Zwartkops loading for Regional Extreme Festival season opener

The 2023 Regional Extreme Festival series will kick off at the Zwartkops Raceway near Pretoria this Saturday, with seven separate racing disciplines catering for more than 160 competitors.

On the menu

Heading up proceedings will be two races for the PABAR VW Challenge brigade, with 42 contenders to face the starter.

Reigning champion Rory Atkinson (BHIT Polo), will defend his title against the likes of Wayne Masters (Performance Masters Polo), Bevin Masters (CPS Warehouse Polo), Mike Barbaglia (PABAR Polo), Dean Ross (Norbrake Polo), Pierluigi Muzzulini (FSS Polo), Elna Croeser (ATE Polo), Waldie Meintjies (VW Polo) and Miguel Dias (Performance Polo). 

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In the Car Care Clinic 111 Sport and Saloon Car races, winning favourites must include Louis Scholtz (Car Care Clinic Volkswagen Golf GTI), Wayne Masters (Performance Masters Volkswagen Polo), George Economides (Wealth Avenue Volkswagen CitiGolf), Bob Neil (Delmon Mining Ford Focus), Wouter Roos (Car Care Clinic Volkswagen Golf) and Melanie Spurr (Car Care Clinic Volkswagen Polo).

Karel Stoltz (Pta Noord Toyota Etios), Jonathan du Toit (TAR Honda Civic), Francis Aldrich (Opel Corsa), André de Lange (Roofsure Volkswagen Golf), Trishan Govender (TAR Honda Civic) and Ishmael Baloyi (TAR Honda Civic) should be front runners in the Car Care Clinic SuperHatch races.

The day’s quickest lap times should be set during the Silvercup races, with winning favourites people like Marius Jacobs (AAA Opel Tigra Spaceframe), Stiaan Kriel (Volkswagen Golf), Ishmael Peck (Volkswagen Golf), Cyril Jacobs (Volkswagen Corrado Spaceframe), Karel Stoltz (Rotrix Mazda RX-7), Andre Needham (Volkswagen Polo) and Giulio Airaga (Desco Opel Tigra Spaceframe).

Single seater enthusiasts will also be catered for. The two CIM Lubri Fuel Formula Vee races should provide incredibly close dicing, with top contenders to include Peter Hills (Mangaza Rhema), Jaco Schrikz (Cubed Coatings Rhema), Lendl Jansen (Bull Security Rhema), Shaun van der Linde (Truck City Forza), Kyle Watt (Mangaza Rhema), Michael Kernick (Tasman) and Brandon Hills (Mangaza Rhema).

A varied field of Formula M and Formula Libre cars will tackle the Monoposto heats, with frontrunners expected to be Lushen Ramchander (Liqui Moly Forza Super Vee), Herman Krige (Formula M), Damien Archer (Formula GTI), Blane de Meillon (Fire Break Sting), Allen Meyer (Swift), Hylton Morrow (Chaplins Formula M), Johan Botha (Mygale Formula Ford) and Didier Diedericks (Formula M).

How to get in

The Zwartkops gates will be open from 07h00 with racing scheduled to start at 09h00.

As always, everybody is invited to visit the pits on foot at any time, with the circuit’s two Mini Moke trains running between the pit gate and spectator areas all day.

The pit area will feature a beer tent, car displays, food stalls, live music and a kiddie’s park with clowns, face painters, stilt walkers and balloon artists.

Admission will cost R130 per adult and R90 per students, with kids under the age of 12 going in for free. To find out more, visit www.zwartkops.co.za or call the circuit office at 012 384 2299.