FROM COUCH TO COMPETITION

In the sixth entry to 'Diary of an Aspiring Racer', Kyle Kock put his foot to the floor in one of the 2025 GR Cup's most dominant performances

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Knowing that the National Extreme Festival would return to two circuits at the end of the season was something in which I found solace earlier this year. First up, Killarney International Raceway, my “home” circuit, and where I made my racing debut along with everyone else running in the Media Challenge of the Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa GR Cup in March.

The opening performance in the pre-facelift manual GR Yaris had surprised even me, taking two second positions in class and securing second overall on my first ever race weekend. And since that outing, podium finishes – bar the fourth round DNF at Zwartkops – have been the order of the day.

Many would be happy to do that well in a debut race season, but the thought of Media Challenge championship leader Nabil Abdool of SuperSport taking a clean sweep of victories this year didn't sit well with me. So, I knew that my best chance of upsetting the apple cart would be at Killarney, where I first set foot with CAR for a Performance Shootout back in 2008. I had my work cut out for me, though. Plus, there was the added pressure of being two points behind Phuti Mpyane of TimesLive, whom I desperately wanted to leapfrog to regain second place overall in the championship.

Rotation is everything

Like any all-wheel drive sportscar, the GR Yaris can be pushed into understeer if driven incorrectly. Whether due to mechanical sympathy or naivety, or a combination of the two, I stubbornly held on to the belief that I could use the GR Yaris' torque band to drive out of Castrol Corner (turn 2) in third gear. But during the first race I realised that, just after braking, as I turned in, I could engage second and the car would turn on its own axis and point me out for maximum exit speed.

Consistency is key