- Pieter Zeelie tops the times in Modified Saloon Car category after opening three qualifying rounds, with Reghard Roets hot on his heels in Nissan R35 GT-R
- Seven-time World Rallycross champion Johan Kristoffersson posted his best qualifying time of 40.157 seconds in all-electric Volkswagen Polo RX1e – a mere eight-thousands of a second off Petter Solberg’s time at same point in 2023 edition with 2.0L turbo petrol VW Polo R WRX Supercar
- Reigning Single Seater and Sports Car category champion Robert Wolk in a class of his own on first outing in recently acquired Gould GR55B
- Clint Weston leads the charge in Road Car and Supercar category in Mercedes-AMG GT 63 SE E Performance, with BMW’s Cristiano Verolini currently second in M4 Competition
The opening day of King of the Hill at the 2025 Simola Hillclimb delivered all the excitement, drama and intense competition that fans had been eagerly waiting for – particularly in the Modified Saloon Car category where it was a battle of old foes, former winners and title hopefuls.
Pieter Zeelie, the 2021 winner in his rapid Toyota MR2 Super GT, emerged at the top of the time sheets at the conclusion of the day’s three qualifying runs his fastest run 38.220 seconds – an impressive feat in his rear-wheel drive car. Not only was this 0.185 seconds faster than last year’s winning time set by Dawie Joubert in the Ferrari 488-powered Lotus Exige, but he was a mere six-hundredths of a second off the current Modified Saloon Car record of 38.129 seconds set in 2022 by Franco Scribante in the radical multi-winged four-wheel Nissan R35 GT-R.
Ever since Reghard Roets entered the Modified Saloon Car fray in the BB Motorsport Nissan R35 GT-R in 2022 he has been challenging for the win, but thus far it has remained just out of his grasp. He ended the day with the second-fastest time of 38.386 seconds, and there’s no doubt he will be giving it everything during tomorrow’s remaining three qualifying runs, the Class Finals and the Top 10 Shootout in the search for glory.
Scribante’s car has been surprisingly off the pace so far this year, having ended day one with a best qualifying run of 39.659 seconds – 1.5 seconds off his current record. Although the team didn’t have immediate answers for the deficit, some late-night data diving and tweaks are certainly on the cards, and most wise bets will be on Scribante fighting back hard on Sunday.
Roets is predicting the top Modified Saloon Car contenders dipping below 38 seconds for the first time in the event’s 15-year history, and Zeelie is quietly confident of going even faster on day two. “There is definitely more time to be had, and it can only go better tomorrow,” Zeelie said. “We’ve been testing different tyres today, and without knowing what to expect from the various tyres in the first proper corner at Turn 2, I’ve been a bit cautious. We will now choose the right tyres, and I’ll have the confidence to push tomorrow.”
Electrifying performance from Kristoffersson
Seven-time World Rallycross champion Johan Kristoffersson set the benchmark for electric vehicles by ending his first day at the Simola Hillclimb with a best qualifying time of 40.157 seconds in the 2022 and 2023 WRX title-winning Volkswagen Polo RX1e. Using his vast experience in a wide variety of motorsport disciplines and his intimate knowledge of this car, he steadily chipped away at his times during each run and proved his exceptional car control while scything his way up the 1.9 km Simola Hill.
Interestingly, his time of 40.157 seconds was eight-thousands (0.008 sec) faster than Petter Solberg’s time at the same point in the 2023 edition when he drove the championship-winning Volkswagen Polo R WRX Supercar, which is powered by a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine. Such is the competitiveness of the Modified Saloon Car field that Kristoffersson’s time placed him sixth overall, with Dawie Joubert (Lotus Exige) wrapping up his day in fourth place on 39.264 seconds, eight-tenths off his winning time from last year, followed by brother Charl Joubert on 39.708 seconds in his Lotus Elise.
Odds are certainly on Kristoffersson dipping below 40 seconds on Sunday and exploiting the instant power, 0-100 km/h acceleration in 1.8 seconds and the outstanding agility of the Polo RX1e. “I’m really enjoying being back in our championship-winning car, and although it’s not loud like most of the cars here, it’s pretty fast,” he said. “This is a very high-speed course with two very tricky sections at Turn 2 and Turn 3 that you have to get absolutely right for a quick time, but the twisty section at the top is basically flat-out the whole way.
“It’s great to be at the Simola Hillclimb,” he said. “There’s a fantastic atmosphere with a lot of spectators, and so many fans who are really passionate about motorsport. This event has a lot of cars that are extremely fast, and loud, which makes it very enjoyable.”
Wolk leads single-seaters
Despite competing for the first time in a car that was only recently acquired and assembled from boxes of parts imported from the UK, Robert Wolk was in a league of his own in the Single Seater and Sports Car category for King of the Hill.
Wolk and the WCT Engineering team spent most of the day checking and tweaking the setup of the Investchem-backed 2005 Gould GR55B, and he posted a best qualifying time of 36.140 seconds. Unfortunately, the highly anticipated battle between Wolk as the 2024 champion and six-time winner Andre Bezuidenhout in similar cars never materialised. The engine in Bezuidenhout’s 2007 Gould is currently being rebuilt in the UK and wasn’t ready for this event.
With a margin of around four seconds over the nearest single-seater competitor, a second-consecutive category win is on the cards for Wolk if he has a clean run on Sunday – although he is currently just under two seconds off Bezuidenhout’s outright Simola Hillclimb record of 34.161 seconds. Having had just a short shakedown test before this event, the scene is already set for Wolk to engage in an enthralling battle with Bezuidenhout in next year’s Simola Hillclimb, and beyond.
Byron Mitchell was the next-best single-seater, posting a solid time of 40.204 seconds in his 2002 Reynard Formula VW, followed by Rick Morris in a 2014 Formula Ford (47.320 sec).
Weston and the mighty Merc
AMG Driving Academy head Clint Weston appears to be on a charge to his first King of the Hill title in the Road Car and Supercar category. After delighting the crowds with his spectacular antics last year on his way to the runner-up spot in the four-door Mercedes-AMG GT 63 SE E Performance, Weston is the class of the field this time out in the latest two-door version which made its South African debut on the Simola Hill today.
Reigning four-time champion JP van der Walt wasn’t able to compete this year, but Weston is already tantalising close to the Porsche driver’s 2024 record of 42.935 seconds. After exploring the capabilities and various performance settings of this massively powerful hybrid sports car throughout the day, Weston crossed the timing beams in 43.356 seconds in Q3 – just 0.4 seconds off the current record, and he is confident that there’s more to come tomorrow.
It’s turning into a battle of the advanced driving instructors for this category, as BMW Driving Experience’s Cristiano Verolini was second-quickest in the latest BWM M4 Competition at 44.018 seconds, with third place currently held by AMG’s Courtney Nicholl in the hybrid Mercedes-AMG C63 SE E Performance.
The fight will be on throughout Sunday, with the final three qualifying runs determining which top three competitors in each of the individual classes make it to the Class Finals, as well as the all-or-nothing Top 10 Shootouts to crown the King of the Hill winners in the three main categories!
Full action livestream
Local and international enthusiasts who aren’t able to attend this year’s Simola Hillclimb can follow all the action via the livestream, which is free to access via the website (www.simolahillclimb.com). The broadcast covers all three days, ensuring that you don’t miss any of the excitement and intense competition, hosted by expert presenters including Rodrigo de Oliviera from Portugal, who runs Hillclimb Monsters.
The livestream includes several innovations this year, including in-car footage from some of the top competitors, as well as expanded pit lane coverage incorporating the amazing sights and sounds of this unique event.
