As they did in the opening round six weeks ago, Thomas Reib (Mobil 1 / Café 9 Automotive Chevrolet Lumina) and Julian Fameliaris (Lube-Net / Di Matteo Racing Chevrolet Corvette) shared the wins in the second round of the 2024 season, held at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit between 11 and 13 April. In the GT2 class, Steve Herbst (Prei Instrumentation / PPG Coatings / QI Systems Chevrolet Corvette) bounced back from a disappointing weekend at the season opener to take victory in Friday afternoon’s opening heat before Auke Compaan (Hurricane Motorsport Ford Mustang) claimed a comfortable win in Saturday’s second heat.
The weekend started early for the competitors, with the first practice session taking place on Thursday afternoon. As was the case in the opening round, Warren Lombard (PepBoys Automotive Ford Mustang) topped the time sheets in this session and Friday morning’s second session. Reib and Terry Wilford (Fuchs Lubricants Ford Mustang) were his closest rivals at the head of the field. Campaan led the way in GT2.
Qualifying took place in the heat early on Friday afternoon, and the front of the grid was strikingly similar to the grid at the opening round. Reib took pole position from Lombard, with defending champion Fameliaris in third alongside Wilford. Franco Di Matteo (Di Matteo Racing / 5 Diamond Vodka Jaguar XKR), who missed the opening round, qualified fifth ahead of Sam Dahl (ArcProtech Ford Falcon).
GT2 honours went to Compaan from Shaun Holtzhauzen (959 Panelbeaters & Spraypainters Ford Falcon), with Herbst in third.
In the opening heat, late on Friday afternoon, the leading trio opened up a substantial gap over the rest of the pack, running in their starting order until about two-thirds of the way through the 8-lap race. It was then that Fameliaris found a way past Lombard to take second, but he could not get around Reib. They crossed the line separated by just over half a second, with Lombard less than a second back in third. Behind them, Wilford had his hands full, fighting off a determined Di Matteo. He was able to stay ahead of the Jaguars for the first half of the race, but Di Matteo finally made the pass, which secured fourth place just after the midway mark. Despite slowing dramatically on the last lap, Wilford could hold on to fifth place ahead of Dahl.
Holtzhauzen’s hopes of challenging the GT2 class win ended early when mechanical failure sidelined him after just one lap, leaving Compaan and Herbst to fight it out. It looked like Compaan would take a comfortable win, but the racing gods had other plans. His car stopped on the seventh lap, handing the win to Herbst.
In the partially inverted grid for the second race, run on Saturday afternoon, Wilford lined up on pole alongside Di Matteo. Lombard and Fameliaris filled the second row ahead of Reib and Dahl. GT2 was led away by Holtzhauzen ahead of Campaan and Herbst.
Wilford led the race in the early stages while the rest of the field jockeyed for position behind him. Lombard initially led that chase, but just before half-distance, Fameliaris took up the chase with Reib in pursuit. By the start of the race’s second half, Fameliaris led the way from Reib and Lombard, with Wilford demoted to fourth, which is how it stayed until the flag. Di Matteo took fifth ahead of Dahl.
Campaan put his first race disappointment behind him, going on to take a convincing victory in the GT2 class. He was followed over the line by Holtzhauzen and Herbst.
In the weekend’s overall standings, based on total race times, Fameliaris won GT from Reib and Lombard, while Herbst claimed the GT2 honours from Campaan, with Holtzhauzen in third.
Nicole Jooste, African Group Lubricants’ Marketing Manager, list this event as one of the company’s highlights of the year. “African Group Lubricants’ motivation to support a premier series like the Mobil 1 V8 Supercars has always been to showcase our products to a significant audience with a keen interest in motoring and motorsport. Saturday lived up to expectations, and we are pleased to confirm that this was the biggest local motorsport event since the new circuit was opened in 2016. With a big occasion, the Mobil 1 V8 Supercars certainly lived up to the challenge of providing fierce, enjoyable, and clean racing. With a roster of 13 categories, we are proud of our drivers for the quality they showcased.”
The Mobil 1 V8 Supercars now head east to Red Star Raceway, just outside Delmas, for the third round of their 2024 championship, which takes place on 10 and 11 May.
Issued by Brandsponential on behalf of African Group Lubricants
Photography by: Lawrence Paiken
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