 Minnaar is currently the most prolific winner among male professional downhill mountain bike racers, with 21 world cup career victories.Greg first started to get noticed as a world class downhill racer at the age of 17, in 1999, racing select World Cups (including one in his home country of South Africa, in Stellenbosch) on a local shop team, aboard a Kona Stab Dee-Lux bike with a Marzocchi Monster T. fork.In 2000, he was picked up as a junior by British international team Animal Orange, which used Orange frames (222 for downhill and Ms. Isle for dual slalom) and RockShox suspension.