18 Jul RACE REVIEW – SHORT CIRCUIT SPRINTS – 15 JULY 2023
VAN NIEKERK AND SNYMAN BATTLE IT OUT IN SHORT-CIRCUIT SPRINTS

Slade “Wild Child” van Niekerk on the Project Sixty SA CBR150 and Missile Motorcycles warhead Kewyn Snyman battled it out in the combined CBR150 Juniors and Seniors races at Round 5 of the Killarney Short Circuit racing series, run on the Karting Circuit on Saturday 15 July in cloudy but dry conditions.
So close were the two leading contenders that the biggest winning in all three races was 0.3 seconds – less than a bike length!
Snyman chased Van Niekerk all the way in Race 1 but was unable to make a move that would stick and finished 0.3 seconds adrift after eight intense laps. Nicholas Hutchings (HSC Racing) followed them home at a respectful distance, with Justin Priday fourth.
Race 2 saw Snyman make that move on lap six, to lead the Project Sixty SA rider home by just 0.285sec, while all-rounder Nian du Toit (better known as a car racer!) came up from fifth to pass Hutchings on lap four and take third, six seconds behind the leaders.
Snyman pulled a perfect start in Race 3 and held the lead until the very last lap, but Van Niekerk was not to be denied, blitzing the more experienced rider in the final tour to win by exactly a quarter of a second. Third was another all-out battle between Du Toit and Hutchings, with Du Toit in front when it mattered and Jason Linaker a surprisingly close fifth.
Motard rider Johan Valentyn dominated the combined Super Motard/ClubSport races, with SSP300 champion Stavro Michel a surprise second in Race 1, but by Race 2 the motard rider had got the measure of the ‘buzzies’, as Valentyn, Morgan Evans and James Strahlendorf took the first three places, with Moto4 rider Bradley Fenner in fourth the first ClubSport rider home.
Valentyn and Strahlendorf then waltzed away to lead the final outing by 17 seconds from Evans in third and Fenner in fourth.
The Mini Moto races were a Max Schwerin benefit as the youngster rode to three convincing victories from Bertus Taljaard and Caleb Boniface. Thanks to Colin Brown for the superb photograph.