Summarize

The Pabar VW Challenge may have completed its 2023 season, sprayed the champagne, and crowned its champions, but there’s one end of year appointment left, and it’s a significant one in its own right. Over 30 Challenge cars, and a few others have entered for the Pabar VW Challenger curtain raiser to the season-ending 15-16 December SA Endurance 9 Hour.

An unusual grid, it not only caters for fresh for 2024 new Pabar VW Challenge rules, but this one is also open to cars built to fresh 2-litre turbo Class A and litre turbo triple Class B machines for the first time, but CompCare Polo Cup cars are also allowed. Which is doubly interesting, considering VW Challenge also is expected to allow those cars from 2025.

That’s attracted none less than 2023 CompCare Polo Cup champion and new Volkswagen  Motorsport driver Charl Visser to enter a Polo Cup. Alongside similar cars for Pabar VW Challenge regulars, son Charl and dad Derick Smalberger’s Sabertek Team Red entries, and Masters class man Johan Gouws’ Keller Williams Polo Cup.

How they shape up to the rest of the Class A field, and whether any of the regulars indeed turn up with new turbo or even Polo Cup cars remains to be seen. Expect Performance Masters Wayne, Dean Ross, Pabar man Mike Barbaglia, Luigi Ferro’s Ferro Energia car, and Pozidrive entry Captain Chris Dale to be right in there alongside Mydi Mfana’s MDS and Miguel Dias’ Performance Masters cars.

There are also a few most interesting developments in class B. Those include at least Stuart Mack’s Nathans turbo litre triple to enter in Class B for the first time. Legend Lee Thompson meanwhile re-joins the entry list alongside double class champion Hannes Scheepers’s Dainfern Dental car, ATE Brakes lady hero Elna Croeser and returning Polo Cup lass, Tyler Robinson’s AF Fans entry.

All of them will have their work cut out by the ever quicker Mohammed Karodia’s  Fast 5 Polo, Dubcorp lad Shiren Rajpaul, the elusive Stelio Nousias, Tinahe Ncube Eco Simply Solar machine and Platinum Wheels lad Jacques Hayes. Add Adriaan and Martin de Beer MLP, Chris Davison, Daniel Gammie and Josh Wilford to that end of season fun.

ATE Brakes man Philip Croeser and Gossmotorsport lad Andy Gossman should be the men to beat in Class C. They have Pabar entry Charl Anderson, Insurisk brothers Dimitri and Michael Zapheriou and Allan Pereira’s Daisy Business Solutions car to keep them busy in the all-Polo Vivo baby class.

With plenty action throughout the double holiday weekend, Pabar VW Challenge qualifies midday Friday 15 December before race 1 at 14h50. Race 2 starts 08h05 Saturday. See you bright and early at Kyalami!

*VW Challenge salutes its partners, Pabar Automotive Pressings, Habot Performance Lubricants, Dunlop tyres, Habot Performance Lubricants, ATS Motorsport Supplies, Platinum Wheels, Habot Synthetic Oils, ATE Brakes, Norbrake, Eco Simply Solar, Insurisk insurance brokers, Pozidrive, Eeziparts, Van der Linde Developments, MDS Consulting Engineers, FSS Logistics, and Bush & Buck.