The By-Line

A Sports Opera that follows the lives of the F-X racers that participate
in high octane races every Monday night in the City of Ngelosi.

Tuesday, June 30, 2020

May 25th - Season 1

The Final Stretch of the Highway

And just like that, we have finally reached the final episode of Monday Night Fuel. It feels just like yesterday that we were welcoming you to the premiere of what would become a true cornerstone of Sports Entertainment.

Image sourced from hiclipart.com
However, you can fear not that this is the season finale because the truth is, it is not. That distinction has been to the biggest pay-per-view of the year on the Formula-X calendar; the Granddaddy of them all; the Main event of Motorsport; the Biggest Finale of Sports Entertainment: THE FORMULA-X GRAND PRIX.


In just six days time, on the 31st of May, the world will witness an event that will be the first of its kind in the world of motorsport.

While the centrepiece of the event will be the racecard, it has become known that there will be a lot more going on at the event. As revealed on F-X social media, there will be a music line up (see Turning Up the Volume Up at the Grand Prix) as well a slew of special guests, local celebrities galore.

It is an exciting time for Formula-X and for the first time since the series debuted in September, the Series is not getting hate from the premiere motorsport series as when one of the leading mechanics from Auto 1 was asked about “that South African F series,” they responded by saying “they must be doing something right because they’ve got the whole nation looking at them.

While it may not be high praise, it was definitely considered a step forward by members of the Club Committee and F-X fan base as well.

Tuesday, June 16, 2020

May 18th - Season 1


13 Days to the Crown Jewel of Sports Entertainment

Thirteen days, that’s all that’s left… that’s all that’s left until the biggest PPV of Formula-X and possibly of sports entertainment in the Southern Hemisphere.
Image sourced from hiclipart.com


This is the most recent discovery that F-X reporters have managed to uncover. While events like WrestleMania will forever be considered the greatest event in sports entertainment, it turns out that the event has never really ventured south of the equator and quite frankly… we don’t see it doing so either.

However this is not a bad thing, for them or for us. For them, professional wrestling will always be big in the northern hemisphere be it in America, Mexico or Japan. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for  the Southern hemisphere.

This would be where the F-X Series benefits. With almost no other competition coming even close to matching Formula-X’s unmatched popularity, the F-X Series can firmly claim that they are the biggest sports entertainment brand in the Southern Hemisphere.

So it is by this virtue that Formula-X has no qualms in calling it’s biggest pay-per-view of the year, “the crown jewel of sports entertainment.”

It must be said that getting to this point marks a high achievement for the F-X Series with some even saying that getting to host such an event is to the F-X Series what winning the F-X Crown is to the F-X racers. There is just no bigger achievement.

It has been a long journey for showrunners Terrance “Moodswing” Moodley and Glenwood Jacobs dating all the way back to the Era Before all the way to these final days leading up to their flagship presentation.


May 11th - Season 1

20 Days until the Main Event of Motorsport


There are only 20 days left until it all comes to a head and as such, there feels like no better time to recap the journey of the two titans that will do battle upon the asphalt of THE FORMULA-X GRAND PRIX.
Image sourced from clipart-library.com

When John Kloof first entered the Fuel Speedway, he made it clear that the only reason he got into The Big Boot was to provide for his family. And it has been a long road for the family man.

It wasn’t long before he found himself at odds with playboy and self-proclaimed Casanova Jim Kieck who he rivalled with over a difference of opinion when it came to having women in their lives: one cherished the ground she walked on, the other, lived for the moment. This feud would culminate in the first ever One-KM Derby.

John would then work his way to the top of the F-X Series by first winning the Scramble Race and then battling Solo and Stevie to keep his newly won status. This would eventually bring him face to face with the King of Formula-X.

Mandla Xulu wasn’t always the top F-X racer that we know and love today. Once upon a time, he was but a humble politician. But when the F-X Series brought new life to the City of Ngelosi that he called home, he wanted nothing more than to be involved.

Mandla’s debut is to this day one of the most talked about. Entering the scene by challenging then King Thorne directly, Mandla would soon prove that the only thing faster than his political mind, was his engine, The Shosholoza.

Mandla would make history that has stood the test of time by capturing the F-X Crown within 2 months of his debut at The Scramble and has ruled with a mighty golden fist wrapped around his Crown ever since.

Come 31st of May, these two will meet in what is sure to be an epic race that will redefine what a feature race is in the F-X Series.


Tuesday, June 9, 2020

May 4th - Season 1

27 Days until the Granddaddy of Them All 
Image sourced from clipart-library.com

We are 8 days removed from Sunday Night Easter and we hope you had a splendid long weekend. As fans were quick to notice, Monday Night Fuel did not broadcast last Monday due to that Monday falling on a holiday. Unlike with the pushing back of  Sunday Night Easter, the  hiatus of Fuel last week went unadvertised.

And while the fan base was disappointed to say the least that they wouldn’t get to watch the fallout of Sunday Night Easter immediately, they weren’t unhappy enough not to show up in the 1000s this past Monday as the Fuel Speedway had nearly 4000 people in attendance.

There was no dispute that the number one reason that fans were eager to see  more of the Formula-X Series was because the biggest F-X PPV is just around the corner.

“The Granddaddy of the them all,” is what they’re calling it. And what a
phrase to live up to. THE FORMULA-X GRAND PRIX shares that nickname with both U.S.’s Rose Bowl Game and of course, WrestleMania. And it is as close to the Super bowl of Motorsport that you’re ever going to get. Walking into the event  with the Formula-X Crown is none other than King Mandla Xulu fresh off his victory at Sunday Night Easter.

The past 8 days has also seen the promotion of the event pick up as more and  more adverts, posters, banners and billboards have gone up featuring feature- racers like King Mandla, Solo, Stevie, Thorne and Kloof as well as popular rising stars Touch Mkhize, Penny Duchess of Drag and Brenda Koek.

The Commissioners of Fuel haven’t been slouch-ing either as there’s been an unrelenting amount radio broadcast time spent on promoting the event . On the TV front, the Commissioners have relied on a growing number of TV spots rather than popular talk shows as they don’t to diminish the work of Touch’s talk show or the F-X reporters.

Monday, June 1, 2020

April 20th - Season 1

Back by Popular Demand

It was six days before SUNDAY NIGHT EASTER and not a creature stirred except… the entire Formula-X roster.

While the name of the pay-per-view was released without any fanfare, we have been eagerly waiting to find out more about where the racers would be racing.

Like the rest of the fan base, we were expecting news of a brand new circuit that we’ve never  seen before, we were as shocked as the fans when the Commissioners  of Monday Night Fuel announced that by popular demand, the track for SUNDAY NIGHT EASTER will be the same track from the first ever Formula-X pay-per-view: The Falling Boot Track.

Judging by the immense amount of commentary from the fan base, it is clear that absolutely nobody saw this coming. It was also clear that absolutely everybody  is completely and utterly excited by the announcement.


We managed to get together with Moodswing and find out why the members of the Committee were reusing  an old track and going against the norm.

“Well it’s like we advertised, it’s being brought back by popular demand. But besides that, we felt that the F-X Series wasn’t as big back then as it was today and there are some new fans who haven’t seen the magic that these racers did on that circuit. So we’re bringing it back.”

And while we love the fact that the Commissioners of Fuel are doing this for the fans, one fan realized that it also created one very distinct advantage: the King has never competed on that circuit which the #1 Claimant has. Could this be the element that puts an end to the King’s illustrious reign?

Tuesday, May 26, 2020

April 13th - Season 1

The Box Office Marathon

While many people doubted that the race between King Mandla and Touch Mkhize would amount to much fan fare considering that it’s a rivalry that seemed to have come out of nowhere, it seems those doubts have been put to rest.

It was one of the fans on F-X social media that started it when he said that “this race will probably be the most business-centered race of the entire series since it’s not about entertaining disputes but rather about which one of them is capable of selling more tickets.” From this, the interest grew like wildfire.
Fans have now been waiting eagerly as to how these two powerful drawers would try to get the edge this past Monday. With Touch and his talk show and Mandla and his political arena, the Formula-X fandom was abuzz with anticipation as to how these two would collide before the race.

Image sourced from clipart-library.com
However the race itself hasn’t gone under the radar as the odds have been placed and they are heavily stacked against the claimant. However those in defence of Touch have compared Touch to Eddie Guerrero — who defeated a champion main eventer to become a main eventer himself.

This online debate did not go unnoticed by Moodswing and Glenwood Jacobs who were definitely interested in seeing how much the race would make in the box office with Moodswing declaring on F-X social media, “this isn’t a box office race. It’s a box office marathon.” He also said that the fan base would definitely get to see the King and his claimant clash on the following weeks of Monday Night Fuel.

While this certainly got the pop he wanted, with this past Monday on Fuel, we can say that he definitely delivered.


Tuesday, May 19, 2020

April 6th - Season 1

Image sourced from clipart-library.com

Highway to the Grand Prix

Welcome back ladies and gentlemen and we hope you had one hell of a break because hell is taking a backseat for what Formula-X has in store for you for the next 8 weeks.

It’s almost Easter which means it’s time to check your faith and make sure you believe because for what we’re about to tell you, disbelief will be the order of the day.

As you’re well aware by now, the biggest pay-per-view of the year is right around the corner and it’s called THE FORMULA-X GRAND PRIX. And it has officially been announced that we are indeed on the road to the GRAND PRIX.

We also found out in the biggest way possible that preparations for this event are under way when a huge billboard was mantled right at a down town intersection announcing the upcoming event, thus revealing the mystery of this big marketing project.

It looks like everything is beginning to come together for this event but before we get to that pay-per-view, we have to go through another. For the first time ever, the ‘Commissioners of Fuel’ released the name of the upcoming PPV: SUNDAY NIGHT EASTER just 1 episode after the previous PPV.

After the announcement on social media regarding the highway to the Grand Prix, Moodswing followed up with the reveal of SUNDAY NIGHT EASTER saying that there were no more punches being pulled as they were barreling towards their flagship PPV and they don’t want people wondering about SUNDAY NIGHT EASTER.


Despite all the major reveals regarding the premiere  PPV of the Formula-X calendar year, the hungry fans still wanted more: they wanted to know what the circuit will look like.