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National Extreme Festival starts coastal visit on a red-hot note
First of two back-to-back races away from the highveld drew a capacity crowd, and action aplenty.
Anthony Pretorius drove his Toyota Corolla brilliantly to take his first Touring Car race victory at the Aldo Scribante circuit on Saturday. Picture: Brandspotential.
A large crowd, brilliant on-track action and great weather typified Saturday’s fourth National Extreme Festival round at the Aldo Scribante Raceway outside Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape.
Touring Cars
Topping proceedings were two South African Touring Car races, with 19 cars on the grid, and fluctuating fortunes.
Pole-sitter and early leader Robert Wolk (BMW 128ti) ran out of track halfway around the first lap and dropped down the field.
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Then Nathi Msimanga set the category’s quickest lap time in his works Toyota Corolla at one min 02.725 sec, before outbraking himself, sliding across the track and thumping the privateer Corolla of Anthony Pretorius.
That left Julian van der Watt to win in his Volkswagen Golf GTI ahead of Michael van Rooyen (Toyota Corolla), Saood Variawa (Toyota Corolla), Wolk, Andrew Schofield (BMW 128ti) and a recovering Pretorius.
Starting from pole position, Pretorius drove brilliantly to win race two, despite strong pressure from the rest of the pack.
Wolk finished second, followed by van Rooyen, Msimanga, Variawa and van der Watt.
SupaCup
Tate Bishop (Toyota Starlet) won the first SupaCup race ahead of Jonothan Mogotsi (Volkswagen SupaPolo), Keegan Campos (Volkswagen SupaPolo) and Jason Campos (Volkswagen Supapolo).
Charl Visser (Volkswagen SupaPolo) took race two from Keegan Campos, Bishop and Jason Campos.
Supercars
Arnold Neveling (Audi R8 GT3) won both G&H Transport Extreme Supercar races ahead of Stuart White (Lamborghini Huracan), Jonathan du Toit (Lamborghini Huracan) and Xolile Letlaka (Lamborghini Huracan).
In the process, Neveling also set the day’s quickest lap time of 55.466 seconds in race one.
Single-seaters
Youngster K.C Ensor-Smith (Mygale) won the first Investchem F1600 heat from Karabo Malemala (Mygale), Jason Coetzee (Mygale) and Syabonga Mankonkwana (Mygale).
Ensor-Smith won race two as well, followed by Jagger Robertson (Mygale), Coetzee and Malemala.
Polo Cup
Jason Loosemore won the first Astron Energy Polo Cup race from Nathan Victor, Kyle Visser and Hannes Scheepers.
Loosemore repeated this with victory in race two, this time ahead of Ethan Coetzee, Mohammed Kanodia and Jeandre Marais.
Two-wheels
The opening SunBet Kawasaki ZX10 Masters race was won by Damion Purificati, followed over the line by Trevor Westman, David Enticot and Graeme van Breda.
Enticot made it a double in race two, leading home Purificati, van Breda and Westman.
The experimental new VW Rookie Cup races for school kids drew seven entries and huge interest. Race one went to Dhyven Naidoo, followed by Jayden Goosen, Judd Bertholdt and Uzair Khan.Goosen won race two from Bertholdt, Khan and Naidoo.
Still at the coast
The championship continues its coastal visit next month at the East London Grand Prix circuit on 27 July.
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