Ballito’s Guy Botterill and navigator Henry Köhne stormed to victory at the recent GR Stella 1000 Marathon in demanding North West conditions.

The three-day event, the second round of the South African Rally-Raid Championship, covered almost 1 000km through the desert-like Stella region from July 24-26. Competitors faced tricky navigation, limited tracks, long grass and challenging terrain.

The Toyota Gazoo Racing team of Botterill and Köhne led from Friday in their Toyota Hilux IMT EVO after setting the fastest combined time in qualifying and the opening stages. They maintained their advantage throughout Saturday before successfully defending it over the final 400km on Sunday.

The pair completed the marathon in 9:49:53, finishing just over three minutes ahead of Century Racing’s Jayden Else and Ford’s Neil Woolridge. They also claimed the Ultimate FIA T1+ class honours.

“Unbelievable. It was one of the trickiest events I’ve done in a long time. Opening the road for 1 000km wasn’t easy, the car was amazing, and Henry did a magnificent job on the notes,” Botterill said after the race.

The victory, worth 1.5 championship points because of the marathon format, moves Botterill to the top of the 2026 South African Rally-Raid Championship standings.

The championship continues at the next stop in Outeniqua on August 24 and 25.