Kyalami race driver Kwanda Mokoena had a career-highlight weekend on August 31 and September 1, competing at the challenging Spa Francorchamps for his debut in the ADAC GT Masters.
Racing alongside fellow German young gun Max Reis in his Amandla Coal Fields Haupt Racing Mercedes AMG GT3, it proved to be a trying weekend, but the thrill of racing at Spa was Mokoena’s big take-away from his first Belgian weekend.
Read more: Thrilling racing for Youngtimers
“What an incredible experience,” Mokoena beamed. “I took the car out Friday morning and was the quickest Mercedes on track for FP1. Driving at beyond 252 km/h in the wet and chasing through Eau Rouge. The rain was something else completely.”
Unfortunately, Reis lost it in the rain at Eau Rouge and the car was badly damaged. The team decided to repair it and brought all the bits in from Germany overnight. They replaced the suspension, diff, and gearbox, and still managed to put it all together again by 06:00.
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“In other words, I had still not done a single lap of Spa on slicks before I qualified that morning,” Mokoena added.
“It was a daunting task, but I managed to put the car into tenth on the grid, which the team was very happy with. I really enjoyed race two. I was bumped off at T1 and that lost me a few places. But I came back hard and drove it like no one’s business to hand the car to Max in ninth. He drove well to bring it home in ninth.
“So, Spa was a tough yet most memorable weekend. I hope to be back very soon, flat out at Eu Rouge. Now, it is on to the next one with Red Bull Ring, and Hockenheimring coming up after that. Big thanks as ever to all my supporters and my team for their incredible job, and everything else, and most importantly, my parents.”
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