Dullstroom is going to be a hub of activity this weekend as round one of this year’s South African Cross-Country Series (SACCS) kicks off.
Toyota Gazoo Racing SA will be taking on the Dullstroom 400 with a three-car team.
Our own Brett Cummings will join Class FIA champion Henk Lategan as co-driver in the Toyota Hilux for 2019 in this race.
Former Special Vehicle champion, Shameer Variawa, has joined the team in a third Class FIA Toyota Hilux.
He will race alongside experienced co-driver Juan Möhr.
Defending SACCS champions Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy will also line up.
“To us, round one of the SACCS is more than just the start of our local racing season,” said Toyota Gazoo Racing SA Team Principal, Glyn Hall, “it is also the start of our preparation for Dakar 2020, and as such every kilometre raced is invaluable. Now it is time to knuckle down and get on with the business of winning races locally, and we can’t wait for the season to start.”
Toyota Gazoo Racing SA is very excited about Brett strapping in next to Lategan.
“It is extremely exciting, and fits in with my own aspirations to return to Dakar on four wheels, rather than two,” said Brett in his new seat.
Brett finished the Dakar Rally twice, raced bikes all over the world and navigated in the cross-country series before.
He started racing 1999 and after racing locally decided to step onto the global stage.
His first international event was the Australasian Safari in 2012.
He finished fourth overall and won the Dakar Challenge.
A year later he had his eye on the Dakar Rally.
To prepare himself for motorsport’s ultimate endurance race, he first took part in the Merzouga Rally in Morocco.
In 2014 he became the first South African to enter and finish the fearsome Malle Moto category for unsupported bikers, finishing second in class.
“Brett brings a different perspective to the team, having competed in so many races all over the world. He is also young and fit, and we believe his energy will be welcomed in the squad,” said Hall.
The Mpumalanga 400 is set in the area around Dullstroom which starts off on March 15.
The main race will take place on Saturday, March 16, and starts at 08:30 in the Village Green, Dullstroom.
Teams will complete two loops of 160 km each during the day, with a compulsory stop at the Designated Service Park in between.
In addition to the three factory Toyota Hilux crews, fans can also look forward to seeing other Toyota Hilux cars in action.
These include the Class FIA Toyota Hilux of Chris Visser (Atlas Copco) and the Class T Toyota Hilux of brothers Johan and Werner Horn from Malalane.
