KARTING | Rookie Bezuidenhout Saves His Best for Last During Challenging OKN Debut

Mikel Bezuidenhout was one of four drivers to debut the new OKN class in South Africa at the weekend’s opening round of the MSA Northern Regions Regional ROK Karting Championship hosted at Formula-K Kart Circuit, Benoni.

Bezuidenhout started the day by qualifying in third during a session that saw a short rain shower while all drivers went out on slick tyres. Subsequently, Bezuidenhout was forced to pit to change tyres and only managed one flying lap before the end of the session.

The opening heat saw the NBR Karting driver lose a position off the start line but soon settled into his rhythm to remain fourth after the 12-lap race.  Heat 2 commenced in wet conditions with a slippery surface despite running on the wet-option tyre. Bezuidenhout would be caught out by the lack of grip but recovered to rejoin the race. A red flag would, however, see the race stopped on Lap 8 with competitors deemed to have completed the minimum race distance for a result.

Bezuidenhout would save his best for last with a second-place finish in the final heat. While starting third, he soon led the race, a position he held for several laps. While he tried his utmost to keep Michael Pringle and Niko Zafiris behind him, he lost two positions to take the chequered flag in third before being promoted up to second after a Zafiris was handed a five-second penalty. The overall result would see Bezuidenhout claim the fourth position and trail the championship leader by six points.

“It certainly was challenging for me. Not only was it my first time out competitively in the Vortex-powered machine, but I’ve only been karting a few months. On top of that, we had variable weather, which made it tricky to find grip out there. The final heat was the highlight of my weekend, where I had a good tussle with Niko and Michael for the lead. Generally, it was loads of fun and am looking forward to more time in the seat,” said Bezuidenhout after the day’s final heat.

Bezuidenhout will now shift his focus to Senior MAX as he prepares for his first national karting event of the season. The KZN Kart Club at iDube Raceway, Camperdown, KZN, will host the opening round of the MSA South African Rotax MAX Challenge Championship on 3-4 March.