Saturday at Zwartkops was something else. The third round of the National Extreme Festival went off like a firecracker on a crisp Highveld autumn day, and the Pretoria faithful packed the grandstands to soak it all in. But make no mistake: Toyota Gazoo Racing came to eat, and they didn't leave hungry.
In the Dealer Challenge, Paul de Vos made it another successful outing by taking both wins on the day. His combined time over the two heats stopped the clocks at 22 minutes 04,767 seconds, with his second race time of 10 minutes 04,846 seconds proving the quickest of the bunch. Marius Claasen and Werner Horn rounded out the podium after a close three?way fight that saw all three drivers finish within 11 seconds of each other. De Vos’s steady run of results gives him a stronger hold on the Dealer Challenge championship as the season reaches its middle stages.
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Over in the Media Challenge, Nabil Abdool kept his perfect run going with two more sprint victories, recording a total time of 22 minutes 04,443 seconds and a fastest lap of 10 minutes 05,507 seconds. Craig Nicholson stayed within touching distance throughout the afternoon, ending just six seconds behind, while Yolanda Lukhele put in a confident drive to celebrate her first podium finish of the season. Abdool’s clean sweep keeps him firmly in the driver’s seat for the title, with Nicholson still second overall and Lukhele moving up to third.
The GR86 Development Academy delivered the closest racing of the day. Connor Weston came out on top by less than three seconds over Emma Dowling and Kian Fussell, posting a combined time of 21 minutes 56,155 seconds and the event’s fastest lap at 10 minutes 00,.470 seconds. Weston’s double win pushes him ahead of Kobus Reyneke in the standings, while Dowling’s pace shows she is a genuine contender for the championship. Fussell’s steady form keeps him right in the mix as well.
Looking at the day’s numbers, Connor Weston ended as the fastest overall driver. The tightest margin came from the GR86 Academy, where just over two seconds separated first from third. Nabil Abdool remained unbeaten across all rounds so far. Drivers also found better grip in the second race, which helped most of the winners set their quickest laps later in the afternoon.
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The Dunlop Extreme Supercars bunch? Three races, three different winners. Proper chaos. First up, a chuffed Damian Hammond finally bagged his maiden victory in that Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo, pipping Jonathan du Toit’s Lamborghini Huracan and Charl Arangies’s Merc. Marius Jackson scooped Class A in his Audi R8. Race two saw du Toit flip the script on Arangies and Hammond, while Karah Hill showed the boys how it’s done in her Audi. Then Arangies wrapped the day with a win in the final race, with du Toit overall and Hammond taking the Index. Ricardo Giannoccaro’s Lambo ruled Class A, while Roy Obery’s Porsche, Mark du Toit’s classic Ford GT, and Uli Sanne’s BMW Z4M did the business in their classes.
Over in South African Touring Cars, pole-sitter Julian van der Watt played it cool in his Golf GTI, bagging full points in the first heat ahead of Michael van Rooyen’s Corolla. Keegan Campos (BMW 128ti) and Robert Wolk (Golf) got past KC Ensor-Smith’s Golf for third and fourth, with Andre Schofield’s BMW sixth. But race two? That was Schofield’s party—starting from reverse grid pole, he drove like a man possessed to take his maiden win, holding off Ensor-Smith, Wolk, van der Watt, Campos, and van Rooyen.
In SupaPolo, Jason Loosemore decided enough was enough. Double win off pole, and just like that, his title hopes got a proper jolt. Judd Bertholdt, Nikki Vostanis, and Tyler Robinson all finished ahead of his rival Rory Atkinson in race one. Then Jason checked out in race two, leaving Robinson in his dust after Atkinson parked it. That bumped Bertholdt to third, followed by Vostanis, David Franco, and Paulo Loureiro.
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But the real story of the day? Investchem MSA4, hands down. Shrien Naidoo’s car got hijacked on Friday—yes, you heard right—but the Durban lad still rocked up and stole pole. Then late call-up, former champ Troy Dolinschek, gave up his front-row spot to let title contender Mikel Bezuidenhout start second. Mikel led early, only for championship rival Aqil Alibhai to blast past, while Karabo Malemela snatched third from Naidoo. Race two turned into a taxi rank: Bezuidenhout kept his nose clean as Naidoo and Alibhai got tangled, then Mikel held off Malemela for the win while Dolinschek and Alibhai charged from the back to third and fourth.
Polo Cup? Hannes Scheepers made it three overall wins in a row—until Charl Smalberger finally broke the dentist’s six-race winning streak in the final heat. Rookie Mauro Da Luz took second in race one, Jayden Goosen held off Smalberger for third. Shrien Rajpaul beat Da Luz and Smalberger to second behind Scheepers in race two, before Smalberger fought off Da Luz to win the last one, with Scheepers sweating under pressure from Goosen and Rajpaul. Wayne Masters took Polo Masters overall, but only after race two winner Derick Smalberger stopped while leading the final.
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On two wheels, Damion Purificati kept bossing SunBet ZX10 Masters, winning race one ahead of Hein McMahon, James Barson, Trevor Westman, Henk Kruger, and Keith Agliott. Race two? Same top four, with Pieter Delport fifth and AD van Dalen sixth. In the Toyota Gazoo Cup, Kobus Reynecke upset rookie Connor Weston in race one, with Nabil Abdool taking Media honours and Paul de Vos winning Dealer class. Weston bounced back to beat Emma Dowling in race two, where de Vos and Abdool doubled up.
Last but not least, Volkswagen Rookie Cup: Jack Moore beat Sebastian Dias, Sebastian Venkov, and log leader Luke Hill in heat one. Then Dias turned the tables on Venkov, Hill, and Max Corbett in heat two.
So where to next? The National Extreme Festival heads down to Gqeberha’s Aldo Scribante on Saturday 27 June for the midwinter midseason showdown. Don’t miss it.
Colin Windell for Colin-on-Cars in association with
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