For inland motorsport enthusiasts, a four-month drought will end at the Zwartkops Raceway near Pretoria on Saturday, when the venue will host the opening round of this year’s Regional Extreme Festival.
The programme will accommodate eight car disciplines, with a total of 150 drivers scheduled to face the starter.
111 GT, Sports and Saloon Car
Top billing will belong to the Digit FMS 111 GT, Sports and Saloon Car category, with reigning champion Wouter Roos (Origen Oil Volkswagen Golf GTI) kicking off his title defence.
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His closest challengers should include Dirk Lawrence (JDM Tuning Honda Ballade), Marius Truter (Strategic Gear & Diff Volkswagen Polo), Rob Clark (Container Force Honda Ballade) and Wayne Lebotschy (Shield Volkswagen Golf GTI).
Also expected to challenge for the win will be Mike O’Sullivan (All Things Motoring Honda Ballade), Wayne Robb (Digit FMS Ford Focus ST), Mark du Toit (TAR BMW Z4), Lucas Bezuidenhout (Pta Noord Lexus IS200), Melanie Spurr (Origen Oil Volkswagen Golf GTI) and Lenard Archer (ACD Welkom BMW 335i).
V8 Supercar
Another defending title holder will be Warren Lombard, taking on the rest of the Dunlop V8 Supercar contingent in his Pepboys Automotive Ford Mustang.
Chasing him will be drivers like Franco di Matteo (Matteo Ford Mustang), Terry Wilford (Johnspeed Creations Ford Mustang) and Thomas Reib (Café 9 Automotive Chevrolet Corvette),
Also in the running will be Steve Herbst (Prei Instrumentation Chevrolet Corvette), Sam Dahl (ArcProTech Ford Falcon), Wayne Spicer (Wellness Group Chevrolet Corvette), Larry Wilford (Jet Bearings Holden Commodore) and Alan Ryan (Wellness Group Chevrolet Corvette).
BMW/// M Performance
A total of 60 cars will attend in the BMW/// M Performance Parts category, divided into groups for turbocharged and naturally aspirated vehicles.
Heading up the Turbo Cup heats will be current champion Renier Smith (Fast Development M3).
He will face off against people like Bob Neil (Delmon Mining M3), Sav Gualteiri (SavSpeed 340i), Kashen Naicker (Megastar M3 GT), Anton Pommershein (Eagle Granite M3), Lenard Archer (ACD Welkom 335i) and Mischal Singh (Autonishe M3).
Defending category champion Bernard de Gouveia (De Gouveia Accountants M3) will top the list of 36 normally aspirated cars.
He should be challenged by people like Dawie Olivier (International Race Supplies 325i), Andre van Vuuren (Curvent International 320i) and Philip Mostert (Mosco Specialised Contractors M3).
Other contenders will include Stefano Cavalieri (Pablo Clark 330 Ci), Olerato Sekudu (RamPage M3), Richard Germholtz (NextRep Fitness 320i) and Chloe Stuart (AutoZone 330i).
Formula Vee
The DOE CIM Lubricants Formula Vee single seaters could provide the event’s closest spectacle.
In the running for victory will be the likes of Gert van der Berg (DOE Parts Rhema 2), Theo Vermaak (DOE Parts Forza), Peter Hills (Mangaza MXTwo Rhema 2) and Vaughn Hills (Mangaza MXTwo Rhema 2),
Also in the mix will be Brandon Hills (Mangaza MXTwo Rhema 2), Jaco Schriks (Cube Coatings Rhema 2), MD Bester (Rhema 2), Kyle Watt (Rhema 2) and Anton van der Merwe (VDM Orthotics HR-1).
VW Challenge
The largely Polo campaigned ATE VW Challenge will be fronted by occupants like Stuart Mack (AutoZone), Chris Davison (GSi Generators), Christopher Tait (King Price), Keegan Nathan (Nathan’s Motorsport), Josh Moore (Worx), Dewald Theron (Mweza Trans) and Jonathan Konig (Northern Bolt).
SuperHatch
Rounding out the day’s activities will be SuperHatch races, with pre-event favourites to include Mark du Toit (TAR BMW 118i), Leon Bredenkamp (Honda Civic), Carel Stols (Toyota Etios), George Aldrich (Peugeot 206 GTI), Ishmael Baloyi (TAR Honda Civic) and Quintin Koster (Audi A3).
When and how much?
The Zwartkops gates will be open from 07h00, with qualifying for all categories early in the morning. Racing proper will commence at 09h30.
Admission will cost R150 per adult and R110 per student, with kids under the age of 12 going in for free.
Food and drink will be on sale or you may take your own, and you are welcome to set up your gazebo and braai on any of the grass banks.
Everybody is welcome to visit the pits on foot throughout the day, and the circuit’s Mini Moke trains will run between the pit gate and spectator areas all the time.
You could choose to go for a Drift Car passenger ride on the skidpan, and there will be a flea market, kiddies entertainment, live music and a DJ.
To find out more, call the circuit office at 021 384 2299 or visit www.zwartkops.co.za.
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