The motorcycle racing bug bite Oratilwe Phiri (8) at a young age and there are no signs of him stopping.
Oratilwe received his first pocket bike (a small motorcycle, normally 40 to 49cc) when he was five and started racing the next year.
A learner at Avalon Steve Jobs School, he still has his first bike, which has been upgraded to compete in the Stock class, which requires a three horsepower engine. He also owns a Blata pocket bike which has a six horsepower engine, for production races, and he has a KTM 50, for motocross.
In his first year of racing in the novice class, he placed in the middle of the pack for most of the year but then took the competition by surprise and won two of his last three races, and placed second in the other.
In 2016, he moved up to Stock class and has not placed lower than second place for his races. He came second in his first race, and then won his next five races, and came second in his second to last race. He is leading the championship this year.
In the last race of the season, he broke his collarbone while taking part in his first production race, and therefore did not get any results. However, he was crowned the Stock Class Champion for 2016. Since then he has come second in his last race in the Production class in Polokwane. This win moved him up to fifth position in the Production championship.
He also started motocross with the help of Honda Westrand and rode a Honda CRF50 in the MotoKids programme, which is an introductory series into motocross and enduro racing. He came third overall in his first ride out. He has since improved and has had race wins using the CRF50 against KTM 50s. He won his last three races and has entered this year’s MotoKids Development series, under the Motocross SA banner.
All his achievements work up quite an appetite, and he likes to end off a race or training day with a McDonald’s Quarter Pounder with cheese and six chicken nuggets.
Oratilwe currently needs sponsorship to move up to the bigger class, which uses bigger, adult-sized bikes. This next level will cost R15 000 for the year excluding race entry fees and travel.
To get in touch with the family about sponsorship, contact Thabiso Phiri on thabis.o@hotmail.com or 082 467 6444.
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