Campos Claims Zwartkops Podium Amid Mixed SATC Weekend

Keegan Campos continued to move his 2026 South African Touring Cars campaign in the right direction this past weekend, with the Campos Transport BMW driver securing a podium finish during Round 3 of the championship at Zwartkops Raceway in Pretoria.

Having missed the opening round of the season, Campos arrived at the 2.4km Pretoria circuit looking to build on the momentum gained from his victory in the previous round’s final race. With his campaign still in the early stages compared to some of his rivals, the weekend presented an important opportunity to score strongly and continue closing the gap in the championship standings.

Zwartkops Raceway has been a happy hunting ground for Campos in the past. No stranger to the tight and technical circuit, he recorded two of his three victories during the 2025 season at the Pretoria venue, giving him added confidence heading into the weekend.

That confidence was evident during Friday’s practice sessions, with Campos ending the final session second quickest, just 0.167 seconds off the pace setter. With the field once again tightly matched, Saturday morning qualifying proved highly competitive. A little over three-tenths of a second separated the top five, with Campos securing fifth on the grid for the opening race.

Race 1 was largely a controlled affair for the former Polo Cup and SupaCup racer. While the early stages saw cars ahead of him duelling for position, Campos remained alert and avoided a potential incident as the battle unfolded in front of him. Settling into a strong rhythm, he kept his BMW in contention and made up two positions before the chequered flag, crossing the line in third to claim a valuable podium finish and important championship points.

The traditional inverted grid for the top-six finishers from Race 1 placed Campos fourth for the start of Race 2. He made an excellent launch and immediately challenged for second position into the opening corner, but as he exited Turn 1, a loss of traction cost him dearly and dropped him to the back of the field.

From there, Campos tried to recover lost ground, but the balance of the car had changed significantly from earlier in the weekend. Unable to extract the same pace he had shown in practice, qualifying and Race 1, he was forced to manage the car through the remaining laps and eventually brought it home in fifth.

“It was a weekend of mixed emotions,” said Campos. “Race 1 was positive, and to come away with a podium was important for the championship, especially after missing the first round. In Race 2, I got a really good start and was in a position to fight for second, but I lost traction coming out of Turn 1 and that dropped me back. After that, the car just didn’t feel the same. The balance changed quite a bit, and I struggled to keep up with the pace we had earlier in the weekend. We’ll take the points, learn from it, and keep pushing forward.”

Despite the challenges in the second race, Campos leaves Zwartkops with another podium to his name and a solid points haul as he continues to build momentum in the 2026 South African Touring Cars season. With proven pace in the Campos Transport BMW and a determined approach, the focus now shifts to converting that speed into consistent results as the championship heads into its next round.