Racer lives on a prayer

When the iconic American rock band toured South Africa, Midrand’s Waberski, then seven years old, was disappointed he could not see his heroes playing due to a racing commitment. His mother, Julie was relieved as it wasn’t appropriate for a seven-year-old to attend such a concert but “nonetheless, he was devastated”.

As a compensation, perhaps more of a peace offering, it was decided to decorate his Waberski’s kart in a tribute to Bon Jovi for the Northern Regions championship race meeting in Vereeniging. While Waberski was proud of his new steed, an engine problem in the opening race set him back, but he bounced back to claim third place in the final race and kept his slender five point championship lead.

Much like his hero Jon Bon Jovi who began his career at an early age, Waberski began racing at five years old.

He also follows in his father, Garth’s, footsteps, who made his Formula GTI debut aged only 16 and then went on to race Formula 3 in England.

Waberski has since turned eight years old and has moved into the Mini-Rok class which caters for drivers between eight to 12 years.

Garth said, “This year is a learning year so we aren’t chasing points, but he’s gaining confidence with each race. The big thing here is that there is huge difference between a 12-year-old who has been racing for four years, compared to an eight-year-old who has just moved up from the cadet class.”