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Down to the wire...
Saturday 19 November saw the AVL Africa / Logisticor 250 Superkart Series head
to their home circuit of Zwartkops Raceway for the final round of the 2011
season. With the Overall Championship and third place battle still to be
decided, there was a lot riding on the outcome of the day’s events.
Title contender Sean Moore (Logisticor PVP Superkart) was on the back foot
before the first race had even started. He flew in from Belgium on Saturday
morning after a business trip to Brussels, and was unfortunate to miss out on
the morning qualifying session. He would have to start from the back of the grid
for both races.
Qualifying
Veron Pappas (Graham Singer Racing Rotax Anderson Kart) dominated qualifying to
claim an easy pole position ahead of Steve Levin (Hotdog PVP Superkart).
Pappas showed his intentions early on...
Tyron Davis (AVL Africa PVP Superkart) qualified in a solid third position with
Capetonian Eerik Horn (OTTR PVP Rotax) alongside him on the second row. Andrew
Greenslade (AVL Africa / Logisticor PVP Superkart) would start from the third
row with Trevor Green (Rotax Superkart) rounding out the top six.
KZN resident Gary Gribben (Rotax Stealth) qualified in seventh position with
Vincenzo Cassilo (V-Tek Service Centre Rotax Superkart) in a well placed eighth.
Series newcomers Matthew Gregory (Mech Spec Auto PVP Rotax Superkart) and Philip
Potgieter (Anderson Rotax Superkart) were not too far off of the pace in ninth
and tenth positions respectively.
Steve Lavender (S.L.C Engineering BRC Anderson Superkart) would start from the
back of the grid alongside Moore after experiencing mechanical gremlins before
qualifying.
Race 1
The rolling start for the first race saw the field head through turn one, with
competitors fighting for position as they ran through the tight turn two
hairpin. Pappas emerged through turn three with an immediate lead over the rest
of the field. Levin wouldn’t make it past the first lap and retired with engine
maladies.
The rolling start saw the drivers fan out up to four abreast...
Moore was scything his way through the field and slotted into second position
ahead of the chasing pack by lap two! A good third place battle had also
developed between Horn, Davis and Greenslade. Green’s race came to an end on the
fourth lap when a loose coil wire forced him into the pits.
Pappas had built up a solid lead ahead of the determined Moore by the half way
point in the race. The race for third position was far from over as Horn and
Davis were involved in a titanic battle, getting away from Greenslade in the
process. The turning point happened on the fifth lap when Horn crumbled under
the pressure and ran off the circuit through turn five, dropping him down to
sixth position behind Gribben.
Horn regained a position on Gribben a lap later and set about chasing Greenslade
and Davis ahead of him. Newcomer, Gregory, was having a great debut race but his
efforts came to nothing when his pace was slowed by a broken spark plug top. He
bravely soldiered on trying to hold the plug wire on top of the spark plug,
giving himself an electrifying experience in the process.
Pappas crossed the line to take an easy win ahead of championship rival Moore,
with Davis taking a comfortable third place position.
Pappas’ victory officially handed him the 2011 AVL Africa / Logisticor 250
Superkart Title.
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Report by: Greg Reilly. Photographs
by: Warren Alford – Speedworx Photography |
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