Summarize

It was a classic case of the exuberance of youth versus the steady hand of experience, but it was the youngster who prevailed as sixteen-year old Jayden Goosen took his maiden double ATE VW Challenge victory at Zwartkops’ opening Gauteng regional Extreme Festival on Saturday. In a day of double victors, experience however prevailed in Classes B and C where champion Stuart Mack and Mitch Coetzee emerged on top.

Goosen started the day by topping qualifying, but a technical infringement saw his turbo 2-litre Ferro Energia AA Certified Polo sent to the back of the Class A grid. That left veteran Wayne Masters and naturally aspirated 2-litre Performance Master Polo on pole from Dean Ross’ normally aspirated Norbrake Distributors car from Judd Bertholdt’s turbo Sizanani Plastics version and Elna Croeser in her aspirated ATE Brakes car.

Stuart Mack remains the only turbo litre car in the Class B pack in his AutoZone Polo and he wasted no time to put it on pole against his turbo 2-litre rivals, series sophomore Francis Aldrich’s VaporWorx version, CSOL lad Anthony Lessing. Chris Davison’s Generator Services Polo and Martin de Beer’s MLP car were next up. 

A delighted Mitch Coetzee put it on Class C pole from Ukwazi lad Adriaan de Beer and Historic racing refugee Stuart Konig on debut in his Northen Bolt and Tool Vivo. Philip Croeser’s ATE version followed from Cody Petersen’s Insurisk car and Rezcom driver Dino Smit after Insurisk duo Dimitri Zapheriou and Kyle Petersen suffered qualifying sessions to forget.

The ATE VW Challenge season then got off to a cracking start. Jayden Goosen used his turbo power to quickly jump back to second and put Wayne Masters straight under pressure as the two delivered a delightful battle up front. The youngster duly found his way past the Master on lap five, leaving Wayne to put every ounce of pressure he could afford on his young rival. Goosen not only held him off, but also posted the fastest lap by all of a hundredth of a second.

Behind them, Judd Bertholdt held Elna Croeser and Dean Ross off for third. Champion Stuart Mack picked up where he left off to take the class B win from Anthony Lessing,  Francis Aldrich, Chris Davison, and Martin de Beer. Stuart Konig’s impressive debut ended with a throttle issue. Old man Mitch Coetzee was smiling even broader after his maiden Challenge victory over Adriaan de Beer as Kyle Petersen put his qualifying gremlins behind him in third from Croeser, Zapheriou, Smit and brother Cody.

The second race proved a carbon copy of the thrilling opening race heat. Goosen and Masters fought it out up front as Jayden edged Wayne once again, but it was Masters who took the fastest lap this time around. Bertholdt once again wound up third from Ross and Croeser. Stuart Mack continued on his merry way to the Class B double from Aldrich, Davison and de Beer after Lessing hit trouble. Coetzee continued the double win trend over de Beer and Konig in Class C with Zapheriou, Croeser, Smit and Cody and the delayed Kyle Petersen in chase.

With three double class victories, it is advantage Jayden Goosen, Stuart Mack, and Mitch Coetzee in the championship. But being early doors and with several other cars expected to join the fray from the second round at Kyalami’s Blockbuster Extreme Festival on 11 and 12 April, the ATE VW Challenge fat lady is not even out of bed yet.