adminCollin Matiza Sports Editor
HIGH-RIDING Zimbabwean junior motocross rider Emmanuel Bako was once again in dominant form as he swept the board in the 50cc Class during the third round of the 2015 Monster Energy South African National Championship at Rover in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.
According to reports from Port Elizabeth, Bako (8), a Grade Three pupil at Heritage Primary School in Harare, was in a no-nonsense mood on the tough beach sand track at Rover on Saturday where he convincingly won all his two heats to claim the first step on the podium with a maximum 50 points.
Bako has now won his second successive round in this year’s Monster Energy South African National Motocross Championship after emerging as the top dog during round two of the tough six-round series at Zone Seven in Cape Town in April.
Port Elizabeth’s Rover track is big and sandy and it is rated as the toughest in South Africa but Bako dominated the proceedings in the 50cc Class, emerging as the overall winner ahead of South Africa’s Wian du Plooy and Luke Grundy who were placed second and third with 42 and 37 points respectively.
In fact, 15 little chaps lined up behind the gates in the 50cc Class on Saturday and Bako made it difficult for the South African riders as he was rated the fastest rider in the first heat in which he beat du Plooy and Barend du Toit into second and third place.
After his dominant performance at Rover on Saturday, Bako should now be placed among the top three in the 2015 Monster Energy South African National Motocross Championship’s 50cc Class standings as he also emerged as the overall winner during round two of this series at Zone Seven in Cape Town in April.
Three other top Zimbabwean motocross riders — Kuda Mhene (Jnr), Jayden Ashwell and Regan Wasmuth — also took part in round three of the same series at Rover in Port Elizabeth on Saturday and they all performed well with Ashwell and Wasmuth both finishing fifth overall in the MX1 and 125cc High School classes.
Mhene Jnr was also in good form as he managed a deserving sixth place finish overall in the 65cc Class.
There was an intense battle in the mid pack between Ashwell and a number of top South African riders in the main MX1 Class where Neville Bradshaw came out tops overall ahead of Anthony Raynard (second), Sacha Naude (third) and Kerim Fitzgerald.
There was also some plenty of action in the 125cc High School Class in which promising 14-year-old Zimbabwean rider Wasmuth first finished in fourth place in heat one behind South Africans van der Westhuizen, Charl van Eeden and Joshua Mlimi.
Wasmuth eventually finished fifth overall in this class which was won by van der Westhuizen while van Eeden, Mlimi and Janes van Sandwyk came second, third and fourth respectively.
Nine riders took part in the 125cc High School Class.
In the 65cc Class, Zimbabwe’s Mhene Jnr put up a good show before he was forced to settle for sixth place overall in this section which was won by Camden McLellan of South Africa ahead of fellow South Africans Ike Klaasen, Jonathan Mlimi, Tufty Hayden and Sebastian Wood.
Online Reporter