Algoa Kart Club has once again got two National Champions in their ranks after Sebastien Blignaut clinched the Mini Rok title and Jack Moore the OK-J title at the brand new kart circuit at Red Start Raceway near Delmas in Mpumalanga on Saturday. Blignaut took race wins in heats 1 & 2, then disaster struck on the opening lap of race 3 when his karts chain jumped off leading to him not being able to finish the race, but in tenacious fashion he stormed back to take the win in race 4 setting a new lap record in the process. Blignaut finished in second place overall for the day, which was enough for him to secure the championship, ending what has been a remarkable season for the Jeffreys Bay youngster. The championship win secures him a ticket to the Rok Cup World Finals that will take place in South Garda, Italy in October.
It was also an incident filled event for Moore after being involved in an accident before the first corner of the opening lap of race one while in second place. With a buckled nose cone and bent chassis he managed to recover from the back of the field to finish in fifth position. Under the guidance and support of national motorsport champions Michael Stephen and Leroy Poulter, Moore stormed back to win heat 2 followed by a fourth place finish in heat 3. Due to painful ribs and a sore back from the first race incident, Moore retired in heat 4 after having completed 8 laps realising that he had done enough to win the prestigious u/15 OK-J 125cc class in his rookie year. The national title win not only secures Moore a ticket to the Rok Cup World Finals as well as the FIA Games that take place a week later in Valencia, but also a seat in the prestigious FIA Karting Academy Trophy which is an international kart racing competition organized by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA). The competition is designed for young drivers aged 12 to 14 years old who are looking to develop their skills and progress towards a career in motorsport. The competition takes place over several rounds, with each round consisting of a practice day, a qualifying day, and a race day. The competition is open to young drivers from around the world with the races being held on international circuits and are contested by the top drivers from over 50 different countries.