Saturday 18 February saw the AVL Africa / Logisticor 250 Superkart Series head to their adopted home circuit of Zwartkops Raceway for the first round of the 2012 Northern Regions racing season.   

Qualifying 

With rain falling all through the night and into the early hours of the morning, the track was really “green” and any rubber that had been laid down the day before had simply been washed away. Needless to say, qualifying was a slippery affair with very little traction available to the slick shod Superkarts. 

Sean Moore (Ziegler PVP Superkart) claimed pole position with a fastest time of 1:01.733. Arch rival Veron Pappas (Arma Gear Rotax Anderson Superkart) would line up alongside him with Eerik Horn (Johan Horn Transport PVP Superkart) and Tyron Davis (AVL Africa PVP Superkart) lining up on the second row.

Moore set the pace in qualifying and won both races...

Andrew Greenslade (Ziegler / East Side Kustomz PVP Superkart) qualified in fifth position with series newcomer Jeff Metter (Arteffects Lights Anderson Maverick Superkart) alongside him on the third row. 

Trevor Green (Super Tech Rotax Stealth Superkart) would start from the fourth row of the grid with Vincenzo Casillo (V-Tek Service Centre Rotax Superkart) lining up alongside him. KZN resident Patrick Mc Gee (Rotax Stealth Superkart) would start from the fifth row. 

Race 1 

The “green” track conditions were made even worse for the first race when oil was dropped by one of the other categories during their qualifying session, leaving the Superkart pilots to deal with the resultant cement patches and cement dust around the track. Metter’s race would unfortunately end before it had begun when a mysterious misfire developed on the warm up lap forcing him to retire to the pits.  

The customary rolling start saw the field charge down through turn one, with the drivers fighting for position as they ran through the tight turn two hairpin. Moore emerged through turn three in the lead with Pappas chasing him all the way.  

Horn was the best of the rest with Greenslade, Davis and Green in tow.

Greenslade grabbed third position from Horn on lap three while the battle for the lead continued between Moore and Pappas. Davis’ race came to an end on the same lap when the right rear wheel came loose after two of the wheel studs stripped, making it too dangerous to continue racing.

Greenslade and Horn couldn’t have been closer...

The battle for the lead continued with Pappas pressuring Moore for the position. The race behind them was even more intense with Greenslade and Horn running side by side, even rubbing side pods through some corners! Horn ruined his chances when he fell off the track through turn two on the fifth lap.  

Pappas picked up the lead on lap six with Moore still chasing him down. Mc Gee ended his race in the turn five gravel trap when the motor on his kart seized up heading into the corner on the same lap. 

Pappas then threw his chances away on the seventh lap when he spun out through turn two. Moore went on to claim the victory with new team mate Greenslade in tow – a great result for the newly formed Ziegler Racing Team! Privateer Green held on to a well deserved third position.  

Race 2 

The now traditional reverse grid format for the second race saw Casillo lead the field across the line. Davis emerged through turn three out in front with Moore and the rest of the field in tow. 

Horn slipped into second position on lap two with Moore and Greenslade hot on his heels. Moore regained second position a lap later and set about trying to catch Davis. He made his move through the fast turn three sweep and slipped through to take the lead. Defending champion Pappas ended a dismal weekend when he retired to the pits on lap four with a broken water pipe.

Davis came back well in the second race… 

Moore started pulling away from Davis while the third place battle behind them continued to rage. Greenslade was trying everything he could to find a way past Horn. He made his move through turn two on the sixth lap and shot past to secure third position. His eyes were now clearly set on the man in front of him. 

He started closing in on Davis over the next two laps. He saw his opportunity on the penultimate lap when Davis missed a gear on the main straight. He shot past Davis just before the turn four sweep to slot into second position behind his team mate. Horn’s race came to an end through turn one on the same lap when something in his motor broke. 

Once again Moore led his team mate across the line to claim a full set of points for Team Ziegler Racing. Davis held on for a well deserved third position despite his brakes over heating in the latter stages of the race.  

Moore now leads the championship ahead of Greenslade while consistency in both races saw Green claim third overall for the day. 

The next round of this adrenaline fueled series will be held at Phakisa Raceway in Welkom on Saturday 17 March. Don’t miss it!

Report by: Greg Reilly & Photographs by: Dr. Mark Greenslade and www.racepics.co.za.