MAX CHALLENGE FRONT RUNNERS GET THEIR MOJOS WORKING
23.08.2010
» results
 South African Rotax Max Challenge 2010 Round Three – Port Elizabeth, August 20, 21.
Smooth driving and keeping a clean nose paid off for the major contenders in the third National Championship Round of the 2010 SA Rotax Max Challenge, held in Port Elizabeth over the weekend.
The track surface of the tight Celso Scribante kart circuit near Walmer was described as “a cheese grater” especially by those who battled to get their chassis set-up spot on. The race weekend was also the toughest test yet for the Mojo tyres used for the first time this season in the SARMC, with all competitors being limited to just one set for both qualifying and the four-race programme in all classes. But the Mojos came through with flying colours, although looking after them proved to be critical in making them deliver grip all the way through to the Finals on the Saturday.
A man who knows all about the smooth-flowing approach is Sean Frost. The Birel driver topped the fastest class in South African karting, the DD2 twin-speed gearbox class by taking two wins and two third places ahead of fellow Birel driver Ian Young. The fastest driver of all was CRG’s Marc Murray, who ran away and hid in the first pre-final. But loose hub-bolts saw him pit from the lead and from then it was catch up for Murray, although he came through from the back to win the second pre-final and the final and place third for the day.
 Frost’s win was his first in DD2, while Eugene Brittz finished fourth to score the highest place to date for an Intrepid chassis. CRG’s Nic Verheul, a contender for the title this year, battled to hit “the sweet spot” in set-up and battled with no grip all weekend.
In DD2 Masters, Gary Marais and John van Wyk fought tooth and nail for supremacy, with Van Wyk falling foul of traffic in the second Final, thus handing the overall victory to Marais. The other major contender for Masters honours, George dos Ramos, ran foul of mechanical problems all weekend.
 The Max Challenge class, the most potent of the non-gearbox Rotax classes, was a resounding victory for Caleb Williams in a CRG. “Caleb had his race-face on this weekend,” said one competitor, nothing that with four-straight wins in the pre-finals and finals, he has staked his claim for the overall title when the fourth and final round of the nationals is held at Zwartkops in October.
Ryan Frost kept cool to place second, ahead of Luca Canderle, while there was a stirring battle all weekend between Sebastian Mafuna (Birel) and his brother Shau in a CRG. Sebastian ended up fourth for the day, ahead of Jarryd Evans and previous championship round winner Aidan de Nobrega, who like many others battled to find the right set-up in PE.
 Junior Max Challenge saw a dominant performance from Birel’s Kelvin van der Linde,, ahead of Matthew Swanepoel, who lacked the pace of his previous two Nationals. Luke Herring placed third ahead of Chad Maciver, Shayer Harpal and Aston Hare, another favourite who was off the pace. A similar fate befell Raoul Hyman, who was quick in qualifying but didn’t deliver the race results.
 Mini Max saw the second van der Linde command performance in PE, with young
Shedlon van der Linde staying out of trouble to head up the points table, despite not being the ultimate quickest in this National Championship class. Drivers who looked to be in for a win were Aedan van Vuuren, who suffered from poor starts, but picked up one Final win and Eugene Denyssen who battled with set-up. Marco Busi placed fourth after a few mid-race tangles.
The increasingly-popular Maxterino class, a South African Challenge series for pre-teen karters, saw some great racing, particularly between the Bam brothers from Cape Town, Kohen and Henry. Henry Bam took the win in all four races, with Chadley Swartz a fine second, and usual front-runner Clinton Bezuidenhout having to be content with third, ahead of Henry Bam. The final Maxterino race of the day saw just three-tenths of a second separate the first three drivers across the line! These were Kohen Bam, Chadley Swartz and Henry Bam.
Max Challenge organiser Jennifer Murray noted that it was great for the Max Challenge karters to be back in Port Elizabeth after an absence of some years, and praised the PE organising team for “an excellent job, typical of the Friendly City.”
RESULTS: ROUND THREE of the 2010 SARMC
ROTAX DD2 GEARBOX
- Sean Frost
- Ian Young
- Marc Murray
- Eugene Britz
- Nicholas Verheul
- Ronaldo Bapista
DD2 MASTERS
- Gary Marais
- John van Wyk
- George dos Rmaos
ROTAX MAX CHALLENGE
- Caleb Williams
- Ryan Frost
- Luca Canderle
- Sebastian Mafuna
- Jarryd Evans
- Aidan de Nobrega
JUNIOR MAX
- Kelvin van der Linde
- Mathew Swanepoel
- Luke Herring
- Chad Maciver
- Shyer Harpal
- Aston Hare
MINI MAX
- Sheldon van der Linde
- Aedan van Vuuren
- Eugene Denyssen
- Marco Busi
- Chad Daniel
- Julian van der Watt
MAXTERINO
- Kohen Bam
- Chadley Swartz
- Clinton Bezuidenhout
- Henry Bam
- Keagan Masters
- Daygin Prescott
SARMC POINT STANDINGS
20.08.2010
» point standings
SA’S FASTEST KARTS DESCEND ON PORT ELIZABETH ON AUGUST 21
12.08.2010
Ian Young Rotax DD2 by Steve Wicks |
The country’s fastest karts will fight it out at Port Elizabeth’s Celso Scribante circuit with the running of the third National Championship Round for 2010 in the Rotax Max Challenge Series on August 21.
A recent analysis of circuit lap times has revealed that not only are the Rotax DD2 Gearbox karts turning the quickest lap times in the country, but the non-gearbox Rotax Max Challenge karts are next quickest on most of the circuits used.
This has come about due to a change to stickier tyres, and a performance enhancement to the DD2 class that was ratified some time ago. The DD2 karts are almost a second a lap quicker than anything else in karting right now at most circuits, and it will be interesting to see if the tricky circuit in the Port Elizabeth suburb of Skoenmakerskop sees the same pattern continued.
Making the most of the DD2’s pace this year is Gauteng’s Marc Murray, who returned to karting, after a substantial break, at the beginning of the year. He leads the 2010 DD2 class SA Championships narrowly from Sean Frost, Nicholas Verheul and Ian Young, and with the August 21 meeting being the third of the four SARMC nationals this year, it is vital for all drivers to come away with a big points haul.
Caleb Williams Senior Max by Steve Wicks |
In DD2 Masters George Dos Ramos is once again leading from his old sparring partners John van Wyk and Gary Marais.
Cape Town’s Aidan de Nobrega has been really doing the business this year in Senior Max Challenge, and after the running of points-scoring regional rounds also counting towards the 2010 title, he has opened up a slight lead over Ryan Frost. Caleb Williams, Ricky Hill and Jarryd Evans are still all within striking distance of this SA Championship title which remains the most prestigious in local karting, because of the numbers and the quality of fields it attracts.
Aston Hare Junior Max by Steve Wicks |
The Max Challenge Class also offers the winner an all-expenses-paid drive in Italy in November to compete in the 2010 Rotax Grand Finals, which attracts entries from over 60 countries. Not incidentally, Rotax also awards winners of other important classes within the series a free drive in the world finals, and this includes the winners of the DD2 class, DD2 Masters (for karters over 32-years-old) and the ultra-competitive Junior Max category.
In Junior Max this year Jo’burg’s Aston Hare has been very quick and also consistent, which has seen him open out a slight points gap over Kwa-Zulu Natal's Mathew Swanepoel. Kelvin van der Linde is still well in it, as is Chad MacIver, Raoul Hyman and Nathan Parkins.
Aiden van Vuuren Mini Max by Steve Wicks |
Mini Max has seen young Marco Busi from Cape Town flying the flag from up front, but chased hard by Aedan van Vuuren, Chad Daniel, Bradley Liebenberg and Eugene Denyssen. Both the Junior Max and the Mini Max classes also bestow National Champion status on the winners
The Maxterino Class for eight-to-12 year olds is a National Challenge series, being in its first year of existence. Yet despite only being launched late in 2009, Maxterino now draws fields of up to 25 karts, and the organisers are expecting a fine PE turnout for this new series which offers motors of exceptional reliability, electric starter and fixed jet carburettor that sees hard-pressed fathers much more relaxed when their “golden boy” spins out.
Keeping it nicely on the tarmac and ahead of the pack this year has been Clinton Bezuidenhout of KZN, with a slight points margin over Cape Town’s revelation of 2010, Kohen Bam. The young Capetonian driver is ahead of Keagan Masters, who is enjoying a strong season, and another Bam brother, Henry. Daygin Prescott and Delano Fowler fill out the top six, but the title is still wide-open, and, like all the other Rotax Max Challenge categories, will only be decided after the fourth and final round at Zwartkops in early October.
JAM-PACKED ACTION AT IDUBE FOR SA ROTAX MAX CHALLENGE ROUND TWO
16.06.2010
The second round of the 2010 South African Rotax Max Challenge at Kwa Zulu Natal’s Idube circuit saw Arrows driver Aidan de Nobrega increase his lead in the championship’s top class. After winning the Senior Max Challenge at his home circuit in Cape Town in early April, young De Nobrega’s Natal campaign yielded him the top-points scoring position for the day.
Yet it has to be said that he benefited from the misfortune of the weekend’s front runners, Caleb Williams and Ryan Frost. CRG driver Williams had looked like scoring a clean-sweep for the weekend, having won three out of the four races leading up to the final, after some stirring battles with Birel hotshot Ryan Frost.
On the last corner of the last Senor Max race of the day Williams dived inside Frost to go for the lead, and both drivers ended up going off the track. Williams regained the circuit, while Frost was out with a broken ignition wire.
The resulting post-race protest saw Williams docked with a penalty that placed him last for that race, which meant a Race Four score of 36 points would put him in third for the day, behind de Nobgrega and Shau Mafuna. De Nobrega’s win for the day came largely as a result of the contretemps.
The Kwazulu race saw a welcome return to form for Mafuna, who hasn’t featured in the top results for some months after a strong showing early in 2009. However a chassis switch back to a CRG and assistance from single-seater star Wesley Orr in the pits has seen Mafuna bounce back to contention.
Other strong performances in Senior Max came from Luca Canderle (Intrepid) who placed fourth after consistent runs all weekend, while Frost was unlucky to end up fifth overall after three second places and a possible win in the last race, before dropping to the back of the Race Four field.
Ricky Hill (Tony Kart) and Eckardt Briedenhann rounded out the top seven.
While the Senior Max Challenge class is the natural showcase of a Max Challenge national championship event, the South African Challenge Maxterino class for youngsters was probably the most heartening class for the karting scene in general at Idube.
An entry of 22 karts was a massive turnaround for the ‘young guns’ series which, with previously-used ageing engines, had dwindled to a dozen entries less than a year ago. Series promoter Ed Murray is predicting that there will be 40 Maxterinos on the grid in this exciting class for eight-to-twelve year-olds before year’s end.
The four races saw tooth-and-nail dices between the top protagonists for the lead, between Kwa ZuluNatal’s Clinton Bezuidenhout and Cape Town’s Kohen Bam. Three races wins leading up to the final gave the local lad the overall win, while Bam’s score of two seconds and a third was capped by a win in the last race, placing him second behind Bezuidenhout. Bam, and his brother Henry, incidentally, are the grand-sons of the 1964 South African Saloon Car champion Koos Swanepoel.
Daygin Prescott, Henry Bam, Kegan Masters and Delano Fowler rounded out the top six.
Very unlucky not to have contended for the overall Maxterino win was young Cape Town Development driver Chadley Swartz from the South African Kart Racing Academy. Despite a lack of experience compared to his competitors he placed third in the first race and was looking to overtake Clinton Bezuidenhout for the lead in Race Two when he went off into the wall and put himself out for the rest of the meeting. More to come, then, from this youngster.
Marc Murray entered the first round of the gearbox Rotax Max class, known as DD2, almost as an afterthought after a long hiatus from karting. However he had such a strong showing in Cape Town that the Germiston driver decided to race at Idube as well and no doubt he’s glad he did.
Murray (CRG) was unstoppable in the super-quick gearbox class as the weekend progressed, despite a whoopsy in Race One that saw him only place eighth. He won three out of the four races going away in a race that included five South African karting champions! Ian Young (Birel) placed second for the day ahead of KZN favourite and Intrepid chassis importer Ralph Odendaal. Devon Tame (Birel) Sean Frost (Birel) and Nic Verheul (CRG) rounded out the top six.
The dice for second to sixth was highly entertaining with plenty of rough-and-tumble and high levels of skill.
The DD2 Masters Class for drivers over 32-years-old was won by George Dos Ramos from Ernst Viljoen and Johan van Wyk.
The Junior Max class saw KZN’s Mathew Swanepoel, Aston Hare, Kelvin van der Linde and Chad McIver vying for top honours. An interesting entry was Michell Licen in an entry from the Engen Extreme Tony Kart outfit. KZN-based Licen normally races in the Rok series, a separate championship to the Rotax Max Challenge, but he rented a Rotax engine and in his first outing in Junior Max Challenge took pole and led the field on occasions, scoring a second place in the first race to Aston Hare, before placing sixth overall.
Hare finished on top of the standings ahead of Swanepoel after a close tussle, while MacIver came good in the last race to elevate him to fourth overall for the weekend.
The Mini Max Class saw Cape Town drivers lock out the top positions with excellent close racing by the top-six drivers. Marco Busi did the Mother City proud by winning the first three races and placing fourth in the final to take overall honours, ahead of fellow Capetonian Eugene Denyssen.
Jo’burg’s Sheldon van der Linde came good in the final race to win, which placed him an encouraging third, while Chad Daniel (Cape Town) had consistently strong races, apart from a fall-off in the final, to place fourth ahead of Bradley Liebenberg and Aedan van Vuuren.
All in all an excellent showing from the SA Rotax Max Challenge series in KZN, the strong fields showing that karting is very much on the up-and-up. The third round of the four-race championship takes place in Port Elizabeth in August.
Results:
SA Rotax Max Challenge Round Two, Idube Raceway KZN, June 11/12 2010-06-14
Senior Max Challenge (overall results subject to confirmation)
1. Aidan de Nobrega 165 points
2. Shau Mafuna 161 points
3. Caleb Williams 159 points
4. Luca Canderle 157 points
5. Ryan Frost 155 points
6. Ricky Hill 145 points
DD2 Gearbox Class
1. Marc Murray 170 points
2. Ian Young 169 points
3. Ralph Odendaal 160 points
4. Devon Tame 158 points
5. Sean Frost 158 points
6. Nicholas Verheul 155 points
Junior Max Challenge
1. Aston Hare 169 points
2. Mathew Swanepoel 167 points
3. Kelvin van der Linde 164 points
4. Chad Maciver 156 points
5. Nathan Parkins 154 points
6. Michell Licen 151 points
Mini Max
1. Marco Busi 171 points
2. Eugene Denyssen 166 points
3. Sheldon van der Linde 159 points
4. Chad Daniel 159 points
5. Bradley Liebenberg 158 points
6. Aedan van Vuuren 158 points
Maxterino
1. Clinton Bezuidenhout 175 points
2. Koehen Bam 171 points
3. Daygin Prescott 164 points
4. Henry Bam 156 points
5. Keagan Masters 153 points
6. Delano Fowler 147 points
EURO ROUND 2 TURNS UP SOME SUPRISES AS THE SERIES GETS INTERESTING
Wackersdorf, Germany: June 3
It was an exciting edition of the 2010 Rotax Euro Challenge at the ProKart Raceland circuit at Wackersdorf, when the championship returned to Germany once again to be faced with the crazy weather that we’ve become accustomed to this year. However, the series remains anyone’s for the taking at the halfway mark, while the racing continues to be very competitive keeping things interesting with new faces gracing the podium » more » results
ODENDAAL LOOKS TO EXTEND HIS LEAD by Stuart Johnston
04.06.2010
South African Rotax Max Challenge 2010 Round Two
iDube Kart Circuit KZN June 11/12
Durban-based international karting champion Ralph Odendaal will be looking to extend his lead in the gearbox class of the 2010 South African Rotax Max Challenge when the second round is held at iDube Raceway near Pietermaritzburg on June 11 and 12.
Odendaal is the 2009 European Rotax DD2 Gearbox champion in Max Challenge, and after Round One of the SAMRC held in Cape Town early in April he leads the South African DD2 championship by a slender three-point margin from Gauteng’s Sean Frost, with fellow Gauteng DD2 exponent Nic Verheul just three points behind Frost » more
EURO ACTION BACK AT WACKERSDORF THIS WEEKEND
04.06.2010
» view story
IDUBE SARMC NATIONAL - 11 / 12 JUNE 2010
10.05.2010
» enter now
Vereeniging Regional / SARMC results
10.05.2010
» results
GRAND FINAL CHASSIS MANUFATURERS ANNOUNCED
07.05.2010
» more
MOJO D3 introduced for Senior Max and Rotax DD2 classes
30.05.2010
» view circular
Zwartkops Rotax Regional results
27.04.2010
» results
NEW ROTAX MAX CHALLENGE GRAND FINAL MOVIE
09.04.2010
The long-awaited ROTAX MAX Challenge Grand Finals movie 2009 is now available.
It is available for download at www.maxchallenge-rotax.com.
To view the movie online, click here.
Watch and Enjoy!
LOCAL HEROES SHINE IN ROUND ONE OF THE 2010 SOUTH AFRICAN ROTAX MAX CHALLENGE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
05.04.2010
Marc Murray (65) had the "drive of the meeting" at Round One of the 2010 Rotax Max Challenge SA Championships in Cape Town held over the Easter weekend. Here he hounds Ian Young (2) in the DD2 Gearbox Class final. Pic by www.ksdvdcreators.talkspot.com |
Cape Town drivers threw down the gauntlet in the first round of the 2010 SA Rotax Max Challenge National Championship held at the Mother City’s Killarney kart circuit on April 1 and 2.
Undoubted star of the meeting was Aidan de Nobrega driving a new Arrows chassis, who now leads the top-category Senior Rotax Max Challenge. The son of former single-seater ace Mark de Nobrega, young Aidan revelled in his first SA championship drive in the top class, his two wins and two second places in the four-race format being enough to move him to the top of the championship table, ahead of the highly fancied Gauteng drivers Ryan Frost, Ricky Hill and international karting star Caleb Williams » more
ROTAX WORLD FINAL LOCATION UNVEILED
26.03.2010
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SA ROTAX MAX CHALLENGE KICKS OFF WITH THE FIRST 2010 NATIONAL IN CAPE TOWN ON APRIL 3
By Stuart Johnston
Caleb Williams DD2 World Champion
pic by Ken Johnson |
When the country’s best Rotax Max Challenge karters arrive in Cape Town over the Easter weekend in April, they’ll be going into the first National meet of the year with little idea about who’s who in the competitive zoo.
With so many driver line-up changes in the various classes and no championship points-scoring regionals to establish a pecking order so far this year, the first of the three National rounds is bound to throw up some surprises » more
Information on new Rotax clutch
10.03.2010
» information
Zwartkops Rotax Regional Race 6 March 2010
08.03.2010
» results
Information on new Rotax exhaust systems
05.03.2010
» information
THE ROTAX WINTER CUP GOES AHEAD AGAINST ALL ODDS
Campillos, SPAIN: 10/14.02.2010
The opening race of the season on the RGMMC calendar for Rotax appeared as if it might be a complete wash-out last weekend at Karting Campillos in the Andalusia region off the Mediterranean coast when the worst weather to hit Spain for 60 years hammered the Winter Cup with a vengeance » more » results
2010 South African Rotax Max Challenge Preview
17.02.2010
With the recent approval of the South African ROTAX Max Challenge Series Regulations there is much excitement and anticipation in the air. Cape Town will be the host to the first SARMC National event – taking place on Saturday, 3 April 2010 at Killarney Raceway » more
» regulations
ROTAX TORO OPENER 2010
12.02.2010
Spain is the venue set to ‘break the ice’ at the start of a chilly European racing season, as the second Rotax Winter Cup kicks off at Karting Campillos in the south of the country this weekend.
Following the success of last year’s first ever Euro shakedown also held at the same location just north of Malaga, event organisers and promoters RGMMC Establishment are excited with the overwhelming interest in the sequel. Managing Director of the motorsport management company Roland Geidel first introduced the Winter Cup in 2009 to bridge the six month gap between the Euro Challenge races and believes the Spanish race is perfect as a season starter » more
South African Karters – why are they so good?
28.01.2010
Ken Walker is a UK-based international kart commentator and journalist. A lawyer by profession, after many years as a freelance sports reporter for BBC Radio he turned his attention to kart commentaries. His first race call was for British Superkarts (250cc Shifters) at Silverstone in 1995 and his first international assignment was at Le Mans, France for European Superkarts in 2002.
Since retiring from his legal practice he has worked all around the world at kart events. In 2009 he was the English language commentator at the CIK World Championship in Macau, China, the Rotax World Finals in Egypt, and took up his regular series appointments with the Rotax Euro Challenge, the Florida Winter Tour and the Monaco Kart Cup » more
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