Lategan & Cummings won the marathon TGRSA Safari 1000
By Stephan Wolf
The third round of the South African Rally Raid Championship (or SARRC), the Toyota Gazoo Racing SA Safari 1000, took place in June (21-23 June to be precise).
It is the largest national cross country rally in South Africa. Unlike the other SARRC rounds, it is a three-day event, usually covering a distance of between 800km and 1000km. With such a long distance, there is a possibility that the Safari 1000 could become a World Rally Raid Championship round in the future.
The marathon race presented plenty of problems for the contenders. Of the four factory Toyota Gazoo Racing SA crews, only Henk Lategan avoided trouble and won the race by almost six minutes. Giniel de Villiers lost over an hour on the final day due to technical problems and quickly dropped from third to 14th place. Guy Botterill crashed into a ditch on Saturday, broke three shock absorbers and had to settle for 20th place. Saood Variawa went off the road in a high-speed corner and retired from the race.
The marathon race was fraught with problems for the Neil Woolridge Motorsport Ford team, with reigning champion Gareth Woolridge losing over half an hour due to a broken sideshaft. But in the end, the Safari 1000 was the most successful event of the season for the Neil Woolridge Motorsport Ford. Gareth Woolridge finished fourth despite losing a lot of time and his younger brother Lance Woolridge was second (the first podium for NWM Ford this year). This marathon success allowed Lance Woolridge to move up to third in the championship standings.
Also exciting was the success of the Century Racing team as they continue to develop and test their 4WD prototype, the Century CR7 Twin Turbo. Brian Baragwanath, after a very unsuccessful start to the season (failing to finish in two races), finished third in the marathon round!
The next event is the Parys 400 (15-17 August), a double round championship race.
Toyota Gazoo Racing SA Safari 1000
1. Lategan/Cummings (Toyota GR Hilux IMT EVO) 12:17:39
2. Woolridge L./Gilbert (Ford NWM Ranger T1+) +5:45
3. Baragwanath/Cremer (Century CR7 Twin Turbo) +16:21
4. Woolridge G./Dreyer (Ford NWM Ranger T1+) +37:54
5. Blignaut F./Blignaut B. (Toyota GR DKR Hilux T1+) +40:56
South African Rally-Raid Championship (Overall)*
1. Lategan - 75
2. De Villiers - 59
3. Woolridge L. - 52
4. Botterill - 51
5. Blignaut - 45
* - provisional results
Photo Credits: Dave Ledbitter
