22 Feb RACE REVIEW – DRAG RACING #1 – 18 FEBRUARY 2023
MSA DRAGS OPENER LIGHTS UP KILLARNEY STRIP
Killarney’s first MSA Drag Racing event of 2023 on Saturday 18 February saw street-legal Class 6S cars running just a few tenths of a second slower than the best of the competition cars – but the day was dominated by Hermann Mostert and his Nissan Champ bakkie ‘Jack Russell’, which ran an 8.5 second pass straight off the trailer and posted a best effort of 8.35196 seconds at 286.12km/h later in the day.
The only other open-class runner to go under 10 seconds was Abdul Hadi Ismail (Audi TTRS), with a 9.90363 second run at 234.80km/h, while Jerome Michaels in a similar car posted a 10.29528 second pass at 216.14km/h to take third.
Thaakier Abrahams’ BMW S1000RR was the only motorcycle runner under nine seconds, recording a superb 8.91660 second pass at 255.14km/h at the top of Class MA, with Irvinne Bruinders on a similar BMW second on 9.42579 seconds and 238.96km/h.
J Maart was the top-scorer in Class MA on a Suzuki GSX-R1000, posting a best effort of 9.38744 seconds at 242.42km/h, just ahead of Muraad Moerat’s S1000RR (9.48988 seconds at 231.62km/h).
Class MC winner David Wilson, on yet another BMW S1000RR, was heartbreakingly close to the nines with a best of 10.03307 seconds and 244.53, while M Salie punched well above his Yamaha R6’s weight with 10.79484 seconds and 212.43km/h.
Class OA was very closely fought; Saud Bassa (Volkswagen Golf 1), fourth in class, was only 0.12 seconds slower than the similar VW of class winner Royston Prestage. Prestage recorded a best of 11.79954 seconds at 182.83km/h, with Geo Maneveld, also in a Golf 1, second on 11.86357 seconds and 188.55km/h. Third was Toyota Corolla pilot Riaaz Petersen (11.89378 seconds), with Bassa fourth on 11.95192 seconds and 181.47km/h.
Class 6S for street-legal turbocharged six cylinder cars was as Nissan GTR R35 benefit, as Yaseen Ebrahim (9.65847 seconds at 238.86km/h) and Waghied Jappie (9.80678 seconds at 236.20km/h) posted results that would have placed them second and third respectively in Class OA.
Class 4S for street-legal turbocharged four cylinder cars belonged to the VW Golf 7R of Wafiq Pillay, whose best effort of 11.72640 seconds and 188.77km/h was only marginally quicker than Zahier Majiet’s similar Golf (11.85867 seconds and 200.40km/h). Third was Luke van Niekerk’s Nissan Champ bakkie on 12.51509 seconds and 188.29km/h. The only entry in the Standard Street class was Warren Faro’s Golf 1, which recorded a very creditable 13.53041 second run at 167.61km/h.