The Phakisa Raceway was the venue for the second round of the 2016 Inland Championship on Saturday 2 April.
The tag line of ‘Real People, Real Racing’ rang true with close and competitive racing being seen from every category racing on the day.
Darren Winterboer claimed the double in class A in the Bridgestone BMW Club Racing Series
The Big Boss Auto Super Saloons category had two exciting races. Poleman Ben Morgenrood (Ford Mustang) grabbed the lead in the first race but this was short lived after the red flag came out after the first lap when Mackie Adlem (Jaguar) spun out and hit the pit wall.
Morgenrood once again grabbed the lead at the restart and went on to claim the victory ahead of newcomer Seef Fourie (Chev Lumina) when arch rival Di Matteo retired on the third lap with diff issues. Third placed Willie Hepburn (Opel Rekord) took the GT2 honours while local boy Jody Vianna (Mazda RX8) claimed the GT3 win.
Bezuidenhout was driving with skill beyond his years in the INEX Legends Championship
The second race saw much of the same with Morgenrood taking an early lead ahead of a repaired Di Matteo and Fourie. The tables were turned however when Di Matteo grabbed the lead on the fourth lap and never looked back. He claimed a comfortable victory over Morgenrood with Adlem fighting back from his first race woes with a solid third place result. Hepburn took the double in GT2 with Viana doing the same in GT3. Adrian Dalton (VW Golf) picked up the GT4 honours in both races with Jimmy Tsimenglou (BMW M3) doing the same in GT5.
The INEX Legends Championship sponsored by Liqui Moly once again had three enthralling races, creating some of the best racing seen on the day. Divan Myburgh (Pro) took the lead in the first race ahead of Keagan Wessels (Pro) and an impressive Clinton Bezuidenhout (Young Lion). A race long battle between the leaders eventually saw the win go Bezuidenhout’s way as he became the first Young Lion competitor to claim an Overall victory in series history. The second race saw things pick up where they had left off. Bezuidenhout grabbed an early lead after starting from the back of the grid. Myburgh took the lead on the next lap and was defending for all that he was worth. A determined Bezuidenhout was driving with skill beyond his years and regained the lead on the penultimate lap of the race to claim his second Overall victory on the day.
The third and final heat was the most action packed of the day with Myburgh taking an early lead ahead of Cousin Llewellyn Myburgh (Pro). Bezuidenhout grabbed second by lap two and the battle for the lead started once again. The pair shared the lead over the next five laps with Myburgh claiming victory ahead of Bezuidenhout in the final race by a mere 0.146 of a second. Seef Fourie (Pro) kept his record clean by taking three solid third place results from each race.
Di Matteo claimed a comfortable victory in race 2 of the Big Boss Auto Super Saloons
The Bridgestone BMW Car Club series returned for their second event as a Regional category and produced one of the biggest fields on the day. Zimbabwean import Darren Winterboer (F30 335i Turbo) announced his intentions early on by claiming pole position ahead of Julian Fameliaris (E36 328i Turbo). The drama struck early when the red flag came out on the opening lap after a number of cars tangled in the first corner. Winterboer grabbed the lead once again at the restart with Fameliaris and the rest of the field in tow. Winterboer romped home to an easy Overall and class A victory when Fameliaris faded with mechanical issues late in the race. Warren Dodd (E46 M3) picked up the class B honours with a fine second place with young Lorenzo Gaultieri taking the class C win in an impressive fourth overall. Craig Ball (E36 328i) kept his championship hopes on the right track with a victory in class D.
An exciting second race saw the action start early with Fameliaris taking the lead ahead of Winterboer. Winterboer took the lead a lap later and looked set for yet another victory. This wasn’t to be however as Stefano Martinelli (E36 328i Turbo) grabbed the lead on the penultimate lap of the race after fighting his way through from sixth position on the grid to claim his first Overall win and class B victory in the series. Winterboer claimed the double in class A with Gaultieri and Ball doing the same in class C and D respectively.
Shawn Smidt (Datsun 160Y) took the lead in the first Midvaal Historics / Trofeo Challenge race with Warren Ewart (Alfa GTV 6) and Brendan Parker (Datsun GX Coupe) in tow. A determined Ewart took the lead on the second lap and never looked back. He took a comfortable Overall and Trofeo Challenge victory with Schmidt taking the class D Midvaal Historics honours. Third placed Parker took the class E honours with fifth placed Jacques Mostert (Datsun GX Coupe) taking class F. Eight placed Paddy Venske (Toyota Corona) took class G with Koos Louw (Mercedes 280E) taking class H. With a blown head gasket putting Schmidt out of the running in the second race it was Ewart who romped home to another Overall and Trofeo Challenge class win. Local boy Dewalt Nel (Datsun Stanza) took second place and first in class F, with fourth placed Johan Coetzer (Datsun GX) taking class E. Sixth placed Venske took the double in class G while Johan Swanepoel (Fiat Sport Coupe) took the honours in class H.
Both victories in the Formula Monoposto category went the way of Nicolas Zavalone (Speads RH08) with Louis van der Merwe (Swift 92 GTI) taking second place each time. Didier Diedericks (Formula M CBR) claimed the class B honours with two third place positions in each race. Carel van Heerden (Swift GTI) claimed the class C honours in both races with LJ Scholtz (Formula Vee) doing the same in class D. Steve Levin and John Martin (Formula Vee) took the double in classes F and H respectively.
Paul van Niekerk took the Overall honours of the Yokohama Modified Production Cars Endurance Race
The Silvercup category also saw some good racing within its ranks. Emmanuel Athanassiou (VW Corrado Spaceframe) took the Overall and class A victory ahead of newcomer Roelf van Kooij (Spaceframe Tigra) in both races with Daniel Lewes doing the same in class B. David Louw (Spaceframe Ford Fiesta) also took the double in class C with Danie Deysel (Honda CRX) repeating the feat in class D.
The annual Endurance event for the Yokohama MPC and SRA categories produced some exciting racing with a large field lining up on the grid for the race. The one hour event for the MPC category saw a few of the race favourites retire early on. When the hour mark was done it was Paul van Niekerk (VW Golf 1) who took the Overall and Class B win ahead of Danie Deysel (Honda CRX) and class C winner Kalyn Miller (Ford Icon). Fifth placed Charlene Meiring (Honda Ballade) took the class A honours with Marius Lotz (VW Golf 1) taking class E.
The two hour event saw Michael Jensen (Shelby) take the Overall and SR2/3 win ahead of Mark Lauth (Shelby) and international guest driver John Hope Bryant (Shelby). Paul van Niekerk (VW Golf 1) the first of the tin top entries in an impressive fifth position.
The next round of the Inland Championship will visit the rustic Midvaal Raceway outside Vereeniging on the 7th of May.
For any enquiries, photographs or media reports on the Inland Championship feel free to contact Paul Blackburn on 082 900 6443 or media@racepics.co.za.
