Zwartkops, Racing Circuit

Zwartkops Raceway lies at Centurion in Pretoria, South Africa, around 40 minutes north of Johannesburg's O.R. Tambo International Airport. The circuit first opened in 1961 with a fast two-mile course offering reasonable elevation changes, and through the 1960s and 1970s it grew into a regional racing hub alongside the larger Kyalami. In 1986 the track was split in two, partly in anticipation of a planned road through the land, with a shorter car circuit run anti-clockwise and a separate loop used for motorcycles and karting; the venue eventually closed in 1995 amid political infighting and economic difficulties in South African motorsport. After lying dormant for years, Peter du Toit revived the site, drawing inspiration from the compact Brands Hatch Indy circuit during a European tour, and reopened the rebuilt Zwartkops in 2001. The current layout is a short, furious eight-corner course of about 2.4 km, conceived as an 'arena' circuit with grassed banks for spectator visibility and noise containment, and it bypasses the old westernmost section with a 180-degree hairpin. Three of its corners are fast and challenging while several offer good overtaking under braking, with lap times of just under 55 seconds achievable. Today it ranks among the busiest and most modern circuits in the country, hosting the Legends of the 9 Hours historic races, the Sasol GTC Championship and the SA Superbike Championship, alongside South Africa's only internationally licensed kart circuit and an AMG Driver Academy.