Killarney International Raceway – A Passion for Speed at Killarney

Killarney’s 17th Passion for Speed international classic car races played out to a sizeable crowd on a perfect Saturday afternoon tickled by a gentle southeaster as international and local racers entertained on track. Several classic races for cars and motorcycles called back the past as priceless machinery diced in the sun, but it was Pretoria brothers, Mark and Jonathan du Toit who ended up on top in the 45-minute TT endurance feature race.

Two weeks two wins
The du Toits hustled their Lola T70 Spider Chevrolet — a tribute to the great Doug Serrurier and Jackie Pretorius’ Walls liveried car that thrilled Killarney crowds of the ‘70s — to its second TT win in as many weeks as they doubled up on their Zwartkops success last Saturday. They beat Swedish visitors Kennet Persson and Lennart Bohlin’s Ford GT40, British driver Tim Boles’ 1968 Chevrolet Camaro and Dutch Shelby Mustang duo Armand Adriaans and Francesco van Maarschalkerwaart. Swede Lars Bondesson’s Lotus Elan held Zimbabwean Denzil Bhana’s impressive Ford Anglia and Hazyview farmer Rodney Green’s MGB Twin Cam off for sixth.

That was however after British driver Steve Hart drove his 1964 Can Am McLaren M1C to a narrow win over Mark du Toit in the Lola and Persson in the ’64 GT40 in the opening Pre-’66 Le Mans race. Van Maarschalkerwaart was next up from British duo Richard Wilson’s ’62 Lightweight Jaguar E-Type and Boles in the Camaro.

Another highlight of the weekend was a pair of Classic UK vs SA Classic Superbike races, where SA star Noel Haarhoff powered his Suzuki GSXR 1100 to its third race win in a row following his Zwartkops double, to set up a home series win, ahead of the similar machines of Scotsmen Ian Simpson and Iain MacPherson. Norman McFadden was next up ahead of Cape racer John Kosterman, Howard Selby, Robert Burns and Fergal McAdam’s Suzukis.

British steal series
It was not to be however, as Haarhoff’s Suzuki ground to a halt in the finale to allow Simpson to lead MacPherson and Gordon Grigor home to clinch a come from behind biltong versus pot roast series win for the British team. Local man Kosterman took fourth from Selby, Burns, McAdam and Gary Edwards.

Cape Town racer Steve Humble led the way in the opening Pre-’74 International Sports Car race before his Mallock slowed to allow Durban driver Franco Scribante to drive his ex-Springbok Series Chevron B19 to the race win over Swede Kent Olof Abrahamsson and Englishman Robert Brooks’ contemporary Lola T212s. Donald Duncan was next up in his glorious ’64 Can Am McLaren M1C from Swede Bernt Andersson and local racer Louis de Jager in another pair of Lola T212s and Kennet Persson’s magnificent Ford GT40 in 8th.

Humble bounced back to beat Scribante and Brooks to the second race with Anderson fourth from de Jager and Persson after early leader Abrahamsson slowed. But that was not before a dramatic last lap that saw the race red flagged and scored on the previous lap completed after Scribante’s Chevron appeared to suffer a failure of sorts to crash heavily in Turn 4.

A field of stunning 1.5-litre ’sixties Formula 1 cars shared the track with a variety of Formula Fords, Vees and Juniors as well as one or two ‘50s specials. The European visitors revelled in the fine conditions and sunshine as Richard Smeeton set the early going in his rare Waiman Formula Junior, but he was overhauled by fellow Brit Richard Wilson’s Lotus-BRM at mid distance, which went on to win the first race.

Iain Rowley (Lotus) fought off Formula Ford duo Paul Richardson (Dulon) and Alex Morton (Merlyn) for third ahead of Andrew Wareing’s glorious 1.5-litre V8 F1 BRM, Des Hillary in another Dulon and Pat Dunseith (Lotus). Wilson held Smeeton off to score another close win in race 2, with Pretoria man Dunseith jumping up to third ahead of Wareing’s BRM, Richardson, Rowley, Morton and Richard Baker in a Formula Ford Titan.

Brotherly love
The du Toit brothers once again entertained as they diced in the opening Pre-66 Legends race, but it was Jono’s Chevy Nova that ultimately came out on top over Mark’s ’57 Bel Air and Briton Tim Boles’ Chevrolet Camaro, which inherited third after Dutch driver Michiel Campagne’s giant Ford Galaxie stopped out on the circuit. That allowed Armand Adriaans and Francesco van Maarschalkerwaarts’ Shelby Mustangs up to fourth and fifth ahead of Denzil Bhana’s Anglia and Rodney Green’s MGB.

Campagne bounced back in race 2 to split Jono and Mark du Toit over the line ,with van Maarschalkerwaart fourth from Adriaans, Bhana, Briton Chris O’Neill’s lightweight Jaguar E-Type and Green in the MGB.

Charles Arton drove his Datsun 240Z to victory in a very well supported 35-car opening WP Classic 198s and ‘90s Classic Saloons Invitational Race over Franco Donadio’s ultra-quick Ford Escort while Trevor Momberg kept a watching brief in his Ford Capri V6. Richard Prott was next up in his Porsche 911 RSR ahead of Wayne Lotter’s Zakspeed Escort as Steve Bekker’s wieldy Opel Kadett GTE and Ian Richards’s Datsun SSS sandwiched Erik Mouton’s monster 7th-placed Chevrolet de Ville.

Donadio took an easy second race win from Momberg and Vance Kearney’s Ford Capri Perana V8, Robin Forbes’s Corvette, Lotter, Denzil Bhana’s Anglia and Erik Mouton’s Chevy.

Local action
BMW duo Niyaaz Modack and Peet van der Walt emerged on top of the WPMC Allcomers race ahead of Chris Carolin’s Panoz, Paul Munnik’s rapid Golf and Polo Cup refugee Francois van Tonder. Carolin then overcame Modack to take race 2 from Munnik, van Tonder, Clifford Bacon’s BMW and Steve Bekker (Opel Kadett GTE).

Motor racing returns to Killarney for the opening round of the Wingfield Motors Power Series Saturday 17 February with a full program of racing ready to thrill Cape Town’s racing faithful to commence another weekend of great regional motorsport on two and four wheels.