The all-new Ranger that was designed and built by Neil Woolridge Motorsport (NWM) to the standards set by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) had a dream debut with first and third places in the Mpumalanga 400 hosted in Dullstroom.
Lance Woolridge and co-driver Elvéne Vonk (#334) powered their way to the fastest time on last Friday’s opening qualifying sprint, and then went on to secure the overall win on Saturday afternoon, giving the new Ford Castrol Cross Country Team maximum points.
Gareth Woolridge and Boyd Dreyer joined their team-mates on the FIA podium in third place.
In the middle was Hillcrest-based multiple SA National Rally Champion, Guy Botterill, who showed his class by finishing second in the FIA Class and third overall with navigator Brett Cummings (7:57,06) in only his second SACCS outing, following a warm-up at the Barberspan 400.
Botterill agreed to stand in for Toyota Gazoo Racing team-mate Henk Lategan, who is still growing back the collar bone he snapped during a spectacular tail-over-nose roll in the Dakar.
 |
| Ford blue dominated the podium in Dullstroom. |
An elated Lance Woolridge said after the race: “It was a really tough event, but the car handled everything we threw at it, and I’ve been very impressed with how it performed.”
Brother Gareth Woolridge was equally enthralled by the pace of the new EcoBoost-powered Ford Castrol NWM Ranger.
“Having both Rangers on the podium at the first race is amazing for a brand new vehicle that is a completely new design,” Gareth said.
“The entire team put in a monumental effort, working late nights and weekends to get the cars ready in time, and to back this up with first and third is a great accomplishment for everyone. “We weren’t quite on the pace on Friday, but managed to go quicker on Saturday and felt really good in the car.
“We hit a tree on the first loop on Saturday morning and were worried that it would end our race, but the Ranger is tough and only picked up some minor bodywork damage, so we were pleased to finish third.”
More Fords at the finish
Ford had further reason to celebrate, as all four NWM-supported privateer Class T Rangers that entered the Mpumalanga 400 completed the arduous event.
Malcolm and Frans Kock (#T04) finished second, ahead of Christo Rose and Arno Olivier (#T58) in third — a commendable performance considering it was the latter crew’s first outing in the Production
Vehicle category after moving up from the side-by-side class for this season.
Wors Prinsloo and Andre Vermeulen (#T41) brought their NWM Ford Ranger V8 home in fourth place, followed by Bernard and Minette Johnstone (#T22) in their first race in the Ranger.
The recently launched Ford NWM Development Team of Wiseman Gumede and Fanifani Meyiwa used the Mpumalanga 400 as an opportunity to learn the ins and outs of cross country racing, under the guidance of team mentor Ward Huxtable, in preparation for their upcoming first race.
Win in Dullstroom, sell in the world
The rocky, often rain-soaked 450 km Dullstroom route is well-known for taxing cars and drivers to the breakdown point. This year was no different, with 18 of the 41 entries either limping or being towed back to the bivouac, thanks to broken side shafts, gearboxes and electrical problems.
Apart from that bounce off a tree, the FIA Fords built by NWM suffered no problems. Powered by a 3,5-litre twin-turbo V6 EcoBoost engine instead of the well-loved but thirsty V8, these were the first vehicles to compete in South Africa under the FIA’s new turbocharged petrol regulations for international cross country racing — and one of the first in the world.
 |
| The first turbo-boosted petrol cross country racer that meets FIA specs in Africa. |
This makes the two podiums and four finishes in Dullstroom the best possible advertising for Woolridge, whose business in “Sleepy Hollow” builds and exports off-road cars to teams around the world.
For NWM team principal Neil Woolridge, achieving first and third place in the premier FIA-class with the all-new Ranger is nothing short of a dream result, having started designing the new vehicle in 2019.
“It has been a long road, but this makes it all worth it,” Neil said.
“Winning first time out with our Ranger V8 in 2013 and now with our new Ranger is a very special achievement.
“We were the first team internationally to design and develop a new car based on the FIA’s new turbo petrol regulations, and although Covid-19 delayed our launch by about nine months, we have been working exceptionally hard behind the scenes to produce a package that is capable of winning,” Neil added.
“What’s really exciting for me is that there is still a lot more to come, and this has set the groundwork for our next development steps with this car.”
Mpumalanga 400 overall results
FIA class
(Ford Ranger) 7:51,12
(Toyota Hilux) 7:57,06
(Ford Ranger) 7:58,38
Class T
(Toyota Hilux) 7:54,58
(Ford Ranger) 8:13,47
(Ford Ranger) 8:45,30
Specials (Class A and Class G)
(Bat Venom) 7:54,50
(Can-Am Maverick) 8:20,58
(Can-Am Maverick) 8:32,15
