As we enter the second half of the season with 4 races completed there has been 4 different drivers starting on pole position, 4 different drivers taking the fastest qualifying lap, 4 different race winners and get this, 3 different championship leaders… 2022 Saw a lot of changes come to the Vee’s with the move from National status to National Challenge status making it more affordable for members whilst still being able to stay on the National tour. Qualifying structure change has also brought a new twist on the swing of things with the top 6 drivers scrambled after their qualifying session resulting in the epic battles you have come to see so far this season. Still staying on the same Bridgestone rubber as the previous season also makes for closer racing amongst all the drivers throughout the grid. Coastal races are 3 heat races to give drivers more pleasure on those amazing circuits and more rewards for going all that way to race. On the Association side of things, the points structure has been changed giving driver credit for going down to the away races as well, adding valuable points to their championships for traveling. National Challenge Championship Race 1 - was held at Zwartkops Raceway in March with the Regional calendar. 23 cars took to the grid hitting off the season with a big field. Lendl Jansen taking his Rhema 2 quickest around Zwartkops but started in 3 rd place, the Bridgestone grid scramble saw Vaughn Hills on pole position alongside his father Peter giving the Hills’s a front row lockout. Lights out and go with hard racing from the first corner, in the end Gert van den Berg took the top podium spot followed by Greg Wilson and then Lushen Ramchander in the overall results. Race 2 - was held at Zwartkops Raceway again in April this time with the National tour showing the bigger categories that Formula Vee is back! 21 cars took to the grid giving the crowds some epic racing. This time around Greg Wilson dominated the field with his 2x wins and a pole position followed by Gert van den Berg and Lushen Ramchander having another podium finish. Greg taking over the top spot in the Championship from van den Berg. Race 3 – this time going down to Aldo Scribante and taking down a decent field of 15 cars. From the word go the old hand of Peter Hills topped the timing sheets in Friday practice sessions. Qualifying saw Brandon Hills put on a great display to take the fastest time; the grid scramble had other things to say giving pole position to Lushen Ramchander. Peter Hills standing on top of the podium with Lushen Ramchander taking second place and Greg Wilson just beating out Brandon Hills for third place. The month of June saw a midyear break giving all drivers some needed rest and time to work on their cars for the year ahead. Race 4 – Red Star Raceway sees Formula Vee again after not racing there in the 2021 season. The king of Red Star Gert saw him put on a magic lap in qualifying to get that needed point for fastest lap. Once again, the Bridgestone grid scramble mixing things up giving pole position to Greg Wilson. Race pace was all in the hands of Gert van den Berg and Lendl Jansen, with Jansen taking the 2x wins from Gert leaving Peter Hills and Lushen Ramchander to fight it out for that final spot in both heats one a peace. Hills took the third spot in overall over Ramchander. Association Championship As many people don’t know what the Association Championship is, it is for the drivers in the mid to rear end of the pack. Giving other drivers some recognition and something worth driving for. This season has been very tight amongst the association drivers just as it has been for the Overall championship Race 1 - Zwartkops saw Vaughn Hills put down some seriously fast times and with the addition to the new Bridgestone grid scramble he was the lucky one to start on pole position first time for him in his racing career and a first for him and his father Peter to start on the front row of the grid. With allot of action happening during both heats it brought the podium proceedings with Vaughn Hills taking first place, Henk van den Berg in second place and Roy Douglas having a solid weekend finishing in third place. Race 2 – Zwartkops brought some more interesting things happen in both championships. Sadly, Vaughn Hills has since relocated overseas but we will still have him over for racing towards the end of the year. Eric Booyens starting his 2022 campaign due to missing out the first event. Eric took over the luck from Vaughn in the first event with the Bridgestone grid scramble handing Eric second place on the grid. Racing was as tight as ever between the association drivers so when it came to the trophy ceremony Eric took the first place followed by Josef Kotze and then Theodore Vermaak in third. Race 3 – Down to Aldo Scribante we go and 3 heats giving the association drivers credit in earning points and 3 heats for that additional extra push in points. Between the 15 drivers down for the event 8 of them are fighting for the association title. 3 Drivers however made a full run away from the rest of the pack. Josef Kotze, Kyle Watt and Theodore Vermaak all three fighting it out in all three heats. Josef taking it top position over Kyle Watt and Theodore Vermaak in third. Race 4 – Red Star being a long-awaited race it gave some good battles yet again. Although Eric Booyens leaving all the association drivers in his dust; the rest of them had some serious fights on their hands. Kyle Watt, Josef Kotze and Theodore Vermaak fighting for the rest of the podium not leaving Henk van den Berg and Michael Kernick not to fall off their tails. Eric took first place with Kyle Watt in Second and Josef Kotze in third. 2022 Has been a good year to the Formula Vee Association thus far. Securing new sponsors and keeping those from the previous year. The field has grown tremendously with 27 active drivers. Midway through the season there is 5 new members signing up, and some drivers who have not yet raced this season will be joining the action later in the year. DOE Formula Vee will be joining the National tour again next month and for the first time in 7 years back at East London!!

Lendl Jansen had the ultimate weekend down in Gqeberha. Starting on pole position to taking number 1 spot in both heats and the fastest lap and top step on the podium. Gqeberha did not see Formula Vee in 2020 due to lock down and it was evident by the good turnout of cars on the grid the drivers missed the track. A full field of 16 cars showed up on the Aldo Scribante race circuit and right out the gate on first practice the drives set quick times. Friday practice with almost perfect conditions made learning the track again all the easier. Lendl Jansen, Gert van den Berg and Peter Hills topping the time sheets in all the sessions. Saturday morning and the perfect weather from Friday disappeared. Wind gusting and making drivers work for their track positions. A tail wind made things even more interesting down the main straight. Pole position was taken by Lendl Jansen and second place to Gert van den Berg, followed by Peter Hills and Lushen Ramchander. Unfortunately, Henk van den Berg had an incident with David Austin leaving the Liqui Moly driver unable to finish qualifying, Austin however managed to make it back to the pits and tend to a bit of gearbox issues from the incident. Race 1 15 cars take to the grid with Henk van den Berg still fixing damage to his car. The drag race down to turn one and Gert van den Berg getting the best drive, Lendl Jansen right on his tail and Lushen Ramchander getting the jump on Peter Hills. M.D. Bester and Brandon Hills closely following with Shaun van der Linde and Vaughn Hills putting pressure on the front 6 drivers. Lap one completed and the respective battles settle. Top 6 drivers start to break away. Theodore Vermaak had an early off on lap two turn one taking Marcel Blignaut along with him to the flowers, luckily both drivers came back on track with no damage. Turn one lap three taking more victims in M.D. Bester spinning around leaving Shaun van der Linde tagging his right rear, both recovered and got right back to the action. Further back Roy Douglas, Theodore Vermaak and Shaun van der Linde having a tight battle for 9 th place. Ernie Vermaak, David Austin and Marcel Blignaut having their own 3-way battle for 12 th place. Albertyn Pienaar had his full share of bad luck, after having a bad start to the race he crashed out in the Chevy sweep turn 7. Lendl Jansen made his move on Gert van Den Berg and went out to take race one victory. Lushen Ramchander made a last-minute dive into Dunlop curve to take 3 rd place with Peter Hills running wide leaving Brandon Hills to take 4 th place. Race 2 all 16 cars make it to the grid. Henk van den Berg and his mechanics working hard to get the car on the track. Lights go out and it’s a drag race to turn one again. Lendl Jansen not having the best of starts losing out to Gert van den Berg, Brandon and Peter Hills. Vaughn Hills, Theodore Vermaak, Josef Kotze and Albertyn Pienaar fighting it out early on for 9 th position. Roy Douglas and Marcel Blignaut both working together to try and catch up to the fighting mid pack. Gert van den Berg and Lendl Jansen breaking away from the rest of the pack and all through the field respective battles started to emerge. Brandon and Peter Hills, Lushen Ramchander and M.D. Bester for 5 th Shaun van der Linde out on his own with the 4-car battle behind him. Ernie Vermaak and Henk van den Berg fighting over 12 th place and both giving each other a hard time lap after lap. Lendl Jansen sizing up Gert van den Berg and made his move with 2 laps to go and makes sure he pulls a gap to take home his second victory of the day. Brandon Hills pushing Gert van den Berg to the line closely followed by Peter Hills. Sadly, Henk van den Berg had to pull over on the last lap with gearbox issues. Formula Vee once again does not disappoint with the best category of the day! As tradition has it the tire podium comes out and the champagne gets ready to be sprayed over the winners and all the Vee supporters. 1 st Race voucher winners Henk van den Berg Josef Kotze Peter Hills National Championship podium 1 st Lendl Jansen 2 nd Gert van den Berg 3 rd Brandon Hills Association Championship podium 1 st M.D. Bester 2 nd Vaughn Hills 3 rd Josef Kotze Written by Theodore Vermaak Photo credit to kaykes_digital

August brought the next race at Zwartkops Raceway and the Association decided to do a tribute to fallen legend in motorsport and in Formula Vee. In honour of Ben Pienaar and Kevin Jenkins the field was full of 24 cars and amongst those was Albertyn Pienaar and Denver Pienaar. Race day started with the tribute to Ben Pienaar and awarding his family with his lifetime/honorary membership right before qualifying session took place. The weather was in typical August style cold and windy leaving tricky conditions for qualifying. This however did not stop the top contenders to build up heat into their Bridgestone tires and putting some astonishing times down. Race 1 - Gert Van Den Berg starting on pole position followed by Lendl Jansen and then Jaco Schriks in 3 rd . Lights go our and away goes the 24-car field into turn one with clean driving from all. Gert Van Den Berg getting great drive over Lendl Jansen and Jaco Schriks with M.D. Bester on their heels, Shaun Van Der Linde also getting in on the action. Jeandre Le Roux having a good start making up 3 spots with his move on the outside of turn 2. Flying down the back straight the drivers settle behind each other trying to line up late breaking on top of the hill at turn 5. Sadly, Roy Douglas spinning out in turn 4 leaving him beached in the sand trap causing a full course yellow and safety car. Bringing the field bunched up again with lap 4 and racing resumes, and Gert Van Den Berg gets a good restart pulling away from Jaco Schriks. Lushen Ramchander passing Shaun Van Der Linde and chasing to catch M.D. Bester. Further back Henk Van Den Berg, Theodore Vermaak, Jeandre Le Roux having a battle for 9 th place. After starting at the very back of the field Brandon Hills pushing his way forward to 6 th place. Vaughn Hills, Lushen Ramchander, Shaun Van Der Linde, Symm Grobler, Brandon Hills fighting it out swapping positions each corner. A spinning Andre Le Roux almost causing some issues at the top of the hill turn 5 luckily all drivers make it through unscathed. Denver Pienaar and Klinton Kane fighting it out in front of the leaders taking the checkered flag. Gert Van Den Berg taking the victory over Jaco Schriks and lonely 3 rd place M.D. Bester. Lushen Ramchander taking 4 th and Brandon Hills driving his way into 5 th . Vaughn Hills followed by Shaun Van Der Linde, Symm Grobler Henk Van Den Berg and Peter Hills in 10 th . Between the race heats the Association had a lucky draw for its members and friends with a set of Bridgestone racing tires up for grabs. Marietjie Pienaar was amongst the guests and got asked to pull the lucky number…and as luck (or irony) would have it she pulled ball number 10 and this number has been the one Ben Pienaar has raced with for the most part of his career. Henk Van Den Berg being the lucky winner! Ben 10 never disappoints. Race 2 - Missing on the grid was Shaun Van Der Linde and Marcel Blignaut both having mechanical issues. The field rushed through turn 1 and into turn 2 bunched up and fighting to get the best drive down the hill and onto the back straight. Jaco Schriks getting the jump over Gert Van Den Berg and Lendl Jansen short on his tail. Brandon Hills and Albertyn Pienaar both staring at the back of the field again due to some weight infringements after qualifying. Roy Douglas made it safely through turn 4 without spinning. Lap 1 completed, and the top 3 drivers run away from the rest of the field. Lushen Ramchander slowing ever so slightly into the clutches of Brandon Hills and Peter Hills grabbing the opportunity to put a pass on the defending champion. Theodore Vermaak, Symm Grobler and Jeandre Le Roux having a good fight for 9 th place and Vermaak feeling the pressure from Grobler and ending up in the tyre barrier. Further back in the field Kyle Watt makes a charge for Symm Grobler after just getting past a tough battle with Jannie Geyser and Albertyn Pienaar. Closely followed by David Austin and Josef Kotze. Sadly, Lushen Ramchander had to retire from the race with mechanical issues. Gert Van Den Berg taking the double victory with Lendl Jansen in 2 nd and Jaco Schriks in 3 rd . DOE Formula Vee the best racing of the day once again!! 1 st Race voucher winners Andre Le Roux Marcel Blignaut Brandon Hills National Championship overall results 1 st Gert Van Den Berg 2 nd Jaco Schriks 3 rd M.D. Bester Association Championship overall results 1 st M.D. Bester 2 nd Henk Van Den Berg 3 rd Jeandre Le Roux Written by Theodore Vermaak Photo credit to Maxine Byleveld

Round 3 of the Hankook National Formula Vee Championship took place at Zwartkops Raceway on 12 September 2020 as part of the Regional Inland Festival. All the championship contenders made it to the races with a strong 18 car entry list. The racing promised to be action packed as current championship leader Lushen Ramchander (Liqui Moly Forza) was ready to mount a serious challenge for the shortened 5 round championship. Having a five point advantage over Gert van den Berg (Hankook Rhema 2), meant it was game on between the two of them. The other potential challenger was Lendl Jansen (Bull Security Forza), who spent a good couple of Wednesdays practising at Zwartkops. In qualifying this showed and Jansen pulled off two great laps to take pole position for both races. Behind him it was van den Berg and Ramchander for race 1 and Ramchander and van den Berg for race 2. The first three cars were covered by less than 0,2s. Greg Wilson (Forza) was 4th on the grid with a highest qualifying for Shaun van der Linde (Truck City Boksburg) in 5th. This was just again showcasing the knowledge of Dean Nel as a mechanic on these cars. Jaco Schriks (Lube Station Rhema 2) could only manage 6th, and was the first of the cars on old tyres. He would have his work cut out for him on Saturday. Brandon Hills (Mangaza Rhema 1.5) only managed a couple of laps due to a misfiring car for most of the session. Theo Vermaak (D.O.E. Quality Parts / Forza Racing Vision) had some gearbox struggles as the car kept jumping out of 2nd gear and only managed a handful of laps as well. A returning Ashley Padayachee (Catalyst Technology Solutions Lantis) was finding his feet after a big incident with his first car in 2019. Some steering issue would force him to retire, but he did complete some successful laps in the car this time around. Another surprise was visiting driver Josef Kotze (Hankook Sting) who managed a decent time of 1m13,255s to claim 14th out of the 18 car field. The racing was as close and hard fought as always. In race 1, Van den Berg got the jump on Jansen to turn 2 and then managed to pull a small gap to the fighting pack behind him. Jansen had a determined championship leader behind him in the form of Ramchander. The two of them had an awesome dice with positions changing frequently. In the end Ramchander beat out Jansen. Wilson and Schriks also had a fight of note. Schriks passed Wilson early on, but Wilson was waiting for the closing stages to make a move. He did, but Schriks came back swiftly. After numerous position changes, Schriks ended up 4th with Wilson in 5th. Van der Linde managed a solid race result after the great qualifying and ended the race in 6th just ahead of Brandon Hills with a car that was running significantly better than in qualifying. Peter Hills managed to come from 17th on the start line to 8th with MD Bester following him closely over the line. Eric Booyens (Rhema 2) managed to narrowly beat Jeandre le Roux (Liqui Moly Stealth). Vaughn Hills (Hankook Rhema 2) had a stuck accelerator cable and had to come into the pits to repair it. The visiting Kotze had a good race after initially almost stalling it on the start line and having to come from dead last. At the race 2 start, the big winner was Van den Berg again, who came from 3rd on the grid to claim the lead after the first 2 corners. He would again have the rest fighting it out behind him, thus allowing him to stretch out a lead and take the race 2 win. Behind him, the dice for 2nd delivered the best racing of the entire day. Ramchander was initially leading, but a fast charging Schriks and Wilson took turns to lead out this battle as well. The lead in this group changed constantly and a frustrated Ramchander had to contend with a visually pleasing battle rather than being able to break away and take the fight to Van den Berg. He managed to claim 2nd to limit the damage, with Wilson, Schriks and Jansen following him over the line, covered by less than one second. Van der Linde again secured a solid 6th with Peter Hills coming from last to 7th this time around. He beat out Brandon and Vaughn, who this time had a much better race. Behind the three Hills’s, Jannie Geyser (Rhema 2) finished ahead of Bester and Booyens. Roy Douglas (Forza) finished just behind Booyens. Vermaak had to recover after a spin trying to overtake Le Roux cost him some time. Dave Austin (DA Racing Rhema 2) finished ahead of Josef Kotze and Le Roux. Kotze had a spin while trying a move on Austin and Le Roux had a malfunctioning distributor ruin his race with 2 laps to go. Racing was as close as ever, with only the dicing playing into van den Berg’s hands. The championship now goes to Phakisa on 3 October 2020 with Van den Berg and Ramchander tied on points. Hankook Formula Vee is proudly brought to you by Hankook and DOE Quality Parts.

Round 2 of the Hankook National Formula Vee Championship took place at Zwartkops Raceway on 14 March 2020 as part of the National Extreme Festival. The racing promised to be action packed as 5 time champion, Alan Holm (IRA Contractors Rhema 2) made a once off appearance. Added to this, two youngsters in the form of Eric Booysens (Rhema 2) and visiting Malte Poulsen (Wind n Solar Rhema 2) joining for their first event and it was bound to be a cracker. A 20 car entry meant that racing was always going to be quick around the short Zwartkops Raceway. Friday proved that Alan was close to the pace of joint championship leaders Lushen Ramchander (Liqui Moly Forza) and Gert van den Berg (Hankook Rhema 2). Brandon Hills (Mangaza Racing Rhema 1.5) had numerous gearbox issues and Blane de Meillon (Fire Break SA Sting) also struggled with gear selection issues. Saturday morning in qualifying, the first four places was split with 0,4s. Current champion, Jaco Schriks (Lube Station Rhema 2) was struggling with carburettor setup and could only manage 5th. Ramchander stole the pole from Holm with Lendl Jansen (Bull Security Forza) grabbing third from Van den Berg. Behind him Schriks had fifth with a returning Greg Wilson (Forza) ending sixth , managing a lap time under the 1min10s bracket. Behind him Jannie Geyser (Rhema 2) and rookie Booysens rounded out the top eight. From Wilson in sixth to Brandon Hills in an unusual fifteenth due to gearbox problems, was covered by less than a second in qualifying. Race one started clean, with positions remaining pretty much the same. Ramchander and Holm immediately started fighting which kept Jansen, Vd Berg, Schriks and Wilson in close pursuit. Van den Berg passed Jansen for third and stayed close to the front battle. The lead was almost swapping every lap. Holm and Ramchander had a clean race and in the end Holm got the better of Ramchander to win by 0,2s. The first four was covered by 1,3s with Schriks being the fourth car across the line. Behind the front batch, Jansen and Wilson had a great dice, with Jansen beating Wilson to the line. Eric Booysens made a mistake on lap 1 into turn 5 and spun dropping him to the back of the field. Jannie Geyser, Vaughn Hills (Hankook Rhema 2) and Jeandre le Roux (Liqui Moly Lantis) had a race long battle. It unfortunately ended in tears as Geyser and Hills tried a pass on each other into turn 5 with Geyser missing a gear and Hills and le Roux having nowhere to go, bumping into each other. Unfortunately, Hills retired and Geyser and le Roux finished out of position. Brandon Hills had a much better race, having to drive with one hand as the other was keeping the car from jumping out of 3rd gear. He finished in seventh ahead of father Peter Hills who was driving Dave Austin’s DA Racing Rhema 2. Theodore Vermaak (DOE Quality Parts/Forza Racing Vision) finished ninth, fending off a struggling Shaun van der Linde (Truck City Boksburg Rhema 2) as his engine was at its end. Rookie Poulsen and Roy Douglas (Forza) had a good dice to finish eleventh and twelfth. Booysens and Haydn Ellwood (Yellow Capital Sting), who only arrived from London just before the start of race 1, was next up. MD Bester (Mangaza Racing Rhema 2) was a non finisher of race 1 as his car gave electrical problems., forcing him to retire and Blane de Meillon couldn't get the gearbox issues resolved for the races. Race two had even more action in the front. Holm started in pole and the battle continued with Ramchander. In turn two, Brandon Hills starting 12th, bumped brother Vaughn who started in 8th after Brandon got a demon start. He then had to retire after one lap due to a damaged kill switch. Booysens again had a spin and fell to the back of the pack. On lap 6, Ramchander ran Holm off the track when a overtaking manoeuvre went a little wrong. Holm fell back to fourth before fighting back to take the lead on the last lap. Behind him Ramchander fended off Vd Berg who developed a slight misfire on the last two laps and he finished ahead of Jansen and Schriks. Wilson finished behind them and Vaughn Hills just beat Jannie Geyser after their race one battle continued with a much better result this time around. MD Bester finished in ninth to make up for the race one problem with Peter Hills beating Theo Vermaak by 0,05s. Poulsen beat Ellwood and Douglas finished behind them. Booysens was 15th with Craig Forbes (Hankook Sting) finished in 16th. Holm took the top step of the podium, but with Ramchander finishing 2nd and Vd Berg 3rd, it was Ramchander who opened up a 5 point margin at the top of the Championship log. This is the first time he has been clear at the top of the championship. With round three on 17 April 2020 at Killarney in Cape town in jeopardy due to the COVID-19, Lushen's lead might be critical come the end of the season. Stay informed as we will share info on our website and facebook page regarding the next round.

The South African National Formula Vee series celebrates its 55th season of close racing in 2020. The series started on 15 May 1965 with three Formula Vee’s lining up on the Kyalami grid. Since then the series has carried National Championship status for the majority of its 55 year existence, with champions like Dave Charlton, John Love, Judy Charlton (Witter), Ettienne van der Linde and Scott Temple to name a few. The series has always attracted new talent and the racing has always been extremely close and competitive with a family atmosphere where competitors have become friends. The series, sponsored by Hankook and DOE Quality Parts, kicked off the 2020 season, with the customary close and exciting racing. The first round was held at Redstar Raceway near Delmas in Mpumalanga on Saturday 22 February. With the race in February being quite early in the year, getting 16 cars to the grid was an awesome effort by all members and a sure sign of the committee’s commitment. The condition of the cars was also quite impressive with various new paint jobs making the grid look splendid. Friday, official practise was spent sorting out some teething issues on some rebuilt cars and running in some engines. One of the major improvers of the day must have been Shaun van der Linde (Truck City Boksburg Rhema 2). Shaun showed great pace and finished the day in fourth. For the remainder, the usual contenders was up there with Lushen Ramchander (Liqui Moly Forza) showing 2020 intent by setting the fastest lap time on Friday. Saturday morning during qualifying, Lushen looked like the man to beat until a small mistake cost him some time. Gert van den Berg (Hankook Rhema 2) then had the fastest lap until Lushen came back on the last lap to snatch pole position. So the grid was Lushen, Gert, Jaco Schriks (Lube Station Rhema 2), Lendle Jansen (Bull Security Forza) with Shaun van der Line in an impressive fifth. Further down, Brandon Hills (Mangaza Trading Rhema 1,5) took sixth with brother Vaughn Hills (Hankook Rhema 2) just behind him. Next up was a returning Greg Wilson (Forza) in a new chassis with Peter Hills (Liqui Moly Stealth) standing in for Jeandre le Roux in the newly built Stealth. Peter was assisting team Liqui Moly with development as Jeandre was out of country. At the back, Haydn Ellwood (Yellow Capital Sting) and Craig Forbes (Forbes Africa Holdings Sting) was on the grid in the two arrive-and-drive option cars. This was a brand new initiative by the committee and car owners to get new people into cars and testing the water before committing. Race one started with Gert van den Berg getting the jump on Lushen Ramchander, with Jaco Schriks in close pursuit. Lushen then passed Gert on lap 3 and led until the end. He crossed the line 0,087seconds ahead of Van den Berg and they were less than a second ahead of Jaco. Lendle had a lonely race after touching Brandon Hills into turn one. He finished in fourth with Brandon and Vaughn Hills having a close battle till the end. Shaun van der Linde made mistake on lap one and fell back to tenth, but recovered well to seventh. Greg Wilson also had issues, having to come from last on the first lap to recover to an eventual eighth place. In the dice with these two was MD Bester (Mangaza Trading Rhema 2), Theo Vermaak (DOE Quality Parts Vision), Peter Hills and Jannie Geyser (Rhema 2). This was a four car battle with Shaun and Greg having some fun while passing the fighting pack. At the back, Dave Austin (DA Racing Rhema 2) and Craig Forbes had a close dice with Dave winning out at the end. Race two, saw Gert taking the lead again, but this time he stayed ahead until Lushen made a small mistake allowing him to get away. Jaco passed Lushen for second, only to relinquish it on the last lap to Lushen again. Behind them, Lendle finished fourth with Brandon and Vaughn in fifth and sixth. Shaun was seventh after losing some places initially, but showing promise with the lap times. Greg fought with Brandon and Vaughn early on, but fell back to an eventual eighth. Behind him Peter Hills gave the Stealth a ninth in only its second race while MD Bester and Theo Vermaak had an almighty tussle for tenth and eleventh. Jannie Geyser and Roy Douglas (Forza) had a race long battle and they showed that you will always have a great battle on track in the Hankook Formula Vee’s! Overall results for the day was Gert, Lushen and Jaco with Lushen and Gert tied at the top of the championship. The next round at Zwartkops is around the corner on 14 March. The Hankook Formula Vee Championship joins the National Extreme Festival for a bumper day at Zwartkops Raceway. Come join in the fun and meet the drivers in the pits. The Hankook Formula Vee Championship is proudly brought to you by Hankook and DOE Quality Parts.

The Grand Finale of the Extreme Festival held at Zwartkops, promised to deliver close battles. The Hankook Formula Vee National Championship was setup to go down to the wire. Jaco Schriks (Lube Station Racing Rhema 2) had a 7 point lead going into the event and could barely afford any mishaps. Gert van den Berg (Hankook Rhema 2) had his work cut out, but both could easily be upset by the new winners that emerged during the season. Lendl Jansen (Bull Security Forza) and Brandon Hills (Mangaza Consulting / Just Water Rhema 1.5) could play a role, as could Lushen Ramchander (Liqui Moly Forza), Peter Hills (Lube Fusion Rhema 2) and Richard Carr (Lucky Star Rhema 2). These were just some of the front runners. Then you add “Mr Zwartkops” Symm Grobler (Rhema 2) and things could get hairy for either of the two contenders. During Friday, Schriks proved he was going to be hard to beat. Having spent the previous two Wednesdays testing and determining whether his cars problems was resolved or whether he had to use an alternate car, he was constantly fastest in all the practise sessions. Carr and Ramchander showed they would be the closest on track challengers as Van den Berg struggled with minor brake problems. During Saturday’s qualifying, the gloves were off and Schriks put in a blistering couple of laps to claim pole position for both races. He beat out Carr, Ramchander and Grobler. The first eight cars were covered by 0,8 seconds. Van den Berg had a carburettor issue and only managed seventh for both heats. With pole position and the bonus point, the championship dynamic shifted, and Schriks could afford to finish second in both races. But that is not what any potential champion wants to do. Further back there were some guests. Blane de Meillon (Firebreak Sting) joined the class for a race from the Monoposto field and Haydn Ellwood (Mangaza Sting) flew up from Cape Town to join the group in anticipation of a possible season to be spent in the National category in 2020. Race one delivered on the promise. Into turn two, Grobler and Peter Hills made slight contact which forced them wide. With Van den Berg starting from seventh, he had to win to stand a chance. On lap two, Schriks had a one second lead from Ramchander and Carr. Schriks then outbraked himself at turn five and rejoined making contact with Carr. He then joined behind Jansen in fifth. Title contender Van den Berg already made his way to third and things looked ominous for Schriks. He quickly got past Jansen and set off chasing Van den Berg. Schriks got past Van den Berg, who then threw it to the inside of Schriks in turn two to retake the position. It was a close move, but with the two respecting each other, there was no touching. Things then changed as Ramchander had Carr going down the inside of turn one. The two touched and Carr got stuck in the gravel trap. Van den Berg found himself in the lead, with the safety car being deployed. At the restart, Schriks had the better pace and passed Van den Berg to pull away to a comfortable lead. Van den Berg grabbed second with Peter Hills finishing third ahead of Grobler and Brandon Hills after a close fought battle. Behind them Shaun van der Linde (Truck City Boksburg / Len Schoen Estates Rhema 2) and Ben Pienaar (DOE Quality Parts Rhema 2) finished ahead of Michael Kernick (MJ Art & Design / Track SA Tasman 95) who recovered well after some qualifying difficulties. MD Bester (Mangaza Consulting / Just Water Rhema 2) just beat out Jeandre le Roux (Liqui Moly Lantis). They also had a great dice throughout the race. Jannie Geyser (Rhema 2) rejoined after having been spun around by Theo Vermaak (DOE Quality Parts Vision) earlier in the race. He finished just ahead of Vaughn Hills (Hankook Sting) who also had to recover from a spin while avoiding Geyser. The race definitely lived up to expectation, but with Schriks finishing ahead of Van den Berg, his championship lead was now 11 points. In race two, the battles were just as hectic, however by the time the racing got underway the nerves were a little more relaxed. Schriks had an easier race and also stayed on the track to pull out a clear lead. Van den Berg again had to come from seventh and fought through to come home second. He was however chased to the line by Ramchander. Behind him Grobler just beat out Jansen. Peter Hills finished a lonely race ahead of Brandon Hills while Carr finished just behind Brandon Hills after recovering from an earlier mistake. Shaun van der Linde was also chasing them across the line for a strong ninth. Ben Pienaar had a proper battle with Jannie Geyser and just pipped him to the line and Michael Kernick completed the points scoring positions. Interestingly, all finishers finished on the lead lap and that was a true testament to the close racing seen on track. Haydn Elwood and Blane de Meillon had an excellent dice with Dave Austin, with all of them improving their lap times over the weekend significantly. Jaco Schriks won the championship with 15 points and thus sealed his record equalling fifth national championship. The formula has grown and with new energy brought in by new drivers, cars, sponsors, the class is going from strength to strength. With 2020 being the 55th anniversary year of Formula Vee in South Africa, stay tuned to see the growth and fun had by each and everyone in this formula.

Photography: Kevin Jenkins

Image Credits: Elroy Vice Round 6 of the Hankook Formula Vee Championship was held at the Aldo Scribante Raceway in Port Elizabeth on 21 September 2019. This was the first return since 2015 and the lap record was set to fall after the track was resurfaced. A proper grid of 15 cars made the trip down to the racetrack. This also included Cape Town lad and old timer Byron Mitchel (Dolphin Engineering Forza) and Cyril Somerville (Dolphin Engineering Sting). Friday had its fair share of action. Most notably Jaco Schriks (Lube Station Racing Rhema 2) had to replace a clutch, Brandon Hills (Mangaza Consulting / Just Water Rhema 1.5) had to replace a gearbox and then Gert van den Berg (Hankook Rhema 2) hit the tyre barriers after running wide onto the grass at turn 6. Luckily for van den Berg, the damage was repairable with the car being ready for Saturday mornings qualifying session. During qualifying, Richard Carr (Lucky Star Rhema 2) was the man to beat setting the fastest time for pole position just ahead of Van den Berg and Schriks. Lushen Ramchander (TRA / D&B Industrial Forza) was in fourth with Brandon Hills and Peter Hills (Lube Fusion Rhema 2) rounding out fifth and sixth. Race one got off to a flyer with a spinner in the esses being MD Bester (Mangaza Consulting / Just Water Sting) with Sommerville bumping into him and damaging the 2nd radiator on Besters car. The race was red flagged and at the restart, Shaun Van der Linde (Truck City Boksburg / Len Schoen Estates Rhema 2) spun going through hanger. The first three, Carr, Schriks and van den Berg, was pulling away from the others with Brandon held up by a struggling Ramchander after he still had gearbox issues. On the last lap, van den Berg spun in hanger, copying Shaun van der Linde’s move and dropping back to seventh, but that was only after setting the new lap record of 1m06.486s bettering a long time record held by Schriks. In the end, Schriks won from Carr, with Ramchander beating Jnr Hills. Lendl Jansen (Bull Security Forza) just beat out Peter Hills for fifth with Van den Berg, then Byron Mitchell followig in tow. Van der Linde recovered to ninth with Theo Vermaak (DOE Quality Parts Vision), Ben Pienaar (DOE Quality Parts Rhema 2) and Jeandre Le Roux (Liqui Moly Lantis) scoring the last championship points on offer. This was also the first championship points for the newcomer showing constant improvement. Race two resulted in even further drama. This time the three leaders almost got away, but Brandon Hills and Ramchander tangled which sent Ramchander spinning and set Hills free. He started chasing the leaders and caught up, only to see Carr out braking himself into turn one with three laps to go. The battle was now on to try and see who could take the win. With Van den Berg leading over the line at the start of the last lap, Schriks got a good slipstream and tried to pass him on the outside into turn one. In the braking zone, they touched and Brandon got past unscathed to take his first checkered flag, and with that the overall victory for the day. Behind him, Schriks re-joined in second and Van den Berg in third. Perter Hills beat a recovering Carr. Van der Linde and Le Roux got their best finishes of the season. Pienaar beat out a recovering Ramchander and Mitchell. Vermaak finished in eleventh with Roy Douglas (Forza) rounding out the point scoring positions. It was an entertaining weekend with some small incidents which created a lot of attention and also showed how hard these racers are pushing. Brandon Hills took the top step of the podium after showing real winning pace the whole weekend with Schriks and Carr rounding out the podium. As a result, Schriks extended his championship lead and now looks like it will be tough to be catch up to. Hankook Formula Vee racing heads to Red Star Raceway on 26 October, so join us for a thrilling battle as Van den Berg and Jnr Hills will throw everything and the kitchen sink at Schriks to try and take more victories.