The fifth round of the Bridgestone BMW Club Racing Series saw this popular series make their way to the popular Red Star Raceway near Delmas on Saturday 13 August with an impressive field of 27 cars heading out for qualifying.
Poleman Fameliaris leads the way into turn twelve before the start
Qualifying
Julian Fameliaris (E36 328i Turbo) claimed pole position ahead of the surprise of the season, Jorge Estrela (E36 328i Turbo). Riaan Woest (E46 M3 GTR) would line up on the second row of the grid with Paulo Loureiro (E36 M3) lining up alongside him.
An impressive Lorenzo Gualtieri (E36 328i) would start from the third row of the grid with Rick Loureiro (E30 3.2 CSL) rounding out the top six.
Race 1
Gualtieri received the award for Best Driver of the Day
The first race of the day saw the large field charging down through the first corner after the traditional rolling start. Fameliaris held the lead with Woest, Estrela and Rick Loureiro in tow. Desmond Bloem (E36 M3 Turbo) didn’t do himself any favours going off through turn three on the second lap after fighting his way through from the back of the grid.
Warren Dodd (E36 M3) was being hounded by class C leader Gualtieri with Mish-al Sing (E30 325is) experiencing the same treatment from Willie Erasmus (E36 M3) and Andreas Meier (E36 M3). Fred Kruger (E46 M3) headed up a four car train in class C with Kashen Naicker (E30 325i), Craig Ball (E36 328i) and Jan Eversteyn (E36 328i) all trying to improve their track positions as well.
A fired up Erasmus got past Sing on the fourth lap and set about trying to catch the class leader. Further back Ball passed Naicker to gain a position as well. Kruger had caught Shane Grobler (E36 328i) and was desperately trying to find a way past him. Further up the field Paulo Loureiro had passed his brother Rick for fourth position. Manny Ribeiro (E36 M3) was on a late charge as he gained a position on class C leader Gualtieri. Dodd saw his chances of a good result disappear when he ran out of fuel on the last lap of the race!
Fameliaris crossed the line to take an unchallenged Overall and class A victory ahead of a hard charging Woest who claimed the class B win. Estrela claimed his best result to date with an impressive third place overall.
Top 3 Results by class
Class A
Julian Fameliaris – Best lap: 2:03.679
Manny Ribeiro – Best lap 2:07.661
Desmond Bloem – Best lap: 2:05.316
Class B
Riaan Woest – Best lap: 2:05.819
Jorge Estrela – Best lap: 2:05.908
Rick Loureiro – Best lap: 2:06.420
Dodd put in an impressive performance only to run out of fuel on the last lap
Class C
Lorenzo Gaultieri – Best lap: 2:08.424
Willie Erasmus – Best lap: 2:08.937
Mish-al Sing – Best lap: 2:09.700
Class D
Troy Cochran – Best lap: 2:19.039
Andy Smith – Best lap: 2:18.148
Class E
Mike Dodd – Best lap: 2:33.116
Race 2
Grobler was on a charge in the second race
The traditional reverse grid by class for the second race always keeps things exciting, allowing for plenty of overtaking as well. The drama struck early when Sing collided with Meier heading into turn two ending both of their races almost immediately. When the dust had cleared it was Fameliaris who had grabbed the lead ahead of Bloem, Ribeiro and Rick Loureiro. Estrela was not too far behind the leaders with Dodd, Paulo Loureiro and Woest hot on his heels.
Gualtieri made short work of getting to the front of class C with Kruger, Philip Smit (E46 M3), Erasmus and Grobler in tow. Rick and Estrela were on a charge as both of them passed Ribeiro on the second lap. Woest was also on the move as he passed Paulo and then Dodd on the same lap. Further back in class C Erasmus made a move on Smit to pick up another position as well. Ribeiro was holding tough in his under powered car but Woest and Paulo got past him through turn two on the third lap.
The battle at the front was heating up as Bloem was closing in on Fameliaris rather quickly. This all came to nought when he lost time on the fifth lap after running wide. The class C battle was far from over however as Grobler seemed to be on a late charge. He made an impressive move through turn one on the penultimate lap of the race and passed Smit and Kruger in one swoop.
When the chequered flag came out it was Fameliaris who took his second Overall and class A victory of the day. Bloem recovered to secure second place with Rick Loureiro putting in a strong drive to claim third Overall and first in class B.
Top 3 Results by class
Class A
Julian Fameliaris – Best lap: 2:03.360
Desmond Bloem – Best lap: 2:03.275
Manny Ribeiro – Best lap 2:08.55
Class B
Rick Loureiro – Best lap: 2:05.983
Jorge Estrela – Best lap: 2:05.649
Riaan Woest – Best lap: 2:06.461
A welcome return to Kashen Naicker in class C
Class C
Lorenzo Gaultieri – Best lap: 2:09.298
Willie Erasmus – Best lap: 2:09.375
Shane Grobler – Best lap: 2:11.55
Class D
Troy Cochran – Best lap: 2:19.375
Andy Smith – Best lap: 2:19.214
Class E
Mike Dodd – Best lap: 2:34.503
The next round of the championship will return to the Zwartkops Raceway in Pretoria on 17 September.
Before then, in celebration of BMW’s 100th birthday, the BMW Car Club of Gauteng will be hosting a track day and Centenary Parade at the popular Red Star Raceway in Delmas on Saturday 20 August 2016. There is no charge if you sign up online before the event via the website: www.BMWCarClub.co.za. The idea is to put as many BMW cars and motorcycles on track as possible. More information can be obtained from the website as well.
The Club was formed in 1981 to afford like minded enthusiasts the opportunity to interact with each other through a comprehensive calendar of events, a club magazine and website portal. The Club also organizes adrenaline and social based events such as breakfast runs, classic car gatherings, Concours d’Elegance competitions, noggins, weekend trips, gymkhana’s and top speed events. The Club is proud of its family ethos where all enthusiasts are welcome. Annual membership starts from as little as R350, more information is available at www.bmwcarclub.co.za.
