortunes, and will look for Formula-K redemption this weekend.
KC Ensor-Smith heads into Round 2 with a 6.83-point advantage in the Senior MAX field. Few will bet against the reigning Junior MAX champion at Formula-K Kart Circuit. The regional round saw him on top in every session at the circuit, like in last year’s national Junior MAX round.
Olerato Sekudu, in sixth place, trails Ensor-Smith by 11.5 points but is also tipped to excel at the circuit, despite still searching for his first national podium of the year. The regional round saw him finish as runner-up to his teammate.
Kian Grotis trails the DD2 class leader, and former champion, Brad Liebenberg, by 21.67 points, and despite also not having seen the podium in the season opener, occupies second place. The chaotic regional races in the class saw him keep a level head while showing strong pace, and he will look to build on that this weekend.
Spectators are welcome with entry to the circuit free of charge. The day’s racing will be live-streamed on the Rotax South Africa Youtube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@sarotaxmaxchallenge3045)
Published by: Motorsport Fanatix
Picture Caption: Kian Grottis
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