INDIA in F1

Author: David Bodapati

  • TVS Racing’s Harith Noah preparing hard for his third Dakar challenge

    TVS Racing’s Harith Noah preparing hard for his third Dakar challenge

    Sauve (France), 29 Nov 2021: TVS Racing team’s star challenger and international racing talent Harith Noah is all set to take part in the Dakar 2022 and will be the only cross-country rider to represent India in the toughest rally race event in the world, scheduled to be held in Saudi Arabia from January 1 to 14. Noah is currently training here with Michael Metge and will be leaving for Jeddah in December.

    Harith Noah, who made his Dakar debut in 2020 and finished in the top-20 the following year, the highest ever for an Indian rider in the mother of all rallies, will participate in his third Dakar to be held in Saudi Arabia.

    “I am in the best shape I have been physically after over 6 months of training and riding at the beach in my hometown in Kerala, India post this year’s Dakar. Since September, I have been here in Europe to focus more on roadbooks and navigation training. Two weeks ago, the team went to Morocco again as it is a good place to train with the long road books similar to the Dakar,” said the five-time National champion in Supercross.

    Harith Noah, who finished his maiden Dakar in the Experience class, became the fourth rider from India to take part in Dakar, but excelled with a stunning effort in 2021 to become the first top-20 rider representing India by bettering the mark of CS Santosh of Hero Motosports that stood at 36.

    “The bike is brand new and I will be riding a nimble, lighter machine that is easier to ride and much more comfortable in technical sections. Navigation is another area I am focusing on,” said the Sports Science graduate, who completed Rallye du Maroc, in October as a prep for Dakar.

    “My goal is to finish. I believe that tracks in the desert are not used much by the tourists of late and hence navigation will be very difficult. But I am in a better shape mentally and physically and have identified and worked on my mistakes. I will take it stage by stage,” is the parting shot of the champion.

    The details of the 44th edition of the Dakar say that the roll call would be in Jeddah, but things will only get serious in Ha’il. Riyadh, the capital, will host the rest day, following which the field will head back towards Jeddah for the finale. The Dakar this year will be part of the FIA and FIM World Rally Championships for cross-country rallying. In line with these reforms, the organisers ASO (Amaury Sport Organisation) has been designated as the promoter, consisting of five legs in the 2022 season.

    The prologue will begin at Jeddah on Jan 1 with a trek to Ha’il, located at the crossroads of the historical trade routes of Saudi Arabia. A 19-km mini-special will spice up the long transfer. “Sand in all shapes and colours”, promised David Castera, the Race Director, as Saudi presents a different route with more sand than last year with over 8,000 km, and end in Jeddah. The competitive distance will be 4,300 km of specials.

  • The 12 Stages of Dakar 2022

    The 12 Stages of Dakar 2022

    Sands galore!

    In its third outing in Saudi Arabia, the Dakar continues to explore new landscapes with an even more substantial presence of sand in the specials. Whether on the tracks or surfing vast chains of dunes, the riders, drivers and crews will go head to head on all sorts of sandy terrain, knowing that the nuances of navigation in Saudi Arabia, where competitors have to avoid losing their bearings in a hodgepodge of tracks, are a real game-changer in the battle for the top honours.

    STAGEDATESTART AND FINISHBIKE/QUADCAR/SSVTRUCK
    Total | SpecialTotal | SpecialTotal | Special
    1ASaturday, january 1, 2022Jeddah > Hail636 km | 19 km636 km | 19 km636 km | 19 kmSTAGE 1A
    1BSunday, january 2, 2022Hail > Hail546 km | 334 km546 km | 334 km546 km | 334 kmSTAGE 1B
    2Monday, january 3, 2022Hail > Al Artawiya585 km | 339 km585 km | 339 km585 km | 339 kmSTAGE 2
    3Tuesday, january 4, 2022Al Artawiya > Al Qaysumah554 km | 368 km554 km | 368 km554 km | 368 kmSTAGE 3
    4Wednesday, january 5, 2022Al Qaysumah > Riyadh707 km | 465 km707 km | 465 km707 km | 465 kmSTAGE 4
    5Thursday, january 6, 2022Riyadh > Riyadh563 km | 348 km563 km | 348 km563 km | 348 kmSTAGE 5
    6Friday, january 7, 2022Riyadh > Riyadh635 km | 421 km635 km | 421 km635 km | 421 kmSTAGE 6
    –Saturday, january 8, 2022RiyadhREST
    7Sunday, january 9, 2022Riyadh > Al Dawadimi700 km | 401 km700 km | 401 km700 km | 401 kmSTAGE 7
    8Monday, january 10, 2022Al Dawadimi > Wadi Ad Dawasir828 km | 394 km828 km | 394 km828 km | 394 kmSTAGE 8
    9Tuesday, january 11, 2022Wadi Ad Dawasir > Wadi Ad Dawasir490 km | 287 km490 km | 287 km490 km | 287 kmSTAGE 9
    10Wednesday, january 12, 2022Wadi Ad Dawasir > Bisha757 km | 374 km757 km | 374 km757 km | 374 kmSTAGE 10
    11Thursday, january 13, 2022Bisha > Bisha500 km | 345 km500 km | 345 km500 km | 345 kmSTAGE 11
    12Friday, january 14, 2022Bisha > Jeddah676 km | 163 km676 km | 163 km676 km | 163 kmSTAGE 12
  • Qatar’s Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah heads field for Merc finale

    Qatar’s Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah heads field for Merc finale

    Muscat (Oman), 28 Nov 2021: Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah, the winner of a record-breaking 17 FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) titles, tops the entry for the Oman Rally Sohar International 2021. The final round of the regional series takes place next weekend from December 2 to 4.

    The six-time winner of the rally in Oman teams up with regular French co-driver Matthieu Baumel (a two-time winner) before heading off to Saudi Arabia to try and add the 2021 FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies title to the 17th regional crown he earned in an Autotek Motorsport-run Volkswagen Polo GTI R5 when the fifth round of the series in Kuwait was cancelled earlier this month.

    Al-Attiyah faces competition from 11 rivals in the FIA category and a further 11 drivers competing in the second and third rounds of the Oman Rally Championship that will run immediately behind the FIA homologated field.

    Talented young Omani Abdullah Al-Ruwahi and experienced Qatari Nasser Khalifa Al-Atya offer the main competition to the top seeded Al-Attiyah. Al-Ruwahi was runner-up to Al-Attiyah in 2020 and again teams up with Jordanian Ata Al-Hmoud in a Škoda Fabia Evo and Al-Atya wheels out a Ford Fiesta with co-driver Giovanni Bernacchini.

    The MERC2 category for showroom-type Group NR4 vehicles has been dominated by Kuwait’s Meshari Al-Thefiri in recent seasons and he leads seven Mitsubishi and Subaru models into a tussle for category honours.

    Competition comes from Oman’s Zakariya Al-Aufi, Zakariya Al-Amry, Jarah Al-Touqi and Faisal Al-Rashdi, Lebanon’s Ahmad Khaled and Jordan’s Ihab Al-Shorafa.

    Lebanon’s Henry Kahy again teams up with Carlos Hanna in a Škoda Fabia in the two-wheel drive MERC3 category and Jordan’s Asem Aref rounds off the international field in his Renault Clio RS.

    The service park and rally offices open tomorrow (Monday) and crews will be permitted to carry out a reconnaissance of the fast and flowing gravel special stages on Tuesday and Wednesday.

    The event is being organised by the Oman Automobile Association and officially starts from the seafront in Al-Qurm at 18.00hrs on Thursday evening. Crews will then tackle 12 stages and 215.10 competitive kilometres in a route of 629.21km on Friday and Saturday.

    The Oman International Rally is one of the oldest motor sporting events in the Middle East and dates back to 1979, when Sweden’s Harry Kallström and Claes Billstam won in a Datsun 160 J/SSS.

    The event entered the inaugural FISA Middle East Rally Championship in 1984 and Qatar’s Saeed Al-Hajri teamed up with Britain’s John Spiller to seal the win in a Porsche 911 SC RS.

    Defending champion Al-Attiyah now has six wins in Oman, with Dubai legend Mohammed Ben Sulayem holding the record of seven successes between 1986 and 1998. The rally only returned to the MERC calendar at the start of 2020 after a four-year absence.

  • Kyle Kumaran, the new Senior National karting champion

    Kyle Kumaran, the new Senior National karting champion

    Bengaluru, 28 Nov 2021: Peregrine Racing’s Kyle ‘calm’ Kumaran, who is taking part in the Indian National circuit for the first time ruled the roost conquering everything that came his way, save for a race, as he dominated the Meco FMSCI Rotax Max National Karting Championship 2021 which concluded at the Meco Kartopia on Sunday. The UAE-based driver was cool and calm, in all the five rounds and virtually bull-dozed the competition, being an international driver with DojoMoto.

    The Tiruchirapalli-born, 18-year talent, tamed the 1.2km track with ease and grace, winning four out of five rounds (9 out of 10 races), bagging virtually every award that was on offer, the Best Driver Award, most number of Wins, most number of Pole positions and of course, the most-coveted Senior National Champion tag. “Unfortunately, we had an engine issue in one of the races. But we were consistent and my team did a good job,” Kumaran told this website on Sunday. “I am grateful to Peregrine Racing and the team Principal Mr Madesh Lakshman, for all the wonderful support for this championship,”he added.

    A black-belt in Karate, Kyle plays football as a recreation sport and is also interested in cycling, to keep up his fitness. A Junior Sodi World Series UAE Champion in 2017, the motorsports maverick went on to win many other events including RMC Max UAE Senior Championship, RMC DD2, and SW senior UAE championship in both 2020 and 2021. He is also the IAME Summer Series current UAE champion (2021). Between the races here, Kyle also won the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Nations Cup in DD2 class last week at Muscat, Oman, where 20 Nations took part. You can watch the video here from Oman Automobile Association.

    On Saturday, Kumaran beat Yash Aradhya’s milestone by dipping under 54-second barrier leading an array of karters including juniors like Ishaan Madesh, but the best came in the qualifying on Saturday. The 53.456 is the new track record on Meco Kartopia. (To be confirmed). He also did a stunning lap of 52.8, but it came in testing.

    Chief Guest Preethi Ravindra, (mother of racer Akhil Rabindra) giving away the Best Driver award to Kyle Kumaran on Sunday.

    The Ayrton Senna fan praised the organisers for the way the Championship was organised. “Considering these unprecedented times due to the pandemic, the championship was smoothly conducted without any hiccups finishing all the rounds on time. I really enjoyed racing here. Both Rishon, Suriya and Ameya are good racers and I look forward to getting into F3 or F4 regional rounds soon,” said the speedmaster, who honed his racecraft in Dubai (UAE).

    Both the Indian Karting Nationals, two of the 12 Nationals in the FMSCI calendar this year, are the first to complete all their rounds. The X30 Karting Nationals are organised by Meco Motorsports concluded on September 16 and the Rotax Max Championship is organised by Spitfire Motorsports of Coimbatore, ably headed by J Balamurugan. The only other Indian National motorsports discipline that completed the calendar successfully is National Drag Racing Championship by Madras Motor Sport Club in Chennai.

    “I am looking forward to the Rotax Max World Finals. I am very happy to represent my country in the grand finals in Bahrain from December 11 to 18. Wearing India colours and racing as Team INDIA is a proud moment and I am eagerly looking forward to it,” was his parting shot.

    Watch the Round 5 footage here on AutoTrack YouTube channel, the only Indian Motorsports magazine.

    All photos by Shajahan
  • Flash: Kyle Kumaran (Sr.), Ruhaan Alva (Jr.), Aditya Suresh (Cadet) crowned National champs

    Flash: Kyle Kumaran (Sr.), Ruhaan Alva (Jr.), Aditya Suresh (Cadet) crowned National champs

    Bengaluru, 28 Nov 2021: Kyle Kumaran of Peregrine Racing became the 2021 Senior National Karting Champion winning the final race of the Meco FMSCI National Karting Championship Rotax Max class at the Meco Kartopia track, near Bagalur here in wet conditions on Sunday.

    Bengaluru’s Ruhaan Alva of MSport won the Junior Championship in Rotax Max while Aditya Suresh Kumar of Birel Art India, also from the Garden City, became the Micro Max champion. All three champions have booked a ticket to the Rotax Max Grand Finals scheduled to be held in Bahrain from December 11 to 18.

    Final Results – Fifth and final Round:

    Senior Max

    Pre-Final: (15 laps): 1. MR Rishon (Birel Art – Bengaluru) (12:34.733); 2. Kyle Kumaran (Peregrine Racing – Bengaluru) (12:35.282); 3. Surya Varathan (Peregrine Racing – Coimbatore) (12:37.710). Fastest lap: K Suriya Varathan 57.537.

    Final: (18 laps): 1. Kyle Kumaran (Peregrine Racing) (21:06.932); 2. MR Rishon (Birel Art – Bengaluru) (21:07.450); 3. Divy Nandan (NK Racing – Gurugoan) (21:08.442). Fastest lap: Ameya Bafna 1:08.497.

    Junior Max

    Pre Final: (12 laps): 1. Rohaan Madesh (Peregrine Racing – Bengaluru) (11:00.388); 2. Ishaan Madesh (Peregrine – Bengaluru) 11:00.834; 3. Jaden R Pariat (MSport – Guwahati) (11:01.304); Fastest lap: Ruhaan Alva 54.095.

    Final: (15 laps): 1. Ruhaan Alva (MSport) (15:00.630); 2. Veer Sheth (NK Racing Academy – Mumbai) (14:08.638); 3. Abhay M (Birel Art India – Bengaluru) (15:10.851); Fastest lap: Ruhaan Alva 57.186.

    Micro Max

    Pre-Final (10 laps): 1. Arafath Sheikh (MSport – Pune) (10:13.852); 2. Vedha Vishnu (MSport – Chennai) (10:16.803); 3. Nikhilesh Raju (Birel Art –Bengaluru) (10:19.519). Fastest lap: Aditya Suresh Kumar (Bengaluru) 1:00.133.

    Final: (12 Laps): 1.Aditya Suresh Kumar (Birel Art – Bengaluru) 15:23.451; 2. Vedha Vishnu (MSport – Chennai) (15:23.666); 3. Shrili Mistry (Erda’s Racing – Vadodara) (15:31.279). Fastest lap: Vedha Vishnu 1:14.274.

    2021 Rotax Max Indian National Champions

    Senior: Kyle Kumaran,

    Junior: Ruhaan Alva,

    Cadet: Aditya Suresh Kamat.

    Championship Standings after fifth and final round – Rotax Max 2021

    Senior Max

    1. Kyle Kumaran (Peregrine Racing – Bengaluru/UAE) 441;

    2. K Suriya Varathan (Peregrine Racing – Coimbatore) 408;

    3. Ameya Bafna (Rayo Racing – Mumbai) 408;

    Junior Max

    1. Ruhaan Alva (MSport – Bengaluru) 430;

    2. Abhay M (Birel Art India – Bengaluru) 404;

    3. Rohaan Madesh (Peregrine Racing – Bengaluru) 398.

    Micro Max – Cadet

    1. Aditya Suresh Kamat (Birel Art India -Bengaluru) 432;

    2. Anuj A (MSport – Madurai) 414;

    3. Arafath Sheikh (MSport – Pune) 406.

    Team Champions

    Senior: Peregrine Racing,

    Junior: MSport,

    Cadet:  Birel Art India.

    Kart distribution between teams

    MSport (Meco Motorsports) 15 karts;

    Peregrine 9;

    Birel Art 6;

    NK Racing Academy 6;

    Rayo Racing  5;

    Erda’s Racing 2;

    KartKrew 1;

    Grid strength:

    Micro Max – cadet: 9

    Junior Max: 18

    Senior Max: 16.

    Special Awards:

    Driver of the year (Best Driver):  Kyle Kumaran,

    Most number of Poles: Kyle Kumaran,

    Most number of wins: Kyle Kumaran,

    Akbar Ebrahim Most-improved Karter: Anuj A (Micro Max),

    Best Newcomer: Raiden Samarvel,

    Super girl Micro Max – Shrily Mistry – Shrily Mistry,

    Super girl Junior Max – Aashi Hanspal,

    Super girl Senior Max – Vidyali Reddy,All three champions will represent as Team India in the Rotax Max Grand Finals in Bahrain from December 11 to 18, 2021).

  • Harith Noah, the only rider to fly Indian flag at Dakar 2022

    Harith Noah, the only rider to fly Indian flag at Dakar 2022

    Key points:

    • Harith Noah of Kerala, the only rider representing India to finish in the top-20 in the Dakar in 2021, is likely to be the only face of India in the DAKAR 2022, with the support of TVS Racing in collaboration with Sherco, the long-standing partners of the Indian two-wheeler manufacturer. The Queen of all cross-country rallies and the toughest rally in the world will start on January 1 and end on 14th in Saudi Arabia.

    *  The details of the 44th edition of the Dakar, especially the route were unveiled today, at 3.30pm IST (viewable on all the Dakar’s official platforms), held in the presence of many favourites including Frenchman Stéphane Peterhansel (cars), Argentinian Kevin Benavides (motorbikes), American Austin Jones (T4/SSV Series) and Russian Dmitry Sotnikov (trucks). The roll call will be in Jeddah, but things will only get serious in Ha’il. Riyadh, the capital, will host the rest day, following which the field will head back towards Jeddah for the finale.

    *  Following years of discussion to finalise unified regulations, the Dakar will be part of the FIA and FIM World Rally Championships for cross-country rallying. In line with these reforms, A.S.O. has been designated as the promoter of this competition, consisting of five legs in the 2022 season.

    *  The Dakar’s commitment to the energy transition has also passed a key milestone with the launch of the “Dakar Future” plan: the creation of the T1-Ultimate category for cars running on alternative fuels by the FIA.

    *  The 430 vehicles in the race and the 148 crews in the second edition of the Dakar Classic will undergo technical and administrative scrutineering in Jeddah on 30 and 31 December.

    Jeddah, 28 Nov 2021: The show will get on the road in Jeddah, the port city that welcomed Dakar entrants to Saudi Arabia in 2020 and is set to host the Formula One World Championship on its Corniche Circuit in a week’s time. The prologue will kick off 2022 with a trek to Ha’il, located at the crossroads of the historical trade routes of Saudi Arabia. A 19 km mini-special will spice up the long transfer. The prologue will provide a fleeting glimpse of things to come in the 44th edition: “sand in all shapes and colours“, as David Castera puts it, promising desert aficionados as many dunes as they can take, as well as a hodgepodge of tracks that will tease the minds and knot the stomachs of even the very best navigators. Man and machine alike will have their endurance put to the test over a total distance of more than 8,000 km, in a journey that will take them to the capital in Riyadh before returning to the shores of the Red Sea. The stopwatch will be running for about 4,300 km of specials.

    True Dakar veterans and numerous rookies have heeded the call of the sands to make up the largest field in almost a decade, totalling 430 vehicles in the race and another 148 in the Dakar Classic. This fresh momentum coincides with the launch of a new format, as the Dakar is incorporated to the FIA and FIM cross-country world championships, a five-round circuit that will stoke the drama of top-flight competition throughout the season. While the headline event of the year is also the first, those who miss out on the top honours in Jeddah will remain in contention for a prestigious world champion title to be decided in Abu Dhabi in March, Kazakhstan in April, Andalusia in June and Morocco in October. The road to glory for the riders, drivers, co-drivers and constructors who come out on top will also make the scenario easier to grasp for fans, particularly through increased media coverage of rally-raids.

    January 2022 also marks the launch of another major challenge with the deployment of the initial phase of the “Dakar Future” plan, which aims to have a field composed entirely of low-emission vehicles by 2030. To kick-start this energy transition, the joint work with FIA to encourage constructors to develop alternative-fuel vehicles has already led to a tangible result in the shape of the creation of the T1-Ultimate (T1.U) category. Four cars will be entering this category in its inaugural edition: Audi with a contingent of three hybrid RS Q e-tron spearheaded by Stéphane Peterhansel; and GCK, which is banking on biofuels, led by Guerlain Chicherit in a preliminary effort before fielding a hydrogen-powered 4×4. Gaussin‘s truck, which will be in Saudi Arabia for demonstration purposes, uses the same technology. The major players of the Dakar have the role of test pilots on the cutting edge of science, excited to do their bit for the development of the vehicles of tomorrow.

  • Sir Frank Williams passes away

    Sir Frank Williams passes away

    The FIA has paid tribute to Formula 1 legend Sir Frank Williams who passed away this morning at the age of 79.

    Across a six-decade career in motor sport the founder of the William F1 team won nine FIA Formula One World Championship Constructors’ titles and seven Drivers’ titles, scoring 114 grand prix victories and 128 pole positions along the way. 

    The news of his death was announced this morning in a statement issued by the Williams team.

    “It is with great sadness that on behalf of the Williams family, the team can confirm the death of Sir Frank Williams CBE, Founder and Former Team Principal of Williams Racing, at the age of 79,” Williams said in a statement. “After being admitted into hospital on Friday, Sir Frank, passed away peacefully this morning surrounded by his family.

    “Today we pay tribute to our much loved and inspirational figurehead. Frank will be sorely missed. We request that all friends and colleagues respect the Williams family’s wishes for privacy at this time.”

    Paying tribute to Sir Frank, FIA President Jean Todt said: “Very sad news. Sir Frank Williams leaves a lasting impression on the history of F1. He was a pioneer, an exceptional personality and an exemplary man. On behalf of the entire FIA Community, our thoughts are with his family, friends and Williams Racing. Rest in peace, my friend.”

    Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said the sport had lost a “much loved and respected member” of the F1 family.

    “He was a true giant of our sport that overcame the most difficult of challenges in life and battled every day to win on and off the track,” Domenicali said. “His incredible achievements and personality will be with etched on our sport forever. My thoughts are with all the Williams family and their friends at this sad time.”

    Born in the north east of England in 1942, Frank Williams founded Frank Williams Racing Cars in 1966 and competed in Formula 2 and Formula 3 with a number of promising driver, including Piers Courage. In 1969 the ambitious team boss purchased a Brabham BT26A with which Courage finished second in Monaco and at the US Grand Prix at Watkins Glen. 

    The following year he launched a brief partnership with Alejandro de Tomaso, running Courage in a Giampaolo Dallara-designed chassis but when Courage was killed in a crash at the Dutch Grand Prix Williams’ relationship with de Tomaso foundered. Williams continued to race in F1 with intermittent success in the following years, running drivers such as Tim Schenken, Brian Redman, Henri Pescarolo, Carlos Pace, Jacky Ickx and Jaques Laffite but by 1976 the team was in financial difficulties and when a partnership with Canadian businessman Walter Wolff resulted in a loss of control, Williams left the organisation. 

    In early 1977 Frank and a young engineer he had hired named Patrick Head established Williams Grand Prix Engineering. The new team made its F1 debut at the 1977 Spanish Grand Prix, with Patrick Neve driving its single car.

    Williams’ first F1 victory came just two years later, at the 1979 British Grand Prix , courtesy of Clay Regazzoni and scored five overall that year. Carrying momentum into the following campaign, Alan Jones brought the team its first Drivers’ title in 1980 while Carlos Reutemann helped the team to its first Constrictors’ Crown. 

    A second team title arrived in 1981, while Keke Rosberg won the 1982 World Championship. In 1983 the team began a new relationship with Honda which would lead to Constructors’ World Championship success in 1986 and 1987, with Nelson Piquet taking the 1987 Drivers’ title.

    Tragedy struck in March 1986 when Williams was severely injured in a road crash near the Paul Ricard circuit and was left tetraplegic. Undaunted, he returned to mastermind Williams’ most successful era. 

    The Williams-Honda team was dominant in 1986 and 1987 with Nelson Piquet and Nigel Mansell and after Honda departed for McLaren, a new partnership with Renault was even more successful with the team winning World Championships in the early 1990s with Nigel Mansell and Alain Prost. 

    There was further tragedy in 1994 when Ayrton Senna was killed at Imola but Williams recovered  and continued its winning streak with Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve, both of whom became World Champions in 1996 and 1997 respectively. 

    While the 1997 title remains Williams’ most recent, it continued to win grands prix throughout the first decade of his century and scored its most recent at the 2012 Spanish Grand Prix, 

    Williams was awarded a CBE for his services to motor racing in 1987 and was knighted in January 1999. 

  • Alonso, takes podium after 7 years; Hami takes win

    Alonso, takes podium after 7 years; Hami takes win

    By Malhaar Khaladkar

    Lewis Hamilton took a dominant victory in the first ever Formula 1 Qatar Grand Prix, as title rival Max Verstappen recovered from a grid penalty to finish P2 ahead of Alpine’s Fernando Alonso completing the podium, the Spaniard appearing on the podium after 105 races and seven years.

    London, 22 Nov. 2021: There was drama before the start of the race as Max Verstappen and Valtteri Bottas were handed out grid penalties for ignoring double and single waved yellow flags respectively. Hence, Verstappen started P7 and Bottas started P6. This left Lewis Hamilton on pole alongside Pierre Gasly in P2 and Fernando Alonso in P3. Hamilton was starting on medium tyres compared to the other two, who had soft tyres.

    Hamilton got off to a clean start covering Gasly and Alonso, hence, he maintained the lead. Alonso swooped around the outside of Gasly in turn 2 to take P2 in the race. Behind the early leaders, Verstappen had a fast start as he got past Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris and was already on the tail of Gasly. Meanwhile, Bottas who had started P6 was down to P11 due to a poor getaway at the start. Similarly, Sebastian Vettel who started P10, dropped down to P17.

    Hamilton extended his lead at the front as Verstappen made his way through the field. First the Dutchman cleared Gasly and then got past Alonso to settle in P2 by lap 5. Hamilton meanwhile led by around 4s. Red Bull’s Sergio Perez who started P11 was up to P6 by lap 11. Bottas was given the hurry up by Toto Wolff to be on Perez’s tail as the Finn was stuck in P11. He managed to clear Yuki Tsunoda and Lance Stroll by lap 10.

    Losail Pit stop graphic by Pirelli 21Nov.2021

    Hamilton was increasing his lead, now around 7s to Verstappen who in turn was 22s ahead of Alonso, a pit stops worth of gap. Red Bull made duly use of that as they pitted Verstappen at the end of lap 17 for hard tyres. Mercedes covered him as they pitted Hamilton for the same on the next lap, though Hamilton wished to go longer. Gasly was the first person to pit among the top 10, getting rid of the soft tyres on lap 13 for mediums, ensuring that he was on a two-stop strategy.

    By the time race reached its halfway distance, Hamilton maintained his lead ahead of Verstappen with now Bottas in third as he was yet to make his first pitstop. Behind him were Perez, Alonso, Gasly, Norris, Esteban Ocon, Stroll and Sainz.

    It was bad luck for Bottas as his left front medium tyre got punctured and delaminated on lap 33 as he slid into the gravel before recovering and limping to the pits. This incident reminiscent of the 2020 British Grand Prix. All the teams were on the lookout for their tyre situation after Bottas’ issue.

    Verstappen pitted for a second time on lap 41 for medium tyres as Red Bull did not want to risk a puncture like Bottas. Hamilton followed suit the next lap and emerged in the lead. Perez too was pitted for precaution as he dropped down from P3 to P7 with 15s to make up if wanted to get on the podium, currently Alonso running in P3.

    Bottas retired on lap 50 due to car damage after his tyre failure. The tyre issues resurfaced as the Williams duo of George Russell and Nicholas Latifi suffered left front tyre failures on lap 50 and lap 52 respectively. Latifi was unable to get to the pits and hence, a virtual safety car was deployed with five laps to go. Verstappen pitted for a set of soft tyres to take the extra fastest lap point during this time.

    Hamilton dominated for the second consecutive weekend as he dominated the race with a lights to flag victory and in the process cutting down Verstappen’s championship lead from 14 to 8 points with two races remaining. All Verstappen could do was damage limitation in P2. Alonso had finally achieved his podium after his last one coming seven years prior, helping Alpine go ahead of AlphaTauri in the constructor’s championship. This was helped by the fact that Ocon finished P5. Perez was unable to snatch the podium off Alonso owing to the late Virtual Safety car and had to settle for P4. Aston Martin’s Stroll got one of his best results of the season in P6 ahead of Ferrari duo of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc in P7 and P8 respectively. Lando Norris finished in P9 after running in P6 for most of the race. The Briton suffering a left front tyre failure as well, but McLaren pulled him into pits right on time. Vettel completed a double points finish for Aston Martin in P10.

    Longest stint PirelliGraphic 21nov21

    Gasly missed out on points after starting on the front row as McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo finished behind in P12, his third consecutive scoreless race. Yuki Tsunoda finished in P13 ahead of outgoing Alfa Romeo duo of Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi. Williams’ George Russell finished in P17, sandwiched between Haas cars of Mick Schumacher in P16 and Nikita Mazepin in P18. Two retirees from the race were Nicholas Latifi and Bottas, both victim to the left front tyre failures.

    Mercedes for a second race weekend in a row had superior pace to Red Bull and were dominant in the race. Albeit this time in Qatar they did not exhibit the monstrous straight line speed advantage that they had in the previous races. With Bottas having a DNF Mercedes lost some ground in the constructor’s championship while Hamilton cut down Verstappen’s lead. With the wind in Mercedes’ sails, it remains to be seen if they can show the same performance in the last two races of the season. Red Bull lacked overall pace against Mercedes, in qualifying and race. It was not helped by the fact that Perez was knocked out of Q2 and had to start P11. Red Bull have also threatened to protest against Mercedes’ straight-line speed, specifically the rear wing as the Austrian squad thinks there is something illegal with their rival’s car.

    Once again AlphaTauri showed the best qualifying pace of any midfield team in the hands of Gasly and both cars making it into Q3. A slower strategy by the team meant they lost out on points and a constructor’s position to Alpine. Alpine looked racy and on pace since arriving in Qatar as they got a podium and a double points finish. They were unchallenged in the race by other midfield teams, especially McLaren and Ferrari as the French squad exhibited superior race pace. Aston Martin achieved a double points finish as well with Stroll having an understated yet solid drive to P6. Vettel lost positions at the start but was able to recover to P10 showing the decent pace of AMR01.

    McLaren had arguably the second fastest car in the midfield behind Alpine in Qatar, evident by Norris running in P6 for most of the race before suffering a puncture. He recovered to P9, meanwhile teammate, Ricciardo had a dismal qualifying and was unable to reach points. McLaren yet again lost out to Ferrari in the constructor’s championship. Ferrari too had a disappointing weekend as they suffered pitstop issues with Sainz and Leclerc’s damaged Chassis meant he lacked the pace throughout. They were relieved as McLaren were unable to outscore them in the constructor’s championship.

    Both Williams cars fell foul to the tyre issues as their hopes for any points finishes diminished. Alfa Romeo had a dismal qualifying with both cars getting knocked out of Q1. They recovered some positions but were ultimately unable to challenge for points. Both Haas drivers seemed to have grown their confidence in the car but Mazepin suffered a number of reliability issues this weekend and hence, was off the pace.

    Saturday Qualifying Results were:

    P1: Lewis Hamilton- 44 (Mercedes)P2: Max Verstappen- 33 (Red Bull)
    P3: Valtteri Bottas- 77 (Mercedes)P4: Pierre Gasly- 10 (AlphaTauri)
    P5: Fernando Alonso- 14 (Alpine)P6: Lando Norris- 4 (McLaren)
    P7: Carlos Sainz- 55 (Ferrari)P8: Yuki Tsunoda- 22 (AlphaTauri)
    P9: Esteban Ocon- 31 (Alpine)P10: Sebastian Vettel- 5 (Aston Martin)
    P11: Sergio Perez- 11 (Red Bull)P12: Lance Stroll- 18 (Aston Martin)
    P13: Charles Leclerc- 16 (Ferrari)P14: Daniel Ricciardo- 3 (McLaren)
    P15: George Russell- 63 (Williams)P16: Kimi Raikkonen- 7 (Alfa Romeo)
    P17: Nicholas Latifi- 6 (Williams)P18: Antonio Giovinazzi- 99 (Alfa Romeo)
    P19: Mick Schumacher- 47 (Haas)P20: Nikita Mazepin- 9 (Haas)

    Note: Verstappen’s fastest Q3 time of 1:21.282 was deleted for a yellow-flag infringement. Bottas and Verstappen penalised 3 and 5 grid places respectively for yellow-flag infringements during qualifying.

  • Aishwarya wins again ahead of Tanika; Podium for Apoorva

    Aishwarya wins again ahead of Tanika; Podium for Apoorva

    By David Bodapati

    Chikkamagaluru (Karnataka), 22 Nov. 2021: FIM World Cup Baja champion Aishwarya Pissay won the Ladies Class again in the two-day fourth round of the MRF MOGRIP FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) 2021 for two-wheelers that concluded at the picturesque Coffee Estates on Sunday. 

    Her main rival, young Tanika Shanbag from Satara, did well to reduce the gap between the champion progressing admirably in every round. Tanika finished second ahead of Apoorva B of Mangaluru. Anam Hashim, who got a podium in the previous round at Puttur, could only finish fourth here.

    Aishwarya throttled through with a solid performance in the super special spectator stage on Saturday.  The Motor Sports Club of Chikmagalur (MSCC) organises this stage in a private school ground, regularly at the INRC, to attract crowds .  Well-versed with the terrain, Aishwarya controlled the pace and consistently made time.  She won the rally and clocked a total stage time of 1hr 05min 12.915sec to stand 15th among 45 bikers, including 40 men.  The defending champion from Bengaluru continued her strong form finishing well-ahead of competitors and improved from 20th overall in Round 3 to top-15 finish in Round 4.  

    An excited Aishwarya Pissay says: “It may not be a high-speed rally, like the other rounds, but the beautiful coffee estates’ terrain is technically challenging with plenty of tricky corners. It was fun taming my motorcycle through these demanding stages. My team at TVS Racing has done a commendable job in preparing Apache RTR 200 rally-built bike for this terrain.”  Along with the

    When queried about her progress, Tanika said: “Yes, I personally feel that I’m getting better every round and I’m happy that I’m improving myself by learning from my past mistakes. I had two wheel spins in two different corners in the Super Special Stage due to the slush. But today, I won two stages and made 20 seconds on the same stage where I lost huge time earlier. It gives me great satisfaction.”

    Ladies Class winner Aishwarya Pissay with second placed Tanika Shanbag on her left and Apoorva on her right. TVS tuner of Aishwarya’s bike is on the right. Photo @FB TVS Racing

    Aishwarya began with a solid win at Hampi and went on to take another facile victory in Round 2 at Bengaluru, where she conquered the slushy terrain and after another win in Puttur, now leads the table in the woman’s category with her fourth consecutive win.  Tanika is second on the table standings.

    The final two rounds will be held on December 11 and 19 in Coimbatore and Nashik respectively, and the topper will be declared the National champion.  With one hand on the trophy, the seven-time National champion supported by IIFL, Scott, Puma India, Sidvin, and GoPro is eyeing bigger cross-country desert rallies after the National championship. 

    Note: With inputs from a WordsWork Comm. press release. Added Tanika quote and other details.

  • Lewis Hamilton wins ahead of Max Verstappen: Qatar GP

    Lewis Hamilton wins ahead of Max Verstappen: Qatar GP

    Qatar, 21 Nov 2021: Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton took a dominant Qatar Grand Prix victory to narrow the Drivers’ title gap to Max Versatppen to eight points, as the championship-leading Red Bull driver recovered from a five-place grid penalty to finish second and take the point for fastest lap. Alpine’s Fernando Alonso finished third to score his first podium finish since the 2014 Hungarian Grand Prix.

    Pole sitter Hamilton got away well at the race start and quickly began to establish a strong lead at the front of the pack. Behind him Verstappen’s recovery from a five-place penalty for failing to heed double yellow flags in Q3 after an incident involved AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly was founded on as superb getaway when the lights went out.

    Starting seventh behind Mercedes Valtteri Bottas, who had also received a grid drop of three places for a similar offence, Verstappen was quickest out of the blocks at the start, slipping between Bottas and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz as they headed to Turn 1. And after hugging the inside line through the opening corner he found himself in P4 after Turn 2, despite kick up the dust when Alpine’s Fernando Alonso drifted wide as they approached the apex.

    He quickly began to close on Gasly, who made his first front-row start after being boosted up the grid by the penalties elsewhere The AlphaTauri man went wide in the final corner as DRS was activated and Max breezed past on the pit straight. And on lap five he made the dame move past Alonso to claim second place, 3.7s behind Hamilton.

    Further back, Versatppen’s team-mate Sérgio Pérez was also on the march and after powering past Esteban Ocon on lap nine the Red Bull driver was up to sixth place. Gasly was then passed by the hard-charging Mexican.

    Pérez now began to chase down McLaren’s Lando Norris. The McLaren driver’s soft tyres were beginning to faded and the Red Bull man claimed fourth place by easing past the Briton at the start of Lap 18.

    Verstappen then made his first visit to the pit lane at the end of lap 17, taking on hard tyres in a 2.2s stop. Mercedes responded on the next lap and after a similar swift switch to Hard tyres he rejoined in the lead, the full length of the pit straight ahead of his Dutch rival.

    Pérez made his stop at the end of lap 19 and after taking on hard tyres, he began to once again scythe through the order, making his way back to P5 by lap 28, behind Alonso.

    He attacked at the start of the following tour and after feinting right, which caused Alonso to cover aggressively, Pérez dived left and went to the outside of the Alpine through Turn 1. Alonso hung on to his line and the pair went through Turns Two and Three wheel-to-wheel.  However, armed with a better exit from Three, Pérez was able to muscle past to take fourth place.

    At the front, though, Hamilton was comfortable and holding a seven-second gap to Verstappen at the end of lap 33. Bottas was in trouble though, suffering a puncture on lap 34 He went off track mid-way through the lap and rejoined and that allowed Sergio to close in and sweep past the Mercedes man to claim third place. Bottas made it back to the pit lane but after an 11-second stop for hard tyres and a new nose, the Finn rejoined in P14.

    On lap 40, Hamilton was 8.5s ahead of Verstappen, with Pérez some 52.8s behind his team-mate. Alonso now held fourth place ahead of Norris, with the second Alpine of Esteban Ocon in sixth place ahead of Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and the Ferrari’s of Sainz and Charles Leclerc. Vettel held 10th place ahead of Gasly who had made a second pit stop.

    Verstappen made his second pit stop at the end of lap 41, taking on medium tyres in a superb 2.1s stop. Pérez followed moments later and he too went for mediums, rejoining in P7 with Stroll, Ocon and Norris.

    Stroll was despatched swiftly and then the Mexican attacked Ocon at the start of lap 48. He powered past the Frenchman around the outside into Turn 1 and though the Frenchman tried to fight back, resistance was futile and Pérez took P5. He was, however, 15 seconds behind Fernando Alonso with Norris still in the way in P4.

    The race then took another turn in the final laps as Norris and both Williams drivers, who were both attempting one-stop races, suffered front-left punctures similar to the one that eventually caused Bottas to retire.

    The damage to Norris was not severe and the McLaren driver was able to return to the pits. He dropped to ninth, however, and Pérez was boosted to fourth place, 11 seconds behind Alonso. Williams’ George Russell was next to suffer and when team-mate Nicholas Latifi went off track and his car proved hard to recover, the VSC was deployed.

    Perez was just six seconds behind Alonso under the caution but with a single lap of racing left when the track eventually went green again, the Mexican driver was forced to settle for fourth place behind  Alonso, who took his first podium finish in seven years.

    Ahead Hamilton took the chequered flag to claim his seventh victory of the season. Behind him Verstappen made sure of the extra point on offer by taking on soft tyres for a final tour of 1:23.196. His P2 finish and that extra point mean he is now eight points ahead of Hamilton with two races remaining. In the Constructors’ battle Mercedes now head Red Bull by five points.

    Behind the top four, Ocon finished fourth for Alpine – putting them 25 points clear of AlphaTauri in the battle for fifth in the Constructors’ Championship – ahead of Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and the Ferraris of Sainz and Leclerc. Norris finished ninth and the final point went to Sebastian Vettel in the second Aston.

    2021 FIA Formula 1 Qatar Grand Prix – Race
    1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 57 1:24’28.471
    2 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 57 1:24’54.214 25.743
    3 Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 57 1:25’27.928 59.457
    4 Sergio Pérez Red Bull/Honda 57 1:25’30.777 1’02.306
    5 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 57 1:25’49.041 1’20.570
    6 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 57 1:25’49.745 1’21.274
    7 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 57 1:25’50.382 1’21.911
    8 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 57 1:25’51.597 1’23.126
    9 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 56 1:24’29.186 1 lap /0.715
    10 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin/Mercedes 56 1:24’34.067 1 lap /5.596
    11 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 56 1:24’39.660 1 lap /11.189
    12 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 56 1:25’02.071 1 lap /33.600
    13 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Honda 56 1:25’02.397 1 lap /33.926
    14 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 56 1:25’05.206 1 lap /36.735
    15 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 56 1:25’29.614 1 lap /1’01.143
    16 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 56 1:25’31.192 1 lap /1’02.721
    17 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 55 1:24’46.509 2 laps /18.038
    18 Nikita Mazepin Haas/Ferrari 55 1:25’08.856 2 laps /40.385
         Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 50 1:15’59.831 Tyre
         Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 48 1:12’40.238 Retiremen