Ballito racing driver ties up SA champs

Ballito’s Guy Botterill in the Total Quartz Toyota Gazoo Racing R2 Etios clinched his fourth SA Rally Championship with two rounds in hand.

The Zane Rencken Rally was held in the Dalton area and was the fifth round of the 2019 SA Championship.

Guy and navigator Simon Vacy-Lyle won the rally which was run on a good mix of technical stages, tricky narrow roads and tight sections in the forests and the fast, flowing roads in the sugar cane.

“The roads were a bit hard on the cars, and we damaged a rear bearing, but it was easier to replace the back axle, and the technicians did an amazing job to get this done in record time,” said Botterill.

“The pressure however, is not off, as the pair would like to win one more round as Simon Vacy-Lyle sat out one round when daddy duty called and his first child made an early arrival. To win both Driver and Navigator titles they will compete in Gauteng in September.

Immediately after the event with lots of planning, helicopters, planes and an all night drive from Harare to Zambia in a mini-bus, Botterill was chauffeured to the start of the Monze National Rally.

“With the Rally rules in Zambia, one of the competing crew members have to do the recce and unfortunately Simon had to navigate the SA event, and Kes Naidoo was called up for duty in Zambia.

“Kes did a fantastic job with the notes, and other than a wrong slot we had a good clean run to win the event by more than three minutes,” said Botterill.

Two National Rallies, three countries, 24 hours, two overall victories – one in a right-hand Drive Total Quartz Toyota Etios R2 and the other in the left-hand drive Wildcat Energy Drinks Etios R4. Definitely one for the history books!