Race report & photos by Deon vdl Photography.
The SASCS paddock rolled into VKC in Vereeniging for Round 2, ready to throw down. Friday’s rain threatened to complicate matters and the morning kicked off with a track-drying effort! The whole Vereeniging Karting Circuit team climbed in with brooms to sweep the water from the track. They turned things around brilliantly. By the time the lights went out, it was game on… and what a race day it turned out to be.
SM Junior 50cc & 65cc
SM Junior 50cc
#52 Declan Schoeman was the sole 50cc entrant on the day, but that didn’t stop him from giving it everything he had and putting in a committed performance.
SM Junior 65cc
Heat 1
#27 Kiros Taliotes secured pole position, flanked on the front row by #1 Ethan de Freitas and #17 Liam Bronkhorst. Off the line, De Freitas nailed the start and grabbed the early lead, with #550 Marnitz Otten and Taliotes in pursuit. Everything was running smoothly until lap five, when De Freitas lost the front and crashed out, bringing out the first red flag.
On the restart, Otten took control and powered to victory, with Taliotes in 2nd and Bronkhorst in 3rd.
Heat 2
Otten came out firing in the second heat, while De Freitas and Taliotes locked into a tight scrap for 2nd. Out front, Otten was simply untouchable, taking another win ahead of De Freitas and Taliotes.
Heat 3
The final heat saw De Freitas bounce back in style, dominating proceedings from the front. Otten pushed hard but couldn’t close the gap. De Freitas took the win, with Otten 2nd and Taliotes 3rd.
Overall Results.
SM Junior 50cc.
1st #52 Declan Schoeman
SM Junior 65cc.
1st #550 Marnitz Otten
2nd #27 Kiros Taliotes
3rd #17 Liam Bronkhorst
PW50
Only two riders lined up in the PW50 class: #34 Erik Ferreira and #28 Elaine Opperman. Across all three heats, the results remained unchanged, Ferreira claimed a clean sweep of victories, with Opperman in 2nd.
Overall Results.
1st #34 Erik Ferreira
2nd #28 Elaine Opperman
Girls Development Cup & 150cc Rookies (Combined)
Girls Development Cup
#43 Naledi Ntwari was the only female rider on a grid full of boys and she didn’t just participate, she gave the boys a tough time.
150cc Rookies
Heat 1
#26 Ethan de Freitas had secured pole, but his earlier crash left the top grid spot vacant. When the lights went out, Ntwari launched hard, briefly lifting the front wheel skyward before settling it and charging ahead. She led under intense pressure from #39 Ajay Venter and #550 Marnitz Otten, holding firm to take the win. Venter finished 2nd, Otten 3rd.
Heat 2
Otten grabbed the holeshot and never looked back. Behind him, De Freitas and Venter battled hard for 2nd, with Ntwari close in attendance. Otten took the win, followed by De Freitas and Venter.
Heat 3
The final race had a different script. Venter took control early and kept the chasing pack at bay all the way to the flag. Otten finished 2nd, with De Freitas in 3rd.
Overall Results.
Girls Development Cup.
1st #43 Naledi Ntwari
150cc Rookies.
1st #550 Marnitz Otten
2nd #39 Ajay Venter
3rd #17 Liam Bronkhorst
150cc Junior & Senior (Combined Report)
Heat 1
#99 Adam Naidoo topped qualifying to take pole, alongside #69 Tyler Morgan and #74 Tristan Andalaft. Naidoo led early, with Andalaft and #13 Ryan van Nieuwkerk applying pressure. Van Nieuwkerk soon hit the front and rode a composed race to victory. Naidoo secured 2nd, with #41 Jason van Breda in 3rd.
Heat 2
#57 Diego de Ponte initially led, while Van Nieuwkerk, Van Breda, and #22 Cayden Robert traded paint behind him. Before long, Van Nieuwkerk was back in front, claiming his second win. Van Breda edged out Robert in a drag to the line for 2nd, with Robert a close 3rd.
Heat 3
Van Nieuwkerk grabbed the holeshot once again. Behind him, Van Breda, Robert, and De Ponte fought fiercely for position. Up front, Van Nieuwkerk made it three wins from three. Robert took 2nd, De Ponte 3rd, and Van Breda just missed top three in 4th.
Overall Results.
150cc Junior.
1st #74 Tristan Andalaft
2nd #22 Blake Robert
3rd #40 Lorenzo de Ponte
150cc Senior.
1st #13 Ryan van Nieuwkerk
2nd #41 Jason van Breda
3rd #22 Cayden Robert
Clubmans 2
Heat 1
#71 Ryno Botha put his supermoto to good use, taking the early lead. A first-lap incident saw #43 Augustine Ntwari go down and became trapped under his bike, bringing out the red flag. After the restart, Botha held firm for the win, with #60 Martyn Parry 2nd and #104 Wayne Morgan 3rd.
Heat 2
Morgan led briefly before Botha slipped through to reclaim the front. He controlled the race to take another win, with Ntwari in 2nd and Morgan in 3rd.
Heat 3
Botha launched strongly again, but by lap four Ntwari had worked his way into the lead and couldn’t be caught. Ntwari took the win, with Botha 2nd and Parry 3rd.
Overall Results.
1st #71 Ryno Botha
2nd #60 Martyn Parry
3rd #104 Wayne Morgan
SM1, SM1S, SM2 & SM Masters (Combined Report)
Heat 1
Pole went to #13 Ryan van Nieuwkerk, alongside #1 Aston Nesbitt and #63 Thabang Keswa. The full grid charged into turn one cleanly, with Van Nieuwkerk leading the way. After a race packed with battles throughout the field, he pulled clear for a convincing win. Nesbitt finished 2nd, with #30 Ruben Weterman 3rd.
Heat 2
Van Nieuwkerk again took control early, building a solid gap before crashing out. Nesbitt capitalised to take the win, with Keswa in 2nd and Ruben Weterman 3rd.
Heat 3
Nesbitt grabbed the holeshot, but Van Nieuwkerk fought his way through the pack to retake the lead, only to suffer another fall. He remounted quickly, but Nesbitt and Keswa had already gone through. Nesbitt took the win and secured overall honours, with Keswa 2nd and Van Nieuwkerk 3rd.
Overall Results.
SM1.
1st #1 Aston Nesbitt
SM1S.
1st #13 Ryan van Nieuwkerk
2nd #30 Ruben Weterman
3rd #31 Luan Weterman
SM2.
1st #227 Tristan Potgieter
2nd #134 Joe Louw
3rd #7 Riekert Erasmus
SM Masters.
1st #32 Raube Ferreira
2nd #81 Mark Vermeulen
3rd #30 Brad Radestock
From red flags to race wins, comebacks to clean sweeps, Round 2 delivered proper short circuit chaos in the best possible way. Not a single dull moment, and the fans got their money’s worth from lights out to the final flag.
Next up, the series heads to Formula K on 23 May and if this round is anything to go by, we’re in for another belter.
