Rally-Raid season opener falls to Lategan and Toyota

Reigning South African Production Vehicle champions Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings got their 2022 Rally-Raid Championship defence off to the best possible start this weekend, when they won the season-opening Mpumalanga 400 overall in their Toyota Gazoo DKR Hilux T1+.

They finished 51 seconds ahead of teammates Shameer Variawa/ Danie Stassen.

Third, and clinching the T1 class in the process, were Eben Basson/Leander Pienaar (#TeamHilux T1), with Gareth Woolridge/Boyd Dreyer next up in their NWM Ford Castrol Ranger T1+.

Guy Botterill/Simon Vacy-Lyle (Toyota Gazoo DKR Hilux T1+) finished fifth, followed by Gary Bertholdt/Philip Herselman (Toyota Hilux T1), Wors Prinsloo/André Vermeulen (NWR Ford Ranger) and Giniel de Villiers/Dennis Murphy (Toyota Gazoo DKR Hilux T1+).

Rounding out the top ten were the Johnstone couple, Bernard and Minette (NWR Ford Ranger), followed by Christo Rose/Arno Olivier (NWR Ford Ranger).

Hennie de Klerk/Adriaan Roets (Volkswagen Amarok) came in 11^th, while Team Red-Lined Motorsport hogged all the spots from 12^th to 15^th place.

The Dutch team, Dave Klaassen/Tessa Rooth (Red-Lined Nissan Navara) were 12^th, ahead of Johan de Bruyn/ Gerhard Schutte (Red-Lined Nissan Navara) and Conrad Rautenbach/Wade Harris (Red-Lined REVO).

A trouble-free and flawless race saw Ernest Roberts/ Henry Köhne take the Special Vehicle Category, and the Class A win in their JCP Steel Supplies Century CR6.

They were followed by Tim Howes/Gary Campbell (Tim Drew Properties BAT Spec 4), Trace Price Moor/Shaun Braithwaite (BAT Spec 1), and Sandra /Jaco Jonck  (BAT).

The top five overall was rounded out by Dewald van Breda/Johann du Toit in the Potch Plastics Century CR6, ahead of Lood du Preez/Chris Visser Jnr (Farmers Meat Stryker) and Willem du Toit/ Victor Fincham (BAT).

The Class G Side-by-Side victory went to Werner/Ian Mostert (Moto-Netix Can-Am Maverick), followed by Geoff Minnitt/Gerhard Snyman (Hydro Power Equipment Maverick), and Marko Himmel/Nico Swartz (King Price Xtreme Can-Am Maverick).