Summarize

With three different race winners, four different drivers setting fastest laps  a mere 11 points separating the top five in the championship, the Astron Energy Polo Cup is delivering non-stop excitement this season. The action continues at the Blockbuster Extreme Festival presented by Coca-Cola on Saturday 12 April at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit.

Following a cracking first round at Killarney in Cape Town in March, three different drivers won the three races and four others claimed the bonus points for pole position and the fastest race laps. And it’s just as close in the Astron Energy Polo Masters, with three drivers split by all of seven points. “Astron Energy Polo Cup is more competitive than ever in 2025,” Volkswagen Head of Motorsport Mike Rowe points out. “We have seldom had so many drivers all capable of winning in the 29 years of Polo Cup, so this is a vintage year and fans can look forward to an exquisite day of racing at Kyalami.”

Final race winner at Killarney, Mo Karodia was most consistent in the Cape to lead the championship after round 1 in his Fast 5 Motorsport LTR Polo. Opening heat winner, LTR teammate Ethan Coetzee is just two points adrift from perhaps a surprise in Dainfern Dentist Hannes Scheepers, despite his not winning or scoring any bonus points at Killarney, who sits tied in third with Cape pole lass Tyler Robinson’s AF Fans Team Red Polo.

Killarney second race winner Rory Atkinson’s Industry Petroleum car sits a close fifth ahead of rapid Durbanite Shrien Rajpaul’s Dubcorp Polo. One quick kid looking for a better weekend at Kyalami is Polo Cup Rookie champion Kyle Visser’s Charl Engineering version, ahead of best of the 2025 rookies, Dhivyen Naidoo and Rookie Cup Champion Judd’s Volkswagen Motorsport Polo. 

Charl Smalberger is another driver keen to bounce back after a troubled Killarney outing in his Sabertek Polo sitting tenth in the chase. Roshaan Goodman’s Universal entry, Nirav Singh, Team Red newcomer Milam Emslie, FSS sophomore Pierluigi Muzzulini BLI and Bjorn Bertholdt’s Sizani Plastics car are all looking to improve, while most capable BSS lass Lonika Maartens is hoping for better luck following her double-DNF on her Polo Cup return last time out. Former motorcycle racer, debutant Anthony Lessing, who last year made a successful transition to four wheels in the VW Challenge, is an interesting addition to the Astron Energy Polo Cup pack.

Moving on to over-50s Astron Energy Polo Masters, champion Wayne Masters Performance Master Polo arrives at Kyalami with a small three point advantage over John Kruger’s Habot Lubricants machine. The duo shared the Killarney wins out two to one last time out. Neither has much breathing room with the consistent Derick Smallberger’s Sabertek car breathing down their necks and Mike Barbaglia’s Haupt Rob Franco’s Graphix Supply World cars also close enough behind to be of concern. 

Add Norbrake man Gavin Ross and Elio Muzzulini’s FSS Polo, and if one Masters in the Masters pack is already not confusing enough, Wayne’s big brother Bevin now joins the Masters fray in his CPS Warehouse machine. In what promises to be a record Astron Energy Polo Cup grid at Kyalami.

The Astron Energy Polo Cup kicks off with practice sessions on Thursday and Friday morning, followed by qualifying and the intense SuperPole session on Friday afternoon with the races taking place the whole day on Saturday.