MOTORING NEWS
A win for Variawa and Cazalet as well as a win for Toyota Gazoo Racing, as the two stormed to victory with just 78 seconds between them and their nearest competitor. The race was packed with action, drama and dust, but both driver and navigator showed enormous grit and determination to stay ahead and secure the win.
We caught up with Variawa to hear how it all unfolded.
ON THE VICTORY
How does it feel to take your very first SA Rally-Raid Championship victory at just 20 years old? It’ s amazing. It’ s been a long time coming, we’ ve been close so many times but it just didn’ t click. This weekend it did. It wasn’ t easy, we had a puncture on both days but on Saturday we had clean air, found a good rhythm and that made the difference. We pushed hard and clinched the win! I’ m really happy with my performance, my co-driver, the team and the car. We’ ve put in a lot of hard work over the past few weeks and it all paid off.
What went through your mind when you realised you had crossed the finish line as the overall winner? I had a feeling we’ d won. I knew the gap to the car ahead and we managed to catch him quickly on the second loop. When we got to the pits and saw the team cheering, we knew. It was amazing. I’ ve worked really hard for this, especially over the past year, and I was patient enough to wait for it.
ON TEAMWORK AND THE RACE ITSELF
How important was your partnership with your navigator, François Cazalet, in securing this victory? Your partnership with your co-driver has to be strong. I trust everything he says. Often you can’ t see the corner, you’ re relying on instinct
and his description from the road book. We’ re pushing 100 % all the time and don’ t always know what’ s coming next. Building that trust and confidence takes time, but it’ s vital.
Rally-raid is unpredictable, from dust to mechanicals to tough terrain. What was the most challenging part of the Vaal 400 for you? It was the speed. The event was very fast, mostly in 5th or 6th gear. That means if you make a small mistake, the time loss is big. We managed it well this weekend but in fast rallies, keeping mistakes to a minimum is everything.
How did you handle the pressure of racing against experienced names like Giniel de Villiers and Gareth Woolridge? I handle pressure quite well. Racing against big names was a shock at first but now I enjoy it. Competing against world champions and drivers I grew up watching is a great way to prove ourselves. We’ ve shown good results recently, including in Aragon where our team won and that gives us confidence going forward.
SEPTEMBER 2025 45 WORDS IN ACTION