Summarize

National championship double-header a kart fest

The 2020 South African Rotax Max Challenge national karting championship moves into new territory as it limbers up for its first-ever double-header at the Zwartkops International Kart Raceway Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 September 2020.
 
“Lockdown has thrown a bit of a curved ball, hasn't it!” Rotax Max South Africa’s Ed Murray smiled. “Happily however we are back karting again, but we have had to adapt and this weekend sees an historical double header of national races for the first time. “That means a splendid 6-race kart fest over for each class over two days and none of us can wait for that!”
 
On track, 41 year old Durban hero Cristiano Morgado will be the man with a target on his back in the top direct drive DD2 gearbox class. The Valentino Rossi of South African karting put one over SA’s finest young kart racers in the opening round at iDube in KZN last month and they will all be out for revenge.
 
Morgado however fired a dominant warning shot at last week’s Zwartkops regional. So let’s see if the likes multiple SA DD2 champion Bradley Liebenberg, Robert Whiting, Jamie Smith, Cape lads Jason Coetzee and Sebastian Boyd, Nicolas Spanoynnis, Niko Zafiris and Divan Braak, among others have an answer to the flying old man of karting.
 
Even though he exceeds the DD2 Masters class requirements by 9 years, Morgado has left the over 32s glory to be battled out between local Edenvale driver Nick Verheul, who will chase another maximum score over SA champion Jonathan Pieterse. Also expect Eugene Brittz, Alistair Mingay, Marouan Selmi, Philippe Chapat and Carlo GiI to be in the chase.
 
Open class chain-drive Senior Max is another star attraction and there's a twist in that one. Shrien Naidoo leads the Senior title chase over Charl Visser, Brent Walden, Jason Coetzee, Tate Bishop and Riley Horner. But Junior Max refugee Aqil Alibhai will be out to prove a point in what promises to be one of the classes of the day.
 
High school Junior Max is always spectacular. Rookies Muhammad Wally and Nikolas Roos ended up on top in the opening national, so the likes of Dhivyen Naidoo, Ethan Stier, Tyler Robinson and Juandre Nel will be out for revenge.
 
Ghazi Motlekar is the form lad in under-13 Mini Max and arrives at his home national following a perfect start in KZN. That said, Troy Snyman, KC Ensor-Smith, Luviwe Sambudla, Erich Heystek and Cape lads Joaquin de Oliveira and Reza Levy are all likely to cause a headache for the championship leader.
 
Cape Town’s SA champion Reese Koorzen is still the kid to beat in under-11 Micro Max. Keagan Beaumont, Caleb Odendaal, Reagile Malula, Hriday Pooren, Mo Moerat, Uzair Khan and Travis Mingay will however have other ideas over those six races this weekend.
 
The splendid baby Bambinos were races of the day last time out, so expect more of the same in Pretoria. Mattao Mason is the one to beat, but Aiden Beaumont, Harry Rowe, Manelisi Nkomo, Cristian Verheul, Caleb Moss, Rafael da Silva, Matthew Shuttleworth and Kai van Rensburg and several others, will all be factors this weekend.
 
Following Zwartkops, the 2020 Rotax Max SA champions will be crowned a four-heat Final in Cape Town on 17 October. They and the class winners in the 15 November Rotax African Open at the new Formula K circuit, will qualify for the so-called Olympics of Karting Rotax Max Grand Finals at Portimao, Portugal on 24-29 January 2021.
 
At the time of writing, the Zwartkops Rotax Max National Double Header was still due to run without spectators and to all lockdown protocols. The races will however be live streamed via www.kart.co.za, so be sure to factor that in to your racing viewing throughout the weekend.
ENDS

Issued on behalf of Rotax Max Challenge

What:South African Rotax Max Challenge Round 2 & 3 Preview
Where:Zwartkops International Kart Raceway, Pretoria
When:19-20 September 2020
Community:South Africa National

For further information please contact jennifer@kart.co.za

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