Zwartkops Raceway provided a full day of competitive motorsport action this past Saturday during the midseason Extreme Festival powered by Coca-Cola. Marking the fourth round of the championship on the year's shortest day, the event saw several class title battles intensify significantly.
The event also heralded a new chapter in South African single-seater racing with the debut of the Investchem MSA4. Piloting these new, safer, locally-built chassis powered by turbocharged Volkswagen engines, the MSA4 field delivered three competitive races. KC Ensor-Smith, last season's Formula 1600 runner-up, secured victories in the opening two heats. He finished ahead of Shrien Naidoo, Renzo Ribeiro, Nicholas van Weely, and Mikel Bezuidenhout in Heat 1, and led Ribeiro, Adriaan Nel, Liam Polome, Karabo Malemela, and Bezuidenhout in Heat 2. Bezuidenhout then claimed victory in the reverse-grid final race, followed by Malemela, Polome, the charging overall winner Ensor-Smith, Ribeiro (named driver of the day), Nel, and Naidoo.
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In the South African Touring Cars, Keegan Campos took his BMW 128 to victory from pole position in the opening race. However, Michael van Rooyen in his Toyota Corolla strengthened his championship position with second place, ahead of Julian van der Watt (Golf), Nathi Msimanga (Corolla), Jagger Robertson (Golf), and Saood Variawa (Corolla). The reverse-grid second race required a restart after Campos and BMW teammate Andrew Schofield needed extraction from the Turn 1 gravel trap. Following repairs, Variawa executed a tactical drive to assist teammate van Rooyen into the lead for the win, further cementing van Rooyen's title advantage. Van der Watt finished third, ahead of Msimanga, the recovered Campos, Robertson, and Schofield. Van Rooyen secured the overall day's honours from Campos and van der Watt.
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Jonathan Mogotsi revitalised his SATC SupaCup championship challenge with a double victory from pole. Rookie teammate Jason Loosemore completed a factory 1-2 in the first race, aiding Mogotsi's points haul over championship leader Tate Bishop, Charl Visser, rookie Muhammad Wally (all in VW SupaPolos), and Dawie van der Merwe (Toyota SupaStarlet). Bishop managed to pass Loosemore to pressure Mogotsi in Race 2, but Mogotsi held firm to win again from Bishop, Loosemore, Visser, Nicolas Vostanis, and van der Merwe.
Local favourite Jonathan du Toit enjoyed a successful outing in the Extreme Supercars driven by Dunlop class, taking three wins in his Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO. Second places were shared by GT3 rivals Charl Arangies (Porsche GT3 R) and Gianni Giannoccaro (Nissan GTR R35 GT3). Class A competitors Kris Budnik (Dodge Viper), Ricky Giannoccaro (Mercedes AMG GT3), and Paul Hill (Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO 2) ensured six different supercar manufacturers featured in the top six positions. Wayne Roach took Class B honours in his Lamborghini Gallardo, while Elwyn Steenkamp and Uli Sanne shared the Class C wins in their BMW M4s.
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Rory Atkinson significantly altered the Astron Energy Polo Cup championship landscape with a clean sweep of wins from pole position. Mo Karodia, who arrived at Zwartkops with a substantial points lead, finished second in the first two races. However, a crash by Karodia at Turn 2 in Heat 3 caused a red flag to clear the resulting incident. He then spun out of the restarted race, costing him valuable points. Hannes Scheepers finished third in Race 1 behind Atkinson and Karodia, followed by Dhivyen Naidoo, Judd Bertholdt, and Shiren Rajpaul. Bertholdt, Roshaan Goodman, Rajpaul, and Scheepers completed the top positions in Race 2. Tyler Robinson challenged Atkinson closely in the final race, finishing ahead of Scheepers, Goodman, and Bertholdt. Wayne Masters dominated the Astron Energy Polo Masters category, with John Kruger, Derick Smalberger, and Mike Barbaglia contesting the remaining positions.
Clinton Seller continued his reign in the SunBet ZX 10 Masters, taking another double victory. He finished ahead of Damion Purificati, Class C winner Jayson Lamb, Hein McMahon, Adriaan van Dalen, Class B victor Graeme van Breda, Brian Bontekoning, and Keith Agliotti in the opener. Seller again led Purificati in Race 2, with van Breda third, followed by McMahon, Lamb, van Dalen, and Bontekoning. Jason Coetzee secured his expected win in the Toyota Gazoo GR86 Rookie Cup ahead of Kent Swartz. Nabil Abdool took both GR Yaris Media Cup races, while Devon Scott did the same in the GR Corolla Dealer Cup. Christopher Tait and Josh Moore each claimed a win in the Volkswagen Rookie Cup races, consistently finishing ahead of Mauro Da Luz and Uzair Khan.
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The Extreme Festival powered by Coca-Cola now moves to the Border Region for its fifth round. Competitors will tackle the renowned beachside East London Grand Prix Circuit on Saturday, 19 July. Meanwhile, Gauteng race fans can anticipate Regional Extreme Festival action at Red Star Raceway near Delmas this coming Saturday, 28 June.
Colin Windell for Colin-on-Cars in association with
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