The second round of the South African Rok Cup proved to be a tough one for Praga South Africa, with results marred by penalties and crashes.
Despite feeling confident heading to PE on Saturday 27 April 2019, motorsport cannot be scripted and things rarely go according to plan. This is particularly true for all but one Praga Driver this past weekend.
Luke Hill once again stamped his authority on the Kid Rok class, putting his Praga on pole position. A small glitch in the first race saw the youngster cross the line 2nd, but everything was back on track for the remainder of the day. Luke won both remaining heats and finished 1st overall for the event.
It was a rollercoaster weekend for Goran Gruben, who failed to qualify and missed the first race. Determined to show his aptitude, however, Goran drove brilliantly in the remaining two races to finish 4th in both.
Reagile Mailula had very good pace, qualifying in a strong 3rd position. Unfortunately, some bad luck came into play and he was unable to compete in the first heat. Having to fight his way from the back of the field, Reagile finished 10th and 9th in the final two races respectively.
Grayson van Zummeren put in a consistent performance, surviving his first trip to Celso Scribante. He qualified 9th and held this position to the race one finish line. Grayson finished 11th in both remaining heats to claim 11th overall for the day.
KC Ensor-Smith was pegged as a favourite in Mini Rok and after qualifying on pole position, things appeared to be go according to plan. He had a good first race, taking a podium finish. Things began to unravel in race two, however, when KC retired in the fourth lap. He had a mountain to climb in the final race, but managed a 9th place finish.
Luke Hill enjoyed his seat time in Mini Rok, qualifying 10th and finishing the first race in 12th place. He lost a bit of ground in race two, dropping down to 15th, but recovered back up to 11th in the final heat. His performance placed him 13th in the overall standings, but more importantly, he secured 2nd in the under 10 division.
Thando Malumane would like to put PE behind him after receiving penalties in both qualifying and the third race. Having to start at the back of the grid, Thando finished 16th in race one. He put in a strong race two performance to make up six places during the race. He finished 12th. A nose cone penalty in the final heat dropped him to 18th place.
Things just didn’t fall into place for Jarrod Waberski in OKJ. The SA Champ struggled with a niggling technical issue, which hampered his pace all weekend. He qualified 11th and drove hard to progress through the field in the first race. In the end though his efforts were thwarted by a nose cone penalty which dropped him to 8th. He finished 9th in the second heat, before a massive six kart accident in the final race ended his day.
In karting, as in any sport, there will be good days and bad days. The team will regroup, focus on the positives and come back stronger at the next race.
Issued by: Motorsport Marketing Services