There is enthusiasm as local spectators prepare to witness the battle between man and machine in the gateway to the Kgalagadi as the race returns to local shores for the first time since 2019. The three-day gruelling race is the third and fourth rounds of the 2023 South Africa Rally-Raid Championship (SACCR) while it is also the second and third rounds of the Botswana Motor Sports (BMS) National Championship. Competitors are in to score double this weekend and to add the cherry on top, the winners qualify for one of the next two editions of the Dakar Rally. The engine revved this morning in the 61km prologue round and the battle for the king of the desert crown has started.
For the participants, 440km await on Saturday and the last 428km will be on Sunday. In an attempt to score good times, the competitors will face a route consisting of a variety of tight and fast sections with a mixture of rocky and sandy surfaces. It is a terrain that Ross Branch would enjoy as he returns to his hometown as a clear favourite. Racing for his eighth title, Branch is the Mantshwabisi record overall winner with seven titles. He is the man to beat as he lines up as the fastest man lining. He is having a good time on the bike this season as he sits eighth in the 2023 FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship. An unlucky 26th finish at the Dakar Rally and a 13th finish in the second round of the World Championship should send warning signs to fellow competitors.
