Summarize

Touted as South Africa’s biggest motor race, the MF Autobody 24 Hours of iLamuna once again delivered spectacular action around the clock at Red Star Raceway over the weekend. While Team Xtra Clothing & Shoes repeated its 2022 victory, 52 of the original field of 70 crews of four drivers each sharing racing ‘lemons’ worth less then R50,000 racing exclusively on Dunlop tyres, finished the gruelling test of man and machine.

Team Xtra’s Citi Golf ran like clockwork and was in the mix throughout as Adrian Dalton, Wayne Lebotschy, Gerhard Henning and Brett Langston turned in 489 laps to score a back to back iLamuna 24 Hour victory. Managed by Leandrie Pieterse, Linda Henning, Melanie Zietsman and Angela Langston, they beat a team close to Dunlop’s heart, ATS Motorsport’s similar machine driven by Heinz Bose, Mandy Wecke, Mike Harling and Sean Hewitt by four laps.

Mr Turbo's Ivan Krenek, Ian Basson and Tony Collaro ended third to make it a Citi Golf 1-2-3. They were another three laps down and the same distance clear of the first other car home, a Toyota MR2 called Lightning McLemon. Team Ballies’ Datsun 1200 GX followed another lap back, from the Boetfighters’ Citi Golf, one position down on their 2023 achievement in fifth. 

Leaders at eight hours, Team Kaka’s Ford Ka was sixth from the Sour Dutchmans’ Honda, Aidcall247’s Hyundai Getz and the Mad Spanners’ VW Polo in tenth. Just outside the top ten, home team’ MF Autobody’s Golf 2 beat JB Systems’ Ford Fiesta and the Monday Club’s Golf 2 to eleventh. The Polizei Porsche 914, which led at half distance, slipped to 14th at the flag.

Team Lemonade’s Polo and all-girl crew, the Pink Arrows’ Mercedes SLK were next home, followed by another Citi Golf, Liewe Heksie, VP Racing’s Mazda RX7, and the Thundercats’ Subaru in 20th. 52 of the seventy starters finished the race. Among those who retired, frontrunners Fuel Fiesta must have been the most painful when they stopped with an hour left to run.  

Perhaps the biggest winners, Dunlop Tyres’ FM800 SP Sport tyres ensured a solid and safe race to carry every one of the 70 starters and 52 iLamuna finishers through 24 hours of flat out racing through day and night. “The MF Autobody 24 Hours of iLamuna was another unqualified success for Dunlop Tyres,” Dunlop PR and Events manager Joanne de Freitas confirmed. 

“We had a great weekend with 70 cars starting, and 52 making the finish on our FM800 control tyres. They raced trouble free through all conditions over 24 treacherous hours. Congratulations to the winners and well done to every team and crew member who made this wonderful weekend happen!” 

The iLamuna 24 Hour and endurance series is just one arrow in Dunlop’s comprehensive South African circuit racing bow. The series sits alongside Dunlop’s National hierarchy of Global Touring Cars, GTC SupaCup and CompCare Polo Cup, as well as national endurance and a broad selection of top regional racing classes that race exclusively on Dunlop tyres.

“There’s no better way to prove our tyres on Monday, than by winning races on Sunday,” Joanne de Freitas concluded. “The MF Autobody 24 Hours of iLamuna races exclusively on Dunlop SP Sport tyres, and the weekend’s results are the latest of many South African 2023 Dunlop racing successes that so brilliantly prove our racing point.”