THE South African Single Seaters (SASS) series consists of the Formula Volkswagens (FVW) and the F1600s which are divided into the class A and B categories. Round one of the Super Series at Zwartkops Raceway on Saturday was also the first round of their national championship.
It came as no surprise that the defending FVW champion, Robert Wolk (1), immediately dominated in the category, posting the fastest qualifying time and claiming pole for both races. He followed this up with two race victories, followed in each case by Nicholas van Weely (87) and Jason Campos (19) – with the trio ending the day in these overall positions as well.
The second race of the day proved to be the big challenge with high speeds, low grip and slick tyres being the tricky combination to master. Here Wolk showed clear determination, accelerating out of the corners and fighting hard to control the FVW as it snaked under power, clearly on the edge of calamity.
In class A of the F1600 category, it was much the same up front with Scott Temple (3) and Keegan Campos (2) qualifying first and second and ending their races in those positions. In race one Graham Hepburn (4) started as the fourth man on the grid, and sneaked past third-place starter Bevan Williams (36) to claim third, but in race two Williams would not let it happen again and held on to retain third overall.
For Alexander Gillespie (50) it was a dramatic start to the season with a loose engine cover impeding his speed in the first race and an off in race two that saw him put the Zwartkops airbag system to good use, bending some of his car’s front suspension system in the process.
In class B, Rick Morris (8) was the star finisher for the day with two race wins to his name. Morris and Ian Schofield (9) clashed in the first race – a result of a brave overtaking attempt on the part of Schofield which resulted in him spinning off, sacrificing his track position and having to fight his way back through the field, ultimately losing his second place to Andreas Petrou (17). Race two, however, saw Schofield keep it neat in the wet conditions to finish second with Petrou in third place.
With a weekend of difficult race conditions and just four sets of tyres that must last an eight round season, the racers have to think strategically and it appears they opted for a conservative start to the year, keeping their tyres in good shape for round two at Killarney the end of this month.
