‘Historic’ Passion of Speed to hit Zwartkops raceway

History will be made in a number of ways at South Africa’s first circuit race meeting of 2017, the international historic Passion of Speed at the Zwartkops Raceway near Pretoria this weekend.

The event will be the biggest in the history of Zwartkops, with more than 400 cars and motorcycles scheduled to take to the tarmac over the three-day period.

Saturday’s two races for G&H Transport Extreme Supercars will see the first racing appearance of a modern McLaren in the country, plus the return of one of South Africa’s top racing drivers after brain surgery.

The car will be a Daytona Group McLaren 650 Sprint racer, driven by South African rallying and off-road champion Leeroy Poulter.

Poulter, 36, who won the rally and off-road racing titles for the factory Gazoo Toyota team last year, became ill while driving in the season’s final rally.

He was diagnosed with an anomalous growth on the right side of his brain.

In September, the growth was removed and doctors found the cyst to be benign.

Poulter withdrew from the Dakar Rally.

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