And so another season begins... 

The 2012 Northern Regions racing season kicks off at the popular Zwartkops Raceway outside of Pretoria on Saturday 18 February.  

The drivers of the 250 Superkart brigade are raring to go with a number of brave souls having entered the race. A few more new entries are expected to join the 250 Superkart ranks later on in the season as well.

Pappas will be looking to defend his title in 2012... 

Veron Pappas (Graham Singer Racing PVP Superkart) will be determined to hold onto the title that he won in 2011 and will be going all out to defend his crown in 2012. In a change for the books, Pappas will be partnered by Tyron Davis (Graham Singer Racing PVP Superkart) for the new season. Davis finished the 2011 season on a high when he grabbed third position in the championship at the final event of the season. He will be a worthy team mate for the highly experienced Pappas. 

2011 runner up, Sean Moore (Ziegler Racing PVP Superkart) will no doubt be determined to claim the 2012 crown for himself as well and will be very ably supported by young Andrew Greenslade (Ziegler Racing / East Side Kustomz PVP Superkart). Greenslade has proven to be very quick in the past and if lady luck shines on him this year, he could very well threaten for a few more podium finishes this season. Moore will be hoping that his team mate will strengthen the results that this newly formed team will aim to achieve throughout the year. 

Eerik Horn (Johan Horn Transport PVP Rotax) showed moments of brilliance last season and should definitely be considered as a podium contender for the 2012 season. Former double champion Giles Moore (Ziegler Racing PVP Superkart) will be making a welcome return to Superkart racing and is expected to threaten for a podium position as well.  

2011 debutant Trevor Green (Super Tech Rotax Superkart) will be determined to improve on his sixth place finish in the 2011 championship and will be looking to achieve more top six results this season. Patrick Mc Gee (Rotax Stealth) looks set to return to a full season of racing this year and has already proven that his consistency in the past can bring him podium results.  

Matthew Gregory (Mech Spec Auto PVP Rotax Superkart) looks set to enter his first full season of competition after joining the series at the final event of the 2011 season. He is an unknown entity in the field and could very well cause a few upsets. Vincenzo Cassilo (V-Tek Service Centre Rotax Superkart) should be rejoining the field after only competing in a hand full of races last season. His consistency could also see him finish with a decent result. 

American expat Jeffrey Metter (Arteffects Lights Gas Gas Anderson Superkart) will make a welcome debut at the opening event of the season. He has a lot of experience in 250 Superkart racing, having raced in the United States for a number of years. He enters the event as the dark horse of the field as no one knows quite what to expect from this driver. His engine and chassis combination is also an unknown entity in South African 250 Superkart racing circles and he could very well pull off a big upset on the local boys.

Another unknown threat who will be entering the race as a guest driver for this particular event will be former Formula Ford and Production Car racer Steve Morris (Graham Singer Racing PVP Superkart). Morris has the reputation for being fast in almost anything that he drives and he too could very easily upset the establishment with a podium placing.

Looking to pick up where they left off – close racing at the final event of 2011...  

Report by: Greg Reilly