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Collin Matiza Sports Editor
BEFORE Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen were household names in the tough world of Formula One racing, they were young kids hitting kart race tracks with their mums and dads and honing their craft while dreaming of one day becoming motorsport stars.
Eleven-year-old Ethan Wushe, who leaves for South Africa this week for his first venture into the highly competitive South African kart scene, hopes that his future follows a similar path. He will be accompanied by top Zimbabwean kart racer, Zac Dufty, who will be his coach, mentor and mechanic.
Formula 1 obsessed Wushe says: ‘‘It’s a big step for me and although I’m a little nervous, I’m very excited. Zac has told me the South African tracks are quite different to our local one and are very fast with high grip. It will be a steep learning curve for me but I’m up for it. I will also be racing a Parolin kart which is a different manufacturer to my Zanardi which I race in Zimbabwe, so all in all I’m facing a challenging weekend filled with new experiences!’’
Helping Wushe on his next step of the motorsport ladder is Zimbabwean Zac Dufty, who has raced in South Africa for almost a decade and competed in two World kart finals.
With his vast karting knowledge and experience, he is perfectly placed to help develop the next generation of karters.
He recently started the “Zacademy kart team” to support keen young drivers who would struggle to take part in the sport without support.
Wushe is one of five team members aged from 8 to 15-years-old who are part of the team that Dufty mentors.
Dufty said: “I’m excited to support Ethan in his endeavours as he takes to the regional scene in the Mini Rok class this year. Kart racing in South Africa is very competitive, with large grids of over 25 karts and it’s not easy for Zimbabwean competitors to take that big step into regional competition.”
Dufty added: “We were fortunate that my team in South Africa, RKT racing, helped with a leased kart and entry logistics which is fantastic. I have been racing with RKT since I was nine-years-old and have basically grown up with them, so I know the team very well and understand how a top professional team operates.”
Wushe’s love for racing began with his first drive in a go-kart two years ago at Pole Position Karts rental kart track. He was instantly hooked and started dreaming about racing and how to make his mark in this very competitive field. When his parents saw his passion, they bought him a race kart and Wushe hasn’t looked back!
“I love competition and this race meeting will be a great opportunity for me to experience top flight racing — I can’t wait!” grinned Wushe.
And for the young, aspiring driver, only the sky is the limit!
Kart racing or karting is a road racing variant of motorsport with open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on full-size motorsport circuits.
Karting is a very popular recreational activity and is also contested competitively. Karting is usually done before going into higher types of motorsports.
In Zimbabwe, kart racing events are held every other weekend at Donnybrook Park Raceway in Harare.
Online Reporter