Alfy Cox is the SAGMJ Motor Sportsman of the Year
Off road motorcycling legend Alfie Cox, winner of the production vehicle category of last year�s Absa Off Road Car Championship, is the 2005 Bridgestone/Guild of Motoring Journalists Motor Sportsman of the Year.
Cox, who was honoured by the country�s motoring journalism fraternity at a function in Johannesburg tonight, became the second motor sportsman to win the national off road championship on two wheels and four when he and co-driver Ralph Pitchford took four victories and two second places last year in their Proudly South African Nissan Hardbody.
The 43-year-old KTM motorcycle dealer from KwaZulu Natal has won more national motor sport titles than any other competitor and currently has 25 to his name, including 13 off road motorcycle, 10 enduro motorcycle and two off road car championships.
He was also recognised for his typically gutsy third place in the 2005 Dakar Rally, his fifth top-five finish in seven Dakars. It turned out to be his final Dakar as he has now moved to the car category and he will be remembered as one of the world�s legendary marathon motorcycle riders.
Merit awards were received by the three runners-up.
- Hudson Kennaugh, the 2004 SA superbike champion, was recognized for winning the international Suzuki Cup against some of the best Suzuki super bike riders in the world and for still always being a contender for top honours in the SA superbike championship, although he was unable to contest all the rounds and finished the season in third place.
- Wesleigh Orr won the 2004 Rotax Max World Finals in the Canary Islands in January 2005 and following this up by winning the 2005 Rotax Max World Finals in Malaysia in November 2005, thus becoming the first driver to win the World Finals twice in the six year history of this international karting competition. The 17-year-old also won the Italian Open Rotax Max Championship.
- Wayne Taylor, team owner and driver with Max Angelelli of the Sun Trust Racing Pontiac Riley, won the Grand American Rolex Series championship. The team's successes included victories at the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona, the Grand Prix of Miami, the Porsche 250 at Barber, Birmingham, the CompUSA 200 and the Crown Royal 250, both a Watkins Glen.
Winner of the Colin Watling Award for special achievement in motor sport (other than race results) was the late Dave Clapham. Clapham, who died in October last year at the age of 74, was honoured for a lifetime contribution to South African motor sport.
He was a talented and versatile competitor and an innovative administrator who introduced to South Africa production car racing (forerunner of Gp N), Formula Vee, Formula Ford, the Sunshine Series Driver to Europe Award � which launched Jody Scheckter�s international career � and touring cars.
Merit awards were presented to two runners-up, Beaulah Schoerman and Glyn Hall
.
- Ms Schoeman was recognised for a lifetime of selfless contribution to motor sport and achieving prominence globally as a woman in the highest echelons of motor sport administration. She is president of the African Motorcycle Union and is the first president of the recently formed FIM Women in Motorcycling Commission. She completed 40 years� of service to SA motor sport on February 1.
- Glyn Hall is the quiet genius who is the mastermind behind Nissan�s extraordinary success in motor sport over the past nine years � four consecutive touring car driver and manufacturer championships (1997 to 2000) and now five successive off-road driver, co-driver and manufacturer championships (2001 to 2005).
Under his direction, Nissan Motorsport designed and developed the all-conquering Proudly South African Nissan Hardbody, adopted by Nissan Motor of Japan to represent the manufacturing giant in the Dakar Rally.
6 April 200