‘I see myself as a champion’
These are the confident words of Kabelo Ledwaba Jr, who makes hearts race when he takes to the race track.
POLOKWANE – Ledwaba is originally from Polokwane but is currently based in Johannesburg.
The eight-year-old is making waves in the motocross industry with his skills on the bike and started taking motorcross seriously last year, when his father bought him a used bike in May for his birthday.
After only getting on the bike a month later, the more he rode, the more confident he became and his talent became apparent.
Kabelo told BONUS that he loves watching motocross on TV and asked his father to buy him a bike. He added that the first time on the bike was scary, but fun.
Kabelo takes after his father, who also used to race and the level of improvement that he has shown on the track in the past year, is thanks to hours of hard work and training.
His father explained that because he is turning nine, he can only participate in nationals on a 50cc, so he has to push very hard to be good enough to race, and he has to participate in seven races to reach that level.
The first competition was in Port Elizabeth on 15 February but he wasn’t accustomed to the track, which affected his time and he ended 12th out of 20 racers.
“He needs more practice on the track,” his father said.
His father explained that he is happy with his progress because although there is still a lot of work to be done, he has progressed quickly. Despite his love for the sport, he still puts school first.
His father is adamant that school remains a priority despite his hectic schedule with training and races.
“I am a firm believer in putting academics first and we live by the motto that ‘no pass, no riding’, it’s that simple,” he said.
The aim is for Kabelo to make a name for himself both nationally and internationally, and he recently competed in the Limveld Interprovincial MX series at the Capricorn Racing Club.
