Mark Jones shows growing pace before late heartbreak at GR Legends Rally
TOYOTA GAZOO Racing South Africa (TGRSA) endured a frustrating end to an otherwise encouraging weekend at the inaugural GR Legends Rally, where motoring journalist Mark Jones and navigator Kes Naidoo looked set to score another strong finish before retiring on the final stage of Round 4 of the 2026 South African National Rally Championship.
Mark Jones and Kes Naidoo Toyota GR Yaris
Photo Credits Isa Plaatjes
The new event, held at the Soetdoring Venue on the outskirts of Tshwane, marked the crew’s third outing together in the developing Toyota GR Yaris rally programme. While the final result failed to reflect the progress made over the weekend, the team took plenty of positives from another valuable step in the car’s development.
Preparations were disrupted during Thursday’s shakedown when the crew encountered a gear linkage problem just a few hundred metres into their first run. The team, assisted by the local Toyota dealership, Godrich Toyota, repaired the linkage before carrying out further checks away from the official shakedown route, ensuring the GR Yaris was ready for the start of the rally.
Friday’s opening five stages presented a demanding introduction to the new event, with Jones and Naidoo settling into a steady rhythm while continuing to build confidence. By the overnight halt they were running 10th overall and fourth in NRC2, trailing the class leaders by just over two and a half minutes after completing all five stages cleanly.
“It was a very tough weekend for both man and machine,” said Jones. “The car is still evolving and I’m still learning. We just kept working away at it and focused on getting through every stage.”
Saturday brought further progress as the TGRSA crew steadily moved up the order. With one of the more demanding stages removed from the itinerary, Jones and Naidoo enjoyed a trouble-free run through the day, climbing to seventh overall and third in NRC2 after Stage 12. At that point they were just over 12 minutes behind the NRC2 leaders and on course to secure another class podium.
Unfortunately, the rally came to an abrupt end on the final stage. While negotiating a tight hairpin after a fast section, an over-rev during a downshift activated the engine’s protective systems, leaving the GR Yaris unable to restart. Despite assistance from nearby farmers, the crew was unable to continue and was forced to retire within sight of the finish after completing all but the final stage of the event.
“It was a bitter pill to swallow because we’d done all the hard work,” Jones reflected. “We’d worked our way into third in class with one stage to go, and everything on the car had been faultless after the shakedown repairs. Unfortunately, one small mistake was enough to end our rally, but that’s part of the challenge of national rallying. We’ll learn from it and come back stronger.”
Despite the disappointment of the late retirement, the GR Yaris once again demonstrated encouraging pace and reliability over the bulk of the event, while Jones and Naidoo continued to gain valuable experience in only their third rally together.
The 2026 South African National Rally Championship now moves to the Ermelo Rally in Mpumalanga, where Round 5 of the season will take place on 21 and 22 August. TGRSA will be aiming to convert the promise shown at the GR Legends Rally into another strong finish as development of the GR Yaris programme continues.
