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Collin Matiza Sports Editor
THE 2022 motorsport calendar has been released but it has a “big piece’’ missing on it — drag racing.
Drag racing, which has been the most popular motorsport event in Zimbabwe for close to a decade, has been omitted from this year’s calendar of events amid reports that no one among the local motor racing officials is willing to run this exciting sport which has been forced to die a natural death.
In fact, according to one of the country’s motor racing officials, who asked not to be named, drag racing “has actually fallen to pieces’’ since one of the sport’s founder members, Mano Zevgolis, and his wife, Susan, pulled out of the drags a couple of years ago.
Mano Zevgolis was the chairman of the Sables Dragpro Club and was assisted in running it by his wife, Susan, who is now an official of local swimming.
“Since Mano pulled out of drag racing, it has actually fallen to pieces with no one standing up to take over, so the drags have died unfortunately.
“Motorsport Zimbabwe, however, have acquired a new timing set up from FIA funding but again, sadly, no one is putting their hands up to come and run the drags in this country,’’ said the same source.
He, however, said all is not lost as the sport can still be revived at the home of motorsport in this country — Donnybrook Park Raceway in Harare.
“All the facilities are there at Donnybrook, it just needs keen people’s input and I am sure it can all start up again.
“Jamie Kerwin, who is the secretary of the Bogwheelers Club who run the motorcycling sport of motocross in this country, is the only one willing to give it a go . . . We have to try and help her make or come up with a new working club committee and make the plans to get the drags up and going again.
“It needs the drag racing guys to come forward and offer their money and help, instead of starting discrimination stories. They need to pull together and restart the Sables Dragpro Club and get things going again.
“It’s really sad for me to hear there are stories like that going around and I hope those people who are guilty can try to come and help rather than start bad stories,’’ said the same source.
When contacted by The Herald yesterday, Temba Mazvimbakupa of Motorsport Zimbabwe, said he was going ‘’to fight tooth and nail’’ to get drag racing back on its feet.
“It’s not a secret that drag racing has, over the past years, been the most popular motorsport event in Zimbabwe as it attracted thousands and thousands of local motor racing enthusiasts at each and every race meeting at Donnybrook Park Raceway.
“It’s true that drag racing received a knock when Mano Zevgolis and his wife, Susan, pulled out of the committee that was running the sport. They were really dedicated to the sport and they made sure that everything was perfectly run . . . Their departure was a big loss to drag racing.”
Online Reporter