Zwartkops Raceway was the venue for the ninth round of the 2015 Liqui Moly Legends Championship. With three of the series regulars on international duty in America at the Legends Cars Road Course World Finals at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and a few cars being out of action due to repairs a slightly thinner field set out for the all-important qualifying session.
The traditional ball draw for grid positions would shake things up once again. Seef Fourie (Pro) drew pole position with Divan Myburgh (Pro) drawing second. Rudy Myburgh (Master) would start from third position while Shaun Nel (Pro) would start alongside the veteran racer. Johann van de Venter (Master) and Franco Di Matteo (Master) would secure the third row.
Race 1
The start of the first race saw the usual charge through the first few corners. Divan grabbed the lead ahead of Fourie and Nel. Llewellyn Myburgh (Pro) also had a good start and set about chasing the leading trio. Divan ran wide at the top of the hill and handed the lead to Fourie. Llewellyn was up to second by the time they crossed the line for the first time, with Nel fending off Di Matteo and defending champion Devin Robertson who had started on the last row of the grid.
The safety car came out when Nel lost control of his car through turn two allowing the field to bunch up again. When the race restarted on lap three Fourie had his hands full with Llewellyn and Robertson on his tail. Myburgh grabbed the lead before the lap was done with Robertson relegating Fourie to third as well. Di Matteo slotted into fourth with Rudy flying the Myburgh family flag in fifth as well. Justin Robertson (Master) moved into the top six ahead of Anro Stadler with Willie Erasmus (Pro) and a recovered Divan Myburgh in tow.
Divan saw his chances of a comeback go out the window when a long brake pedal caused him to spin out through the turn four sweep. Robertson Junior grabbed the lead on the same lap with Fourie getting past Llewellyn for second. The battle for second was heating up with Di Matteo closing in on the two youngsters ahead of him. Llewellyn regained second place on the penultimate lap of the race as Di Matteo turned the fight for second into a three horse race.
Robertson cruised home to the Overall and Pro class win but it was an all-out dice to the line for the rest of the podium positions. Myburgh pipped Fourie to the line by 0.093, with Fourie only just keeping Masters Victor Di Matteo at bay by 0.143 of a second to claim third. Sixth placed Stadler took the Semi-Pro honours.
Race 1 Results
1. Devin Robertson – Best lap: 1:12.710
2. Llewellyn Myburgh – Best lap: 1:13.561
3. Seef Fourie – Best lap: 1:13.832
4. Franco Di Matteo – Best lap: 1:13.615
5. Justin Robertson – Best lap: 1:14.035
6. Anro Stadler – Best lap: 1:14.467
Race 2
An inverted grid for race two based on the ball draw for the first race would shake things up once again. Having pole position for the second race Robertson broke away into an immediate lead with Willie Erasmus, Llewellyn Myburgh and Justin Robertson in hot pursuit. Divan Myburgh was driving like a man possessed after a disastrous first race and was soon up to fifth position. He grabbed fourth place by lap two and started closing the gap to his cousin. Llewellyn then took second on lap two with Divan dropping Erasmus back to fourth as well.
Morne Stoltz and van de Venter tangled through the “Table top” on lap five sending both of them into retirement. Fourie was also on a charge after starting from the back of the grid but was finding it harder to get through the traffic. He eventually worked his way up to fourth position after a tough battle with Di Matteo, Robertson Senior and Erasmus. An exciting last lap saw the Myburgh cousins changing positions on numerous occasions.
In a run down to the line Divan passed Llewellyn around the outside of the last corner to snatch second place by 0.080 of a second! Robertson cruised home to take his second Overall and Pro class win of the day. Sixth placed Robertson Senior took the Masters victory with ninth placed Stadler picking up the Semi-Pro laurels once again.
Race 2 Results
1. Devin Robertson – Best lap: 1:12.760
2. Divan Myburgh – Best lap: 1:12.712
3. Llewellyn Myburgh – Best lap: 1:13.036
4. Seef Fourie – Best lap: 1:13.135
5. Willie Erasmus – Best lap: 1:13.870
6. Justin Robertson – Best lap: 1:13.981
Race 3
The final race of the day would see a full reverse grid based on the combined points scored from the first two races. Nel led the field through turn three with Fred Els (Master) and a repaired van de Venter in tow. The opening lap of the last race is always busy with the faster drivers making their way through the field. It didn’t take long for the faster drivers in the field to make their way to the front
Erasmus was up to second behind Nel by lap two, with team mate Robertson glued to his rear bumper. Erasmus took the lead before the end of the lap with Robertson hot on his heels. Robertson then shot past his team mate a lap later to claim the lead while Llewellyn grabbed third position from Nel down the main straight.
Fourie was also on a charge as he slotted into fourth position on lap five with Di Matteo relegating Nel to sixth a lap later. Llewellyn grabbed second place on lap six with Fourie getting past Erasmus to claim third as well. Guest driver Jason Wessels (Master) ruined his chances of a decent result with a spin at the top of the hill.
After ten laps of action packed racing Robertson made it a clean sweep of victories for the day while Llewellyn took his second runner up placing ahead of Fourie. Fifth placed Di Matteo took his second win in the Masters class while ninth placed Stadler made it three out of three in the Semi-Pro class.
Race 3 Results
1. Devin Robertson – Best lap: 1:12.995
2. Llewellyn Myburgh – Best lap: 1:12.905
3. Seef Fourie – Best lap: 1:13.021
4. Willie Erasmus – Best lap: 1:13.866
5. Franco Di Matteo – Best lap: 1:13.989
6. Shaun Nel – Best lap: 1:14.515