There was no shortage of action at Red Star Raceway this past weekend (15-16 May) as the Extreme Festival regional roster recommenced their championship rivalries following a break of just over two months since the season opener.
The DigitFMS 111 & GT Sports & Saloons field was also joined by the SuperHatch brigade. This brought on a third race for both groups, unlike the two that were originally advertised.
In the GT Sports & Saloons races, Jarred Rossouw (OMG Gifts & Gadgets Volkswagen Polo), Mark du Toit (Trans Africa Racing (BMW Z4M), and Shaun Vermaak (Gapcon Developments BMW M235i) shared the GTA Class wins. With two second places added, it is Du Toit who emerged as the outright winner on the day. In the GTB Class, Wayne Robb (DigitFMS Ford Focus ST) took all three wins.
The 111 Sports & Saloons field saw Melanie Spurr (Origen Oil Volkswagen Golf) take a trio of Class A wins, in each of those, holding off Tihan van Rooyen (Van Rooyen Vision Centre BMW E82 125i). Piet Potgieter (Volkswagen Golf) was unbeaten in Class B, while Henry van Vledder (Stuffal Volkswagen Golf) took a hat trick in Class C. Dean Parker (Infamy Motorsport Alfa Romeo Giulietta) and Mimi le Roux (Wellnetix Volkswagen Polo) were the sole Class D and E competitors, respectively. Wimpie Raman (Greytex Metals Volkswagen Golf) won Class X in the first race, before Vic Dias (Trottle Mafia Racing Honda), who was unable to start Race 1, finished his day with two wins.
The combined races for these two series saw some competitors scoring in both. Arthur Thorne (Volkswagen) was one of those, and he took the SuperHatch T1 Class honours. Ismael Baloyi (Honda Civic), and Leon Bredenkamp (Honda Civic) were the sole entrants for SuperHatch Class A and SuperHatch Class T2, respectively.
In the ATE VW Challenge, Christopher Tait (King Price Xtreme Volkswagen Polo) took a double win in Class A, comfortably beating Anthony Lessing (Worx Motorsport Volkswagen Polo) in both races. Elna Croeser (ATE Volkswagen Polo), a late entrant, was the sole Class T competitor.
In Class B, Jonathan Konig (Northern Bolt & Tool Volkswagen Polo) beat Chris Davison (Generator Services Inclusive Volkswagen Polo) in Race 1, in which Keegan Nathan (Nathan’s Motorsport Volkswagen Polo) and Max Corbett (Century Racing Volkswagen Polo) were sidelined in an early incident. Nathan’s car was repaired in time for Race 2, but it was another early-DNF, while Keyaan Dwomoh (Volkswagen Polo) held off Sebastian Boulliart (Applied Heat Volkswagen Polo) for the win. Konig completed the podium.
In Class C, podiums were repeated for Bryce Pillay (Techtisa Volkswagen Polo), Stuart Konig (Northern Bolt & Tool Volkswagen Polo), and Dimiri Zapheriou (Volkswagen Polo).
The BMW ///M Performance Parts Race Series NA Cup’s first race featured a prolonged Safety Car period and an eventual red flag after Eddie Rodrigues (Eddie7Racing BMW E92 M3) had a spectacular incident. Andre van Vuuren (Curvent International BMW E36 M3) won Class B from pole starter Richard Gerntholtz (NextRep Fitness BMW E30 M3). Nicholas Herbst (BMW E90 330i) won Class C, while Zeheer Seedat (Saltwater Marketing BMW E36 328i) took Class D.
In Race 2, it was a good battle up front, with Van Vuuren again beating Gerntholtz in Class B. Herbst held off Tihan van Rooyen (Van Rooyen Vision Centre BMW E82 125i) in Class C. Reinhardt Miller (Hei-Jo Transport BMW 328i) won Class D.
In the BMW ///M Performance Parts Race Series Turbo Cup, there was also drama early in the race, with Theo Chetty (TMS BMW G87 M2 Turbo) and Shriyav Naidu (SA Autotech BMW F82 M4 Turbo) making contact, which brought out the red flag. From the restart, Lee Thompson (Lee Thompson Racing BMW E92 M3 Turbo) went on to win Class A. Renier Smith (Fast Development BMW E36 M3 Turbo) was the sole Class B finisher. Wessel Mostert (Mosco Specialised Contractors BMW E46 M3 Turbo) beat Bennie Luyt (Luyt Eiendom BMW E46 M3 Turbo) and Reinhardt Miller (Mosco Specialised Contractors BMW E36 M3 Turbo) in Class C, the latter being one of several drivers doing double duty on the weekend. Michael Grobler (Pest Control Specialists BMW E46 328i Turbo) had a relatively easy win in Class D.
The second race saw Thompson rack up another easy Class A win, with Smith repeating his Class B win as well. This time, Miller won Class C, while Grobler also won another Class D title.
In the DOE Formula Vee Partnered With CIM Lubricants races, the defending champion Lendl Jansen (Bull Security Rhema 2) won both races from Vaughn Hills (Mangaza Racing Rhema 2). Gert van den Berg (DOE Quality Parts Rhema 2) completed the Race 1 podium, while Brandon Hills (Mangaza Racing Rhema 2) had that honour in Race 2.
Defending Dunlop V8 Supercars Champion, Warren Lombard (PepBoys Automotive Ford Mustang), took his first win of the season after beating Thomas Reib (Café 9 Automotive Chevrolet Corvette), while Terry Wilford (Johnspeed Racing Creations Ford Mustang) completed the podium.
In Race 2, Wilford took his first 2026 win despite struggling with electrical issues, while Lombard and Reib completed the podium.
The next Regional Extreme Festival outing will be at Zwartkops Raceway on 12-13 June, the same circuit that will be hosting this coming weekend’s (22-23 May) outing for the tour’s national roster.
Published by: Reynard Gelderblom
MSA Publishes media releases from a host of different sources on our website as a service to the sport. It is not practically possible to vet/approve every release that is published. Some news items and articles are written by correspondents and do not necessarily represent MSA’s views.