Another Championship in the bag for Michael Stephen

Ultimate Achiever. Michael Stephen celebrates yet another SA National Championship title
Photo by Kirsty Mackenzie

Gqeberha’s favourite racing son clinched yet another South African Motorsport Championship title at the season ending 9-Hours of Kyalami racing festival on Saturday when he was crowned the National GT3 Champion. A second place behind Joseph Ellerine in the first of the two one hour sprint races was enough to seal the deal for Stephen after having won six out of the eight rounds on offer, he then went out and won race two in great style, ensuring that the Ultimate Outlaw Team consisting of Izak Spies, Stephen and Roelf du Plessis won the Team Championship as well, narrowly beating the Scuderia Scribante Team into second place. The overall championship podium was an all Gqeberha affair with Stephen on the top step, the ever consistent Aldo Scribante in second and after a great comeback following his disastrous start to the season, 2022 champion  Silvio Scribante in third place.

The championship win will surely elevate Stephen into a different level in the SA Motorsport Hall of Fame now having 16 National South African Championships and 3 National Challenge Championships across various racing disciplines to his name.  His titles are as follows –

  • 1 x SAGT South African Championship (2023)
  • 3 x Sasol GTC Touring Car Championships (2016,17,18)
  • 3 x Bridgestone Production Car Championships (2011,12,13)
  • 1 x Engen Volkswagen Cup Championship (2004)
  • 8 x SA Karting Championships
  • 3 x DD2 Masters National Challenge Championships (2016,17,18)

In the Nine Hour Endurance event, Daniel Rowe, another local star although having recently relocated to the Western Cape ended the season by winning the South African Endurance Series Touring Car Class D Championship in his VW Motorsport backed SupaPolo. Rowe shared the drive with newly crowned PoloCup champion Charl Visser and GTC SuperPolo runner-up Jonathan Mogotsi. They ran into technical difficulties with less than 90 minutes left in the race, retiring the car from the event, but Rowe with his three race wins and a second place during the season had done enough to earn the championship title.

Algoa Motorsport Club star Xolela Njumbuxa capped off a successful season by finishing in 17th place overall out of 38 starters and in 8th place in class E driving the Team Qhubani Backdraft Cobra along with teammates Fikile Holomisa & Baphumze Rubuluza.

Upcoming Events

Other News