Race report and photos by Deon vdl Photography
“Was splitting the Short circuit series a smart move?
We don’t think so and the numbers on the day told the story. We hope that they can recombine for next year and get this great feeder for our sport back to where it was just a short while ago…
Politics in sport have a habit of messing things up! Glenn Foley.”
Nevertheless, the riders who supported the “Original” series last weekend raced their hearts out on the day…
Riders gathered at VKC for Round 6 of the SASCS, with plenty of familiar faces joined by a few newcomers, all there for one thing: raceday. There was another twist to this round too, with the final heat seeing the grids reversed across all classes. It was a simple change, but one that certainly shook things up a bit.
PW50
Heat 1
The little motors fired into life as the youngsters brought their bikes up to speed. Into the first corner they went, and the racing was immediately on. #34 Erik Ferreira grabbed the lead and never let it go, crossing the line in first place. #5 Dennis Nijmeijer followed in second, with #28 Elaine Opperman third.
Heat 2
Ferreira was quickly back at the sharp end, while Opperman and Nijmeijer found themselves locked in a battle for second. Ferreira took another win, with Nijmeijer coming through in second and Opperman third.
Heat 3
The final heat produced much the same result. Ferreira was out front, while Nijmeijer and Opperman once again fought over the remaining podium places. Ferreira took the chequered flag, followed by Nijmeijer in second and Opperman in third.
Overall Results
1st #34 Erik Ferreira
2nd #5 Dennis Nijmeijer
3rd #28 Elaine Opperman
150cc Junior & 150cc Senior
(Combined Report)
Heat 1
This time it was the 150 Cup riders who took to the grid, Le Mans-style.
#22 Cayden Robert got away first, with the rest of the field hot on his heels. A few laps in, #13 Ryan van Nieuwkerk worked his way into the lead. Behind him, Robert, #57 Diego de Ponte and #41 Jason van Breda were locked in a three-way fight for second.
Van Nieuwkerk held on for the win, with De Ponte taking second and Van Breda crossing the line in third.
Heat 2
Robert and De Ponte launched from the line side by side, but bad luck soon struck Robert when a technical problem brought his race to an early end.
Van Nieuwkerk set about hunting down De Ponte and eventually found his way past. Van Breda had struggled to get away cleanly and was left with work to do to close the gap.
Van Nieuwkerk took the win, De Ponte finished second and Andalaft came through in third.
Heat 3
Robert found himself at the front once again, with a string of riders breathing down his neck. It took Van Nieuwkerk five laps to work his way into the lead, but once there he made sure nobody was taking it away from him.
Behind him, Van Breda, De Ponte and Robert were almost inseparable as they diced all the way to the finish. Robert grabbed second, Van Breda third and De Ponte fourth, with just 0.311 seconds separating the three riders.
Overall Results
150cc Junior.
1st #74 Tristan Andalaft
150cc Senior.
1st #13 Ryan van Nieuwkerk
2nd #57 Diego de Ponte
3rd #41 Jason van Breda
SM Junior 65cc
Heat 1
The SM65cc class delivered some of the most entertaining racing of the day.
#1 Ethan de Freitas launched from pole and led the field into the opening turn, with #17 Liam Bronkhorst immediately on his rear wheel. Further back, #4 James Nijmeijer, #550 Marnitz Otten and #27 Kiros Taliotes were locked in their own scrap.
Bronkhorst kept the pressure on De Freitas, but the reigning champ stayed cool under fire and took the win. Bronkhorst followed in second, with Otten taking third.
Heat 2
De Freitas was once again away at the front and quickly settled into his rhythm, with Bronkhorst and Otten giving chase. Nijmeijer and Taliotes were not giving each other an inch either, bumping elbows throughout the race.
De Freitas took the chequered flag, Otten moved into second and Bronkhorst completed the top three.
Heat 3
The reversed grid certainly shook things up for the youngsters.
This time #40 Zian Andalaft led the pack away, but after a few laps Nijmeijer had worked his way to the front and looked determined to stay there. Taliotes had other ideas and managed to get past.
With just two laps remaining, Nijmeijer went for the lead again, but pushed a little too hard and went down. The red flag came out, and with only one lap remaining the race was called, with the results taken from the previous completed lap.
Taliotes was awarded the win, Nijmeijer’s earlier hard work still earned him second and Otten took third.
Overall Results
1st #1 Ethan de Freitas
2nd #550 Marnitz Otten
3rd #27 Kiros Taliotes
Clubmans
Heat 1
A mixed collection of machinery lined up on the grid, with #104 Wayne Morgan starting from pole. One of the new faces, #134 Marius Steenkamp, made the best of the launch and grabbed the holeshot.
#69 Ryno Botha quickly made his way past Steenkamp and took control at the front, leaving Steenkamp and Morgan to fight over second.
Botha took the win, with Steenkamp second and Morgan third.
Heat 2
Botha was once again the man everyone had to catch. Morgan and Steenkamp renewed their battle behind him, but the extra punch of the 450cc motards proved too much for Morgan to overcome.
Botha crossed the line first, followed by Steenkamp in second and Morgan in third.
Heat 3
The reverse grid came into play once again, giving the Clubmans riders a very different race to deal with.
With two laps remaining, Morgan and #60 Martyn Parry collided and both went down, bringing out the red flag for the second time during the day’s racing.
Parry was awarded the win, Steenkamp finished second and Morgan took third.
Overall Results
1st #69 Ryno Botha
2nd #134 Marius Steenkamp
3rd #60 Martyn Parry
SM Junior 50cc
Heat 1
Taking his place on pole was one of the new faces in the SASCS family, #57 Neahan Smit. Smit made a strong start and stormed into the lead, with #52 Declan Schoeman giving chase.
The two youngsters treated the crowd to some close racing, but Smit held on for the win. Schoeman finished second, with #34 Eric Ferreira taking third.
Going…. Going….. Gone! First loop out for Neahan Smit! Bike and rider were OK.
Heat 2
Smit may have been a little too eager when the lights went out. He lifted the front wheel high into the air and ended up flipping the bike before landing on his belly on the track.
He quickly remounted and set off after the field, but Schoeman had already disappeared up the road. Schoeman rode a controlled race from the front to take a comfortable win, and more importantly, collected the points he needed to secure the 2026 SM50 Championship.
Ferreira came home second, while Smit fought his way back through the field to take third.
Heat 3
The final race got underway but didn’t last long. On the second lap, #14 Kaleb Momberg rode into the tyres, bringing out the red flag for the third consecutive time.
Kaleb was okay, but didn’t make it back to the grid for the restart.
Once racing resumed, Schoeman once again proved too strong and claimed another win. Smit took second, with Ferreira third.
With Smit competing in his first race, he was placed in the 50cc class despite riding a 65cc bike. This meant he scored no championship points, but he certainly made an impression on his first outing.
Overall Results
1st #52 Declan Schoeman 2026 SM50cc Champion
2nd #34 Eric Ferreira
3rd #28 Elaine Opperman
Rookie 150cc
Heat 1
#17 Liam Bronkhorst launched from the line and grabbed the holeshot, quickly opening a gap over the chasing pack.
He crossed the line with a clear win, while #39 Ajay Venter took second and #550 Marnitz Otten finished third.
Heat 2
Bronkhorst showed no intention of easing off and powered his way to another victory. Venter once again took second, with Otten following him home in third.
Heat 3
Different heat, same result.
Bronkhorst was simply too quick for the rest of the field and completed a perfect day with three wins from three starts. Venter secured another second place, with Otten taking third.
Overall Results
1st #17 Liam Bronkhorst
2nd #39 Ajay Venter
3rd #550 Marnitz Otten
SM1, SM2, SM Masters & SM Grand Masters
(Combined Report)
Heat 1
Eleven riders took their places on the grid, with #1 Aston Nesbitt starting from pole.
Nesbitt made the most of his position and took an early lead, while a four-way fight developed behind him between #41 Wian Erasmus, #43 Savannah Woodward, #88 Frank Engelbrecht and #32 Raube Ferreira.
Nesbitt took the win, with #277 Triston Potgieter crossing in second and Erasmus taking third.
Heat 2
Nesbitt was once again the rider at the front, while Engelbrecht, Woodward and Erasmus continued their battle behind him.
There was no stopping Nesbitt as he took another chequered flag, followed by Potgieter in second and Erasmus in third.
Heat 3
The reversed grid made for an entertaining final race of the day, throwing the riders into new battles and producing plenty of close calls and nail-biting moments.
Despite the shuffled starting order, the familiar names eventually found their way back to the sharp end. Nesbitt took first, Potgieter second and Erasmus third.
Overall Results
SM1.
1st #1 Aston Nesbitt
2nd #277 Triston Potgieter
SM2.
1st #43 Savannah Woodward
2nd #88 Frank Engelbrecht
3rd #134 Joe Louw
SM Masters.
1st #41 Wian Erasmus
2nd #32 Raube Ferreira
3rd #81 Mark Vermeulen
SM Grand Masters.
1st #63 Kevin James
We’ll be celebrating Halloween at the track for Round 7, so get yourselves down to Formula K on 31 October. Expect bikes, racing and, if the riders are feeling particularly brave, a few questionable costumes!
