What Investchem Formula 1600 Round 4 Report
Where Aldo Scribante, Gqeberha EP
When Saturday 17 June 2023
Community South Africa National
Troy takes another Investchem Formula 1600 double
Troy Dolinschek continued his dominant 2023 Investchem Formula 1600 form with another double victory at Aldo Scribante Raceway’s Extreme Festival at Gqeberha on Saturday. While he only started third, Dolinschek was soon ahead as he staved off the attentions of Jason Coetzee in both races to make it six wins out of eight starts this season. Nicholas van Weely took both third places.
Antwan Geldenhuys however turned the form book on its head with pole position in an ultra-close qualifying session aboard his Abacus Divisions Racing machine in the all-Mygale SJ Ford Zetec pack. Jason Coetzee’s team finally overcame practice misfire to see him put his Mint Wrapworks Fuchs Lubricants second, just 16-thousanths of a second adrift from Cape compatriot and championship leader Troy Dolinschek’s Sujean Property Investments version, just six hundredths of a second off the pace.
Alex Vos’ Investchem DV Building Supplies car, Magnificent Paints & Hardware man Nicholas van Weely, Gerard Geldenhuys’ second Abacus Divisions machine, Andrew Schofield’s Investchem Fly Safair car and rookie KC Ensor-Smith’s African Heating Vitro Mygale were all also within three tenths of a second off pole position. Investchem lad Siya Mankonkwana, Shrien Naidoo’s Production X car Storm Lanfear’s AMD Investchem Mygale and KMFT Morita Karabo Malemela closed off the grid, all of them also a second or less off pole position.
Antwan Geldenhuys led away, but it did not take Troy Dolinschek long to take advantage of an error out the seep and punce to take a lead he would not forsake into the hairpin on lap 1. Behind him Jason Coetzee also soon found a way around Antwan as the two Cape lads circulated nose to tail and opened up a sizeable gap to the chasing pack.
Antwan sank deeper into the pack as he and Alex Vos made contact entering the pit straight, eliminating both on the spot. That left Nicholas van Weely to take control of third, which he held to the finish from resurgent duo Gerard Geldenhuys and Siyabonga Mankonkwana. Experience prevailed over exuberance as Andrew Schofield beat KC Ensor-Smith to sixth, ahead of Shrien Naidoo, Storm Lanfear and Karabo Malemela.
Troy Dolinschek then made short work of race 2 as he once again held Jason Coetzee’s attentions off to storm to another double victory and further consolidate his title advantage. Nicholas van Weely got the jump on Antwan Geldenhuys on the opening lap to come home third to keep his title aspirations alive ahead of Antwan, Alex Vos, and brother Gerard Geldenhuys.
If it was static up front, the same could not be said for the chasing pack. A wild early race spat that basically saw the order behind basically inverted. That worked to the best benefit of Siyabonga Mankonkwana, who shot from the back to seventh from Shrien Naidoo, Storm Lanfear, KC Ensor-Smith, who nicked a place back from Karabo Malemela, and the delayed Andrew Schofield.
Issued on behalf of Investchem Formula 1600
Photography by: Andre Laubscher
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