The Cheetahs came from behind to record a 31-25 bonus-point win over an under-strength Benetton their PRO14 clash in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
The South Africans, who won only their second match of the campaign, outscored their Italian visitors four tries to three, as they dominated the last 20 minutes as Benetton felt the heat and the physical approach from the home team.
"We left it a bit late, but luckily our drives came good in the second half, " said Cheetahs captain Shaun Venter after the win.
Daniel Maartens scored two tries for the Cheetahs, while Benetton flyhalf Ian McKinley scored 15 of his team's points.
Benetton had to do without 15 players involved in Italy's test against world champions New Zealand in Rome on Saturday, but got the first try of the match after sustained pressure with wing Marco Zanon going over after a one-handed offload in the tackle by captain Marco Barbini set him up in the corner in only the third minute.
The try came after Benetton had won a penalty but elected to gain ground and kick for touch -- rather than kicking the three points -- in confident statement at the start of the game.
The Cheetahs replied swiftly as they also opted to kick out for a lineout when they won their first penalty and from the resultant throw-in, a clever line run by scrumhalf Venter allowed Nico Lee to cut through the defence and cross over with some ease.
The second time Benetton got a penalty, after 15 minutes, they wasted no time in taking the kick with Ian McKinley slotting over from right in front of the posts and for an 8-7 lead.
The visitors went further ahead just before the half hour mark as they kept the ball alive in the tackle and recycled well with Barbini again heavily involved, before South African-born scrumhalf Dewaldt Duvenage went over for a try.
Bernhard Janse van Rensburg went over for the Cheetahs just before halftime, but had his try disallowed because of a forward pass in one of several handling errors that kept the home side 15-7 behind at the break.
The home side had chances to forge into the lead but turned down three opportunities to take kickable penalties as they opted instead to gain ground and risk their chance to score off lineout opportunities but without success.
But it was much better after the break as Venter scored a second Cheetah's try five minutes into the second half with Tiaan Schoemn converting, there were only one point adrift.
McKinley then made it a four-point game with a routine penalty as the two sides began to regularly trade the lead.
Former Springbok scrum half Rudy Paige came on for his first PRO14-appearance, since arriving at the Cheetahs from the Bulls, with some 25 minutes still to play and it was just after that the Cheetahs went 21-18 in front as a driving maul from a line out allowed No 8 Daniel Maartens to corkscrew over.
Benetton went through 18 phases as they hammered at the Cheetahs defence with some 10 minutes to go, with McKinley's show and go starting the drive and minutes later finishing it with a try that he converted for 25-21 lead.
With seven minutes to go another penalty, another line out and another maul saw Maartens go over for his second try of the game and secure a bonus point for the Cheetahs.
Louis Fouche then booted over a penalty to extend the lead and make sure of a rare success for the Free Staters.