TOYOTA GAZOO Racing South Africa (TGRSA) kicked off their 2025 South African National Rally Championship (NRC) campaign with a display of characteristic tenacity at the NTT Tzaneen National Rally, held in Limpopo on 27 and 28 June. The rally formed Rounds 1 and 2 of the season and featured twelve challenging gravel stages totalling 173 competitive kilometres.
Mandla Mdakane returned to action in the team’s Toyota Starlet, partnered for this event by experienced co-driver Henry Adams, standing in for regular navigator Simon Vacy-Lyle. The pair started strong on Friday, running well within the top three and posting a competitive time on Stage 2. Unfortunately, a fuel pressure issue emerged in Stage 3 and worsened in Stage 4, ultimately forcing the crew to retire from Round 1.
Thanks to swift overnight work by the TGRSA technical team, the Starlet was back on the line for Round 2. The day began cleanly, but Stage 3 brought another challenge when the crew lost the rear-right driveshaft just 3km into the stage. Running in two-wheel drive over back-to-back stages cost significant time, but the team regrouped during service and pushed hard in the final stages to secure a hard-earned third place overall.
“When the car was running well, the pace was there,” said Mdakane. “The issues we had were unfortunate, but not workshop-related. Still, we managed to bring it home for a podium and some points on the board. We’ll push to claw back more at the next one in PE.”
The next round of the 2025 NRC season is the Algoa Rally, set to take place around Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape on 25 and 26 July.
