The pleasing part is that these three racers are all young and are starting to take over from the veteran brigade who have provided great entertainment over the last 20 years of WesBank racing. Pleasing as well is that young South Africn Racing Drivers can pedal along these monster 500-horse-power WesBank V8 cars capable of 300 km/h, with the best.

All three drivers have South African motor racing titles under their belt. Reigning champion Johan Fourie from Cape Town is 24 and has already chalked up two championship wins in Formula Ford single-seaters. He is the current 2002 South African Drivers and WesBank V8 champion. He won overall this year in the Sasol DualFuel Astra on his home track in Killarney in Cape Town with a win and a second place. The worst thing in his life is not being able to win overall at every race.

Shaun Watson-Smith from PE is in his early thirties and won the Production Car Championship twice in an Opel - a make he has always raced. He took the first race at Kyalami and followed this up with a win in Cape Town and two thirds in PE driving in the Barnetts Auto Spares Astra which forms part of the Supervan team with Fourie and Melvill Priest (Macromed Mustang).

Double winner at Aldo Scribante in Port Elizabeth going away was Grant van Schalkwyk (Hi-Q Mustang) who grew up in PE but is now based in Gauteng. In his late twenties he not only won Class A of the South African Production Car Championship in the nineties but holds the South African land speed record at 388 km/h in the Spirit of Dunlop.

Soon to challenge these three potential champions for 2003 is the returning double WesBank V8 Champion Gary Formato. His new car is on the water from New Zealand and this combination should be seen in action by mid year.

Two other young drivers who show great potential are Mackie Adlem (New Call Mustang) and Melvill Priest (Macromed Mustang) who are regularly in the top six.

Flying the flags for the more experienced drivers are the danger men Larry Wilford (Fuchs Titan Mustang), Franco di Matteo (Sabat Mustang) and Martin van Zummerin (Border Towing).

Two new cars came onto the scene this year. Riaan Botma from Randfontein with backing from Havoline brought in the new Jaguar which must be the best new looking car in the country. Jaco Correia from Welkom imported the latest stunning Corvette muscle car from Chevrolet in the USA.

With seven race meetings still on the cards for the rest of the year WesBank V8 racing is as dynamic as ever and still provides the fastest, most entertaining and heart stopping racing in the country.