Cars line up on the starting grid at Red Star Raceway during Round 4 of the BMW M Performance Parts Race Series on 14 July. Picture: www.racepics.co.za
The BMW M Performance Parts Race Series rolled out its biggest field to date at Red Star Raceway near Delmas last Saturday and did not disappoint its growing fan base with two pulsating heats of racing.
No less than 38 cars roared onto the track for qualifying early on the autumn morning and Sav Gualtieri and Adrian Dalton soon mesmerised everyone with their speed. The Italian veteran put his monster SavSpeed BMW F30 335i V8 on pole with a comfortable margin to Dalton’s Xtra Shoes and Clothing BMW E46 M3 CSL. William Einkamerer (BTAS BMW E92 335i) and Fabio Fedetto (BMW F82 M4) completed the Class A grid.
Young Jagger Robertson (Big Boss Auto/Liqui Moly/Viking Mining BMW E46 M3) led the Class B field, with Andreas Meier (#TrainedAmateurs BMW E36 STC) and Nicholas van Zyl (Black Jack Pawn & Bargain BMW E36 328i Turbo) right behind him.
In Class C Matthew Wadeley took pole in his Groupworx BMW E36 M3, sporting a welcome colourful new look. Old sparring partner Renier Smith (BMW E36 M3) was next up.
Shane Grobler (Mayfair Gearbox BMW E30 330i) headed Nicholas Herbst (GreenHouse Solar BMW E90 330i) and Varish Ganpath (Prodigy BMW E46 330ci Turbo) in Class D.
In Class E, Bernard de Gouveia (de Gouveia Accountants BMW E46 330 cs) gave his new machine the perfect debut by taking pole ahead of Nicholas Fischer (InSide Active Group BMW E36 328i) and the evergreen Mike Grobler (BMW E46 328i).
With a host of new names on the grid the scene was set for an exciting day’s racing.
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Off they went for heat 1 late in the morning and Gualtieri and Dalton were soon at each other’s throats setting a furious pace at the front. Einkamerer gave chase with Fedetto falling into the clutches of Robertson and Meier and the trio were soon all over each other.
The young teenager was passed by the German, but regained the lead in Class B only to relinquish it again at the end of the eight laps.
Behind them Salvi Gualtieri (Savspeed / Eataly Foods BMW E36 328i Turbo) and Carlo Garbini (Kimbo Coffee BMW E46 328i Turbo) were having a good scrap of their own.
In Class C Wadeley was in control ahead of Smith with the rest of the Class C crowd waging war in their rearview mirrors. Lyle Ramsay (Fuchs Lubricants / Rich Racing BMW E36 330i), who had broken out into Class B for a second time this year, did not set a time in qualifying and was scything his way through the field.
Grobler was in front in Class D keeping Ganpath and Herbst at bay.
In Class E De Gouveia was putting his new chariot through its paces leading Fischer and Grobler.
At the front Gualtieri then fell foul of a common curse at Red Star; high brake wear. He nearly spun off trying to keep things together and allowed Dalton to take the lead which he kept to the flag. The Italian engine wizard salvaged second place with Einkamerer grabbing the last podium spot.
In Class B the German had managed to pass young Robertson while both tried to get by Fedetto’s slick shod Class A machine.
Wadeley took a commanding win in Class C ahead of Smith, and Grobler did the same in Class D.
De Gouveia was a delighted winner in Class E ahead of Fischer who did his overall championship lead a power of good with the runner-up spot.
Of the new names in the field DeWit Oosthuisen (ShareTrackin BMW E92 M3) and Anand Naidu (SA Autotech BMW E36 M3) fared best, while Nick Naidoo (Wardens Cartage BMW E82 1M) struggled with a persistent misfire.
Class A
Class B
Class C
Class D
Class E
Fastest lap: Adrian Dalton – 1:55.951
The three hours between races were put to good use by pit crews who worked frantically on the racing machines. Gualtieri dealt with his brake issues, Dalton attended to a differential problem, Garbini’s car received attention on its gearbox, Mish-Al Sing struggled with a problem in the rear suspension and De Gouveia’s new machine had developed a leak in a cracked power steering pipe.
A mid-afternoon start saw Arri van der Berg (A&A Dealings BMW E36 M3) lead the field away under the partially reversed grid by class format, but he was soon overhauled by the big guns, Gualtieri and Dalton who resumed their furious scrap from the morning racing.
In Class B Alan Hilligen (C3 Shared Services BMW E46 328i Turbo) led from Thomas Potgieter (Stone Hill Properties BMW F82 M4) but Robertson, Meier and Garbini were soon battling for the lead.
In Class C Sing (TuneTech BMW E30 325is) was soon under pressure from Van der Merwe (Stigworx BMW E36 328i Turbo), Renier Smith and a charging Wadeley in tow.
Manny Ribeiro (BMW Car Club Gauteng BMW E46 330i Touring) led Van Heerden (V-Tech Motorsport BMW E30 325i) in Class D.
De Gouveia retired with a combination of power sterring, ABS and power issues. These were all teething problems in a car that saw no testing before Friday morning’s practice sessions.
Another regular to suffer mechanical problems was Andreas Meier whose car got stuck in sixth gear, his much-maligned gearbox issues still not overcome.
Salvi Gualtieri then retired from the race with a burnt spark plug while his brother Sav called it a day with a clutch problem. Ramsay then joined them with a brake problem.
Herbst and Grobler had a coming together and were classified finishers albeit some laps behind the leaders.
After such a high rate of attrition, Dalton survived the gruelling eight laps to win again, with Einkamerer following him home after a quiet but nevertheless fruitful day.
Garbini took the Class B honours ahead of Robertson who had survived the eight laps with a badly bent rim after early contact with Oz Biagioni (Design Lab & VR Fuels BMW E46 M3). Nicholas van Zyl was a solid third.
A furious dice in Class C saw Smith, who also took the Driver of the Day award, pip Van der Merwe to top spot with Wadeley in third. Sing salvaged fourth spot despite a rear sub frame issue which made his car undriveable all day.
Ganpath won Class D from Herbst and Van Heerden.
Grobler was a happy winner of the Class E race with Fischer in second and Spiro Makris (BMW E36 328i) third.
Class A
Class B
Class C
Class D
Class E
Fastest Lap: Adrian Dalton – 1:56.833 in Lap 3
Round 5 of the 2022 BMW M Performance Parts Race Series will take place at Zwartkops Raceway on 11 June.
For more information on the BMW Car Club Gauteng, click here.
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