Brett and Henk on the podium
To add a bit of drama to the race Henk had to put out a small fire
Brett Cummings and team-mate Henk Lategan won the battle between two identical Class FIA Toyota Hilux’s.
Round two in the South African Cross Country Series in Berg 400 ended in a battle between team mates Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy and Henk with Brett next to him.
Spectators held their breath as this became a dual between Toyota Gazoo Racing SA drivers.
This super exciting battle reached a climax when Henk and Brett took first place on the podium.
Giniel and Dennis drew first blood when they won the qualifying race on Friday, May 17, banking a lead of only 14 seconds.
From the moment the flag dropped Henk put his foot on the pedal with Brett directing him.
Their team mates had a stroke of bad luck as they suffered a puncture in the beginning of the race, giving the younger pair an edge.
This was not the first of the punctures as both teams lost valuable time fixing the nasty setbacks.
To add a bit of drama to the race Henk had to put out a small fire after the grass stuck in the front wheel of their car caught alight when they stopped to change yet another puncture.
Then Dennis’ seat came partially undone early in loop two and also some steering problems for Giniel that battled to keep up the pace.
“It was an extremely challenging race. The navigation was difficult due to a large portion of the route being on virgin terrain. It was extremely rough and we lost time due to three punctures throughout the race. In the end we had a great result and we are looking forward to the next event in Botswana,” Brett said.
Next up on the 2019 SACCS calendar is the Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1000 Desert Race, which takes place on June 21-23 in the area around the town of Selebi Phikwe in Botswana.
This promises to be a race not to be missed as both Toyotas are now tied on points.
