Road Safety Blog

Kyalami to host the final battle of the 2017 Engen Volkswagen Cup

jonckie

Kyalami is widely regarded as the spiritual home of motor racing in South Africa, so perhaps it’s fitting that the iconic circuit will also host the final battle in this year’s Engen Volkswagen Cup when the last round of the season is contested on the weekend of 4 November. “We’ve had an incredible year of spectacular racing,” commented Mr. Mike Rowe, head of Volkswagen Motorsport just weeks before the 2017 season draws to a close. “And what a season it has been. Passionate racing fans across South Africa were entertained by some of the closest racing seen in years. Throughout the season, it was very common to see as many as 15 cars all within fractions of the same second. Nobody was willing to give an inch, and that’s exactly what makes the series so popular and successful. We can’t wait to see how it ends at Kyalami.”

One thing that is certain is that Devin Robertson will be crowned 2017 Engen Volkswagen Cup champion for the second time in his racing career. The man from Johannesburg drove superbly in a season that included no less than 8 victories, 5 pole positions and 6 fastest laps. “The team prepared a great car throughout the year which allowed us to focus on the driving and it turned out perfectly. We couldn’t have asked for anything better,” said the newly-crowned champion. Robertson will obviously have his sights set on more victories at Kyalami, but all eyes will be on the full scale war for second position on the points table. Jeffrey Kruger currently sits on 128 championship points, just  3 clear of youngster Clinton Bezuidenhout with Master driver Juan Gerber only a further 2 points back. With points available for qualifying, fastest laps as well as the two heats, anything can still happen.

Teammates Tasmin Pepper and Shaun La Réservée who currently occupy 5th and 6th on the points table even still stand a chance to grab second from the trio ahead of them, albeit a mathematical one. A talking point of the 2017 season has been the performances of both Volkswagen Motorsport’s young guns Jonathan Mogotsi and Kuda Vazhure. These two impressed on every outing and continued to improve as the season progressed, validating Volkswagen’s commitment to nurturing talent in the process. Vazhure is fresh from a season-best 4th place finish in Cape Town during the previous round, while Mogotsi has already tasted victory once this season with a fine win in Port Elizabeth in July, a performance which he would like to repeat at Kyalami.

“Our programme is clearly working,” continued Mike Rowe. “We’re also in the process of finding the winner of our 2017 Volkswagen Driver Search and this person could join the Engen Volkswagen Cup for 2018.”

Qualifying for the final races of the 2017 Engen Volkswagen Cup at Kyalami will commence at 15:55 on Friday 3 November with the first of the two races scheduled for 11:15 on Saturday. The lights will go green for the final race at 14:15.

“Fans can look forward to a great day’s racing as has become the norm with this series. The fight for second in the title race will no doubt be a fierce one that will keep everyone on the edge of their seats. Volkswagen Motorsport wish all drivers the best of luck,” concluded Mike Rowe.

Volkswagen Motorsport acknowledges all of its sponsors and partners:

Engen, Ferodo, Champion, Dunlop, MyGlass, Schaeffler, C Track

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