Liqui Moly Legends Championship 2015 – Round 1 – Red Star Raceway

The first round of the 2015 racing season for the popular Liqui Moly Legends Championship kicked off at the Red Star Raceway on Saturday 14 March with an impressive field of 21 cars qualifying for the first race.

The traditional ball draw for grid positions saw a few different names at the sharp end of the field. Johann van de Venter drew pole position ahead of Steve Nel, while Morne Stoltz drew third position ahead of Seef Fourie. Rudy Myburgh was happy to pull fifth position with Devin Robertson lining up alongside him on the third row.

Race 1

The battle for the lead was intense

The opening round of the series couldn’t have asked for a better start to the season with an action packed first race setting the tone for the season ahead. A four way battle for the lead started through the first corner with defending World and SA champion Devin Robertson fending off Seef Fourie, as well as cousins Llewellyn and Divan Myburgh. Young Lion contender Lonika Maartens ran wide at turn four and dropped back in the field, while Johnny de Carvalho followed her example and spun out coming onto the main straight as well.

The fight behind the leaders was also close with Franco di Matteo and Shaun Nel working their way through the leading pack as well. The battle at the front was far from over however. Some impressive race craft from Llewellyn Myburgh saw him drive around the outside of Fourie and then Robertson through turn one on the sixth and seventh laps respectively to take the lead!

Di Matteo had worked his way up to fifth position, but was being hounded by the son and father pairing of Shaun and Steve Nel. Nel Senior ruined his chances however when he spun out through turn one on the penultimate lap of the race. The individual battles further back in the field were just as exciting with series newcomers Keagan Wessels and Clinton Bezuidenhout beating out their more experienced and fancied rivals to get themselves into the top ten.

Llewellyn went on to claim a popular victory ahead of the defending champion, with Fourie having to settle for third position. Wessels claimed the honours in the Semi Pro class on debut with Bezuidenhout coming from the back of the field to claim the Young Lions laurels.

Llewellyn Myburgh caused a major upset by taking the first race

Race 1 Results

1. Llewellyn Myburgh – Best lap: 56.425
2. Devin Robertson – Best lap: 56.465
3. Seef Fourie – Best lap: 56.552
4. Divan Myburgh – Best lap: 56.365
5. Franco di Matteo – Best lap: 57.592
6. Shaun Nel – Best lap: 57.165

Race 2

Wessels was impressive in his first race in the series

The second race of the day didn’t disappoint with a reverse grid spicing things up in more ways than one. Willie Erasmus held the lead through turn one closely followed by the rest of the pack. A titanic battle started with the faster cars in the race rapidly making their way through the field. Robertson was on an absolute charge and was up to fifth position by the fourth corner. However a collision between himself and Fred Els through the very next corner saw him spin out and drop further back in the field.

When the dust had settled it was still Erasmus out in front, with Divan Myburgh, Romano Sartori, Llewellyn Myburgh and Fourie in tow. Jacques Taljaardt and Steve Nel tangled further back in the pack putting both of them out of contention. Divan grabbed the lead on lap three with Llewellyn moving up to third position behind Erasmus. The drama continued when Shaun Nel tagged Sartori through turn one a lap later with both of them dropping to the back of the field.

A family feud took over at the sharp end of the field with Llewellyn chasing his cousin down for the lead. Erasmus was also being kept busy in third position with Fourie filling his mirrors through every corner. A fired up Robertson was also recovering well as he slotted into sixth position by the halfway point of the race. A brave move around the outside of di Matteo saw him grab fifth position a lap later coming onto the main straight. Rudy Myburgh then relegated di Matteo to seventh position on lap eight as well. Fourie was also on a late charge as he grabbed third position from Erasmus with a well-timed move through turn six.

The battle for the lead couldn’t be closer as the two cousins fought tooth and nail through every corner. With a big storm fast approaching it was a full on run to the line. The pair were neck and neck coming out of the last corner and when the flag dropped they were separated by a mere 0.032 of a second in what must be the closest finish in the history of the series! Fourie took third position with Eramus having to settle for fourth.

Divan Myburgh had to work hard to claim the victory in race two

Race 2 Results

1. Divan Myburgh – Best lap: 55.846
2. Llewellyn Myburgh – Best lap: 55.617
3. Seef Fourie – Best lap: 56.121
4. Willie Erasmus – Best lap: 56.809
5. Devin Robertson – Best lap: 56.345
6. Rudy Myburgh – Best lap: 57.283