One of the sights of South African motor racing are these V8 cars heading for the notorious high speed Potter’s Pass corner at 260 kmh, before accelerating up to 300 kmh for the downhill Rifle Bend and then throwing out all anchors for the Cocobana hairpin at the bottom of the hill. 

A new lap record is on the cards as well when newly crowned 2007 WesBank Champion, Hennie Groenewald (SP Racing, Timken Jaguar), tries to break Mackie Adlem’s (Kyalami Fuchs Titan Mustang) all-time record of being the fastest man on any track in South Africa.    Champion or not, he will find stiff competition from 2005 champ, Grant van Schalkwyk (Hi-Q Jaguar), who missed two meetings this year but is back on form and still lies in 2^nd position on the points table.  Heavy pressure will also come from the Rookie find of the year, Robert Briggs (Timken Jaguar) in his ex-championship winning Jaguar, who has scored three hard-fought wins in his debut season.   His aggressive driving style could see him win on Saturday.    

The aerodynamics of the Ford Mustang gives them great speed at East London.   Adlem is in one of them, as are Larry Wilford (Fuchs Titan Mustang), Roof of Africa motorcycle winner, Jade Gutzeit and his father Des with Dezzi/Trysome backing.    A formidable foursome. 

Three drivers have scored in all sixteen races run this year.   Groenewald is one and Gordon Connelly (Dezzi/Cowan Signs Jaguar) running on a low budget and doing amazing things is another, as his 5^th position in the championship shows.   The third driver is Richard Pinard (Team Permatex Jaguar) who is always in the hunt and fighting it out just behind the leaders. 

Willie Hepburn (Motorsport Logistics Corvette) at 65 pedals with the best and is at the top of his game with the V8’s he loves to prepare and race. 

Franco di Matteo (Deltec Batteries Jaguar) needs to find the form he showed at the beginning of the season at Kyalami, when narrowly missing an overall win. 

Back in racing with renewed energy after a sabbatical to find their original enthusiasm are Welkom’s Correia brothers, Jaco and Danie, in their Omega Motor Spares Corvette muscle cars they race so well. 

All-rounder on tar and dirt, Zane Pearce (Hi-Q Jaguar), the power behind the Hi-Q Team, has the potential to take on all-comers and goes well in East London if he doesn’t crash.   Only one of the Auby family, Marc, will compete in the Masana Petroleum Jaguar.   He is the older brother of the team and had a great drive in his last round in Port Elizabeth. 

Local boy on his home track is teenage star Wade van /Zummeren (Border Towing Jaguar), who has been away from WesBank V8 racing for a year.   He showed them he had lost none of his form in P.E. in his come-back race. 

Other drivers expecting to line up at the Grand Prix Circuit are Steve Smith (Cool Cat Jaguar), Johnny Eekhout (Johnspeed Cobra Astra) in a great looking car, and Queenstown’s Patrick Seddon, in an Auby family owned Jonnesway Tools Jaguar.