Summarize

The Mopar South African Endurance Championship returns to action at the Killarney Campos 600 at Killarney in Cape Town Saturday 19 May to provide local race fans with an epic weekend’s racing alongside a full program of local classes at the home of Western Cape racing. If last year’s race was anything to go by, then Province race fans should prepare to be sat on the edge of their seats as the Campos 400 races into the night and if the northwester predicted in long term forecasts delivers, then changeable conditions could very well shake things even further up. 

Local Cape Town father and son team Marcel and Dayne Angel stole defeat from the jaws of a certain victory when their Autohaus Angel Ferrari 458 GT3 ran out of fuel on the last lap to retire in spite of completing two more laps more than the race-winning Scribante cousins’ Chevron last year, while Campos family, dad Rui and sons Jason and Keegan’s Campos Transport/Turn 1 Insurance Shelby-Ford V8 was also lucky to take second ahead of the reliable Fritz Kleynhans and James Forbes’ Cornelius Ligier JS49 after Mike Verier and Wayne Jardine’s Shelby likewise failed to get to the finish line for what could have been second.

So rest assured that the Angels will be out for revenge as they chase that now well deserved first Mopar SA Endurance Series victory with their Ferrari, but like always, that is easier said than done. Another home team, Rico Barlow Racing’s AidCall247 Ligier, JS53 EVO-Honda driven by Nick Adcock and Danish co-pilot Michael Jensen is also out for a home win, while last year’s third-placed team, Fritz Kleynhans and James Forbes’ Ligier-Honda is back to go two better and Simon Murray and Gavin Cronje’s glorious, super-quick SMR Ginetta G57-Corvette V8 also has Killarney honours in its sights.

Other plausible race winners include a Johannesburg-entered Stradale Ferrari 458 GT3 for Charl Arangies and Kishoor Pitamber and Cyril Ginsburg and Divan Wentzel’s road-legal Porsche GT3 RS among other Porsches and a Lamborghini, while Campos clan Rui, Jason and Keegan’s Campos Transport/Turn 1 Insurance entry does not reflect what car they will race, but reports from up north suggest a McLaren has been seen testing up there. Don’t discount the Durban platoon of Backdraft Cobra-Lexus V8s either, with one factory car driven by former Daytona 24 winner Tony Martin and Mike Mcloughlin, Trevor Graham and Brian Martin in the second car and a Bateleur Motorsport version for Mike Schmidt and Bruce Avern-Taplin. 

There is always huge interest among the runners in endurance racing and the Campos Killarney 600 promises much more of the same with baby class sportscars the likes of Nash MVW3-Volkswagens crewed by Hubi von Moltke/Jose Vasques and Peter Schmidt-Loffler/Dean Wolson duking it out with Eric Salomon and Dave Sinclair Team Lessons ELF S06-Toyota and Josh Dovey and Phillip Meyer’s Wright Motorsport Sports 2000 Opel in the midfield.

Saloon cars have been a part of South African Endurance Racing from the very beginning, when an army of tin-tops formed the lion’s share of the first-ever nine-hour race at Grand Central 60 years ago. The Mopar African Endurance Series still honours that time-tested tradition and expect among the quicker saloons to include Bradley Scorer and Theo Van Vuuren’s ever present Arnold Chatz Alfa Romeo Giulietta and George Smalberger and Heinz Bose’ CRC Q20 Volkswagen Golf 6 GTI leading that charge, while a most interesting entry is Rudi Patoir and Rob Prece’s Powerking Volkswagen Golf Mk 1 that harks back to its ‘seventies Manufacturers Challenge roots. 

The second round of the 2018 Mopar South African Endurance Series, the Campos 600 joins the regular Killarney Wingfield Motors Power Series May 19 program to ensure fans a full, varied and most entertaining raceday topped by the thrill of another sting in the tail endurance race. The Killarney International Raceway is situated on Potsdam Road across the way from Killarney Gardens, Milnerton (with a MyCiti bus stop right at the gate), entrance is R60 per adult, student entry is R40 and under 12s get in for free. See you at Killarney!