Bushveld 400: South African rally-raid finale, titles at stake

The Northam Zondereinde Bushveld 400 takes place on 13 and 14 November in the Thabazimbi area of Limpopo province. It is the fifth and final round of the South African Rally-Raid Championship (SARRC). Several titles will be decided there, and the Netherlands is well represented, with four cars from the Klaassen family and four Audi Quattros.

Route and schedule

Crews face a route of about 450 kilometres. The rally is based at the Koedoeskop school, around 44 kilometres south of Thabazimbi, where the prize-giving will also be held. On Friday a 22-kilometre qualifying race sets the starting order, followed by a 108-kilometre first stage. On Saturday the same route is used as the second stage, followed by a third.

Toyota dominates the Ultimate T1+

In the FIA Ultimate T1+, Guy Botterill and Henry Köhne (Toyota Hilux IMT EVO) have won the last three rounds, including the Vryheid 400 in 5 hours 26 minutes 14 seconds, 72 seconds ahead of team-mates Saood Variawa and Charan Moore, who won the season opener. Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa has therefore won the first four rounds. Gareth Woolridge and Boyd Dreyer (Ford NWM Evo Plus) have been on the podium at every round and are still in contention for the navigators' title and the Ultimate T1+ title.

Two national titles between Red-Lined crews

Red-Lined Motorsport has eight cars entered and is guaranteed to take the SA T1+ and SA T1 titles:

• SA T1+: Johan and Sean van Staden have 146 points, against 141 for Philip Botha and Stompie Mynhardt. The gap is only five points.
• SA T1: Peet Victor and Van Zyl Jonck lead with 117 points, ahead of Nielen Marx and Rikus Hattingh (103 points), who arrive on a two-race winning streak.

At Vryheid, Marx and Hattingh stopped to help their rivals get going again, keeping the title fight alive.

The Dutch in the spotlight

Puck Klaassen competes for the second time in the Toyota DKR Hilux T1+ EVO, after finishing fifth overall on her debut. Pim Klaassen drives a Red-Lined T1+ GTR, and Dave and Tessa Klaassen are entered in the SA T1+. In the Challenger class, Henk Klaassen drives a Taurus T3 Max.

The other attraction: the four replicas of the 1985 Audi Quattro from the Dutch Quattro Legends. Erik van Loon, who won the H4 class of the Dakar Classic in 2025 and finished 31st overall, returns with Hein Verschuuren (number 603). Peter van den Bosch, Marcel van Vliet and Marcel Pronk drive the other three. Their aim: to be the fastest of the Audis, and above all to enjoy it.