Kelvin van der Linde scored his third consecutive win when he took line honours in the fourth round of the international Volkswagen Scirocco R-Cup at the Norisring in Germany on Saturday afternoon.
The 17-year-old from Dainfern in Gauteng confirmed his status as the most successful driver in the series, comfortably winning the 21-lap race around the demanding street circuit in the ancient city of Nuremburg. Second, 2.5 seconds in arrears, was Danish teenager Michelle Gatting and third was Germany's Manuel Fahrnauer, 3.1 seconds off the pace. The other South African contender, Jordan Pepper, managed a credible sixth place.
Van der Linde started third on the grid, took the lead from polesitter Nicolaj Møller Madsen of Denmark on lap three and steadily pulled away from the 22-strong field from nine countries in identical VW Scirocco R sports coupes.
With four of the championship's nine rounds completed, Van der Linde has 140 points and a useful lead of 20 points over his nearest rival, Gatting.
“This race is the toughest of the season.”
He said afterwards: "Going into the weekend, I never expected to win at the Norisring. The gaps between the cars are so small that anybody can come out on top.
“But I got a good start and overtook Michelle on the first lap. Then, when I passed Nicolaj Møller Madsen a couple of laps later, I used the push-to-pass system to open a gap.
"I was also able time the re-start after the safety-car phase just right.
"The overall standings obviously look very good now, but there are still five races to go.
"I would like to dedicate my win to Allan Simonsen, in whose memory we all carried a sticker on our cars. He was a fantastic racing driver, and was in the thoughts of all the Scirocco R-Cup drivers today."
Danish sports car driver Simonsen died in an accident at the start of the recent Le Mans 24 Hour in France.
The next rounds of the Scirocco R-Cup will be run at the Nurburgring on 17 and 18 August.