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Author: David Bodapati
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Bagnaia blasts to Ducati’s 50th pole,lap record
Aragon, 11 Sept 2021: Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) put in an absolute stunner at the Gran Premio TISSOT de Aragon to set pole position, the Italian taking Ducati to the milestone of 50 premier class poles and beating a lap record that’s been sitting unthreatened since 2015. He also was the only one to do so, with three and a half tenths in hand over teammate Jack Miller. The Australian has closer company from Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) as the Championship leader took third, denied P2 by only hundredths.
Q1
Q1 saw a few surprises. First, the rider with the best record across the two events at MotorLand last season, Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar), didn’t manage to make an impression and ended the session in tenth – which corresponds to P20 on the grid. He’ll have a big mountain to climb on Sunday from his equal worst MotoGP™ qualifying.At the opposite end of the Q1 timesheets, Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) moved through on top. The Frenchman said he’s struggling a little with arm pump but his 1:47.293 was the best of the session, beating Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) by just 0.051. The South African had a more comfortable 0.164 in hand over fellow KTM rider Iker Lecuona (Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing) as the number 27 was the first to miss out.
In the first three splits Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) had been on the money, with two red sectors and then a yellow, still within hundredths, but the final sector saw him lose out and the number 12 will start from P19.
Q2
Bagnaia laid down a big benchmark initially, before Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) hit the top as he just edged out the Italian. Then came Quartararo, and this time the margin was a little bigger as he pulled out 0.151.On the final runs though, the red sectors were flying in and again, it was Bagnaia first – and again by a sizeable chunk of time. He was a whopping 0.405 ahead as he crossed the line with two minutes left on the clock, laying down the gauntlet.
The only red sectors then were coming from Quartararo, but ultimately no one could come close. And in the end, Miller snuck into second too – edging El Diablo out by just 0.031 as the Frenchman lost time later in the lap and Miller gained it.
Reigning Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) ended his final flyer with a frustrated gesture as he headed off into the Turn 1 runoff after crossing the line, taking P7 in the end, with Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) following close behind him and making good gains to move onto the provisional front row. But that was scuppered by Miller’s late lunge, with the number 93 shuffled down to fourth.
The Grid
A Ducati 1-2 sees Bagnaia and Miller spearhead the MotorLand grid, with Quartararo on the outside of the front row. Marc Marquez lines up at the head of Row 2, with top Independent Team rider Martin alongside him – just 0.005 ahead of Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) as the Silverstone podium finisher completes the second row.Despite Mir’s remonstrations, the Suzuki rider took seventh and put in a solid qualifying, staying ahead of Silverstone polesitter Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team) by 0.032. They have Enea Bastianini (Avintia Esponsorama) for company as the reigning Moto2™ World Champion impressed at MotorLand on both Friday and Saturday, taking his best premier class grid position yet after going straight through to Q2 for the first time.
Zarco was forced to settle for tenth in Q2 and wants a lot more on Sunday, with Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) and Binder for company on the fourth row.
The likes of Rins and Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol), podium finisher last year at MotorLand, will be looking to charge through early, and Mir will be keen to get the hammer down. The holeshot heroes of Borgo Panigale most definitely aim to stand in their way. Marc Marquez, meanwhile, made some statements with his FP4 pace and fourth on the grid is one better than where he qualified in Germany… where Sunday went pretty ok, as an understatement, for the eight-time World Champion.
23 laps of MotorLand Aragon await, so make sure to tune in as the lights go out for the MotoGP™ race at 14:00 (GMT +2)… a little more history may be made!
MotoGP Top-3:
1 Francesco Bagnaia – Ducati Lenovo Team – Ducati – 1:46.322
2 Jack Miller – Ducati Lenovo Team – Ducati – +0.366
3 Fabio Quartararo – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – Yamaha – +0.397Top Independent Team rider
5 Jorge Martin – Pramac Racing – Ducati – +0.556 -
Daruvala dominates in Monza for first win of the season
Monza, 11 Sept 2021: Carlin team’s Indian ace Jehan Daruvala put on a controlled performance in the second Sprint Race at Monza to claim his first victory of the season, ahead of Trident rookie Bent Viscaal and PREMA Racing’s Robert Shwartzman, who took his fourth podium of the year in the FIA Formula 2 Championship here on Saturday.
India’s fantastic run in International sport continued with Jehan Daruvala who started started second, and completely dominated the field from lap 1 to win by a massive margin.
“Hearing the National Anthem Jana Gana Mana… on the top step of Monza podium feels really special. Big thanks to my team Carlin Racing for the Mega car,” he said after the race in a statement received by INDIAinF1. “Winning at Monza is every racer’s dream. I had qualified well and knew I had the pace to win. Getting ahead of David at the start and then breaking the tow were critical moments in the race. A big thank you to Carlin for the great car. I’m looking forward to the feature race tomorrow,’ an elated Jehan, added.
The Red Bull Racing Junior, started on the front row at the ‘Temple of Speed’ behind German racer David Beckman. As the lights went out, Jehan had ru.an excellent start. He braked really late to make an excellent move into the first corner.
An incident behind resulted in a Virtual Safety Car situation. The moment racing resumed, Jehan put his head down and drove a clean consistent race. The first few laps had Beckman within DRS range, but Jehan kept his cool and slowly inched away, opening a 1 second margin. Once Beckman was out of DRS range, Jehan steadily increased his lead every lap.
Three laps before the finish, Jehan had already opened a comfortable 5 second margin. Beckman under pressure fell down to third while Dutchman, Bent Viscaal moved into second. Soon former F3 Champion, Robert Shwartzman from Russia also overtook the German.
Jehan Daruvala makes sure that the Indian National Anthem
is played at the FIA F2 Championship in Monza on Saturday.Jehan’s dominance meant he won the race by over six seconds, ahead of Viscaal and Shwartzman. This was Jehan’s third podium of the season and second Formula 2 victory after he became the first-ever Indian to win a Formula 2 race last year at the Sakhir Grand Prix weekend.
Jehan’s fantastic performance in qualifying saw him qualify second, just 0.04 seconds shy of pole. He will start the Feature Race tomorrow in second position, where all racers need to complete a mandatory pit stop. The race will be telecast live on Eurosport at 2pm Sunday afternoon.
Leader Piastri finishes 7th: Given the chaos of the opener, the second Sprint Race was surprisingly peaceful, with Daruvala crossing the line 6.1s in front of Viscaal, who scored a maiden Formula 2 podium. Earlier in the first Sprint race, Daruvala finished 9th after starting from P2.
Shwartzman was a late entrant into the top three after reverse polesitter David Beckmann locked up late in the race and fell from second to fifth, behind Liam Lawson.
Championship rivals Oscar Piastri and Guanyu Zhou finished one behind the other in seventh and eighth, while Hitech Grand Prix’s Jüri Vips was ahead of them in sixth.
AS IT HAPPENED
Jehan Daruvala celebrates on the podium. Photo by James Gasperotti Lining up from pole for the second race in succession, Beckmann endured an almost identical start, but this time it was the Carlin of Daruvala who got the jump on him, launching off the line and down the inside into Turn 1 to take first.
After a great getaway, Viscaal was up one place to third, ahead of Vips, but Sprint Race 1 hero Christian Lundgaard had been spun around and dumped at the back of the field.
There was a sense of déjà vu in the battle for seventh, as 2020 Formula 3 title rivals Théo Pourchaire and Piastri started to tussle. The Frenchman had already passed Zhou and was trying to muscle his way ahead of Piastri too, eventually making the move stick after several corners of toing and froing.
A Virtual Safety Car meant that Piastri was unable to reply, as HWA RACELAB teammates Jake Hughes and Alessio Deledda collided, leaving the Briton’s car stuck in the wall. Guilherme Samaia had also pulled his Charouz Racing System to a stop at the pit entrance.
After momentarily losing fifth to Lawson, Shwartzman recovered to not only reclaim P5 but to snatch fourth from Vips as well, who then fell a place further behind his Hitech teammate.
Piastri set the fastest lap on his way to regaining seventh from Pourchaire, with the ART wobbling ever-so-slightly wide and plunging into the clutches of Zhou, but the Virtuosi racer opted against an initial move and decided to remain patient.
Piastri was allowed to scamper off up the road as Pourchaire switched his attention to defending P8, but the Sprint Race 1 winner missed the chicane and had to go through the escape road, returning in ninth, out of the points.
Daruvala was looking untroubled out in front, but Beckmann and Viscaal were still battling for P2, six seconds further back. The Campos locked up at Turn 1 and had to take the escape road. Returning in third, he attempted to retake second but appeared to have re-joined the track unsafely, which the Stewards duly noted.
Viscaal brushed off the challenge and darted off into the distance, as first Shwartzman, and then Lawson, both jumped Beckmann and dropped him to fifth ahead of the chequered flag. Vips held onto sixth in front of Piastri and Zhou.
“I think that a win was long overdue this season, so I am very happy. This weekend has been good so far, I’ve been consistently quick. I think we deserved the win, hopefully, I can repeat it tomorrow.”
THE CHAMPIONSHIP VIEW
Piastri leads the Drivers’ title fight on 124 points, ahead of Zhou on 116 and Shwartzman on 105. Vips is fourth with 90 and Dan TIcktum is fifth with 89.
In the Teams’ title fight, PREMA are first with 229 points, in front of UNI-Virtuosi on 175 and Hitech on 162. Carlin are fourth with 160 and ART fifth with 120.
WHAT’S NEXT?
After securing a second successive pole on Friday afternoon, Piastri will look to extend his Championship lead in the Feature Race. The PREMA will line up ahead of Daruvala and Zhou when the action begins on Sunday at 1.45 pm IST (10.25am (local race time Monza).
Action from FIA Formula 2 – Monza, Italy – Feature Race will be LIVE on EUROSPORT and EUROSPORT HD from 01:45 pm (in India) onwards on Sunday, 12th September, 2021. Eurosport channel can now be streamed on the discovery+ app.
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Third win for Rajini Krishnan, Jagan Kumar
Chennai, 11 Sept 2021: Veterans Rajini Krishnan (RACR) and Jagan Kumar (TVS Racing) posted brilliant but contrasting victories in their respective categories to light up the second round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship at the MMRT, here on Saturday.
Rajini, 41, stamped his authority and class while winning the race in the premier Prostock 301-400cc category after starting from P6 while Jagan Kumar, 31, exchanged leads with arch-rival and pole-sitter Rajiv Sethu (Idemitsu Honda SK69 Racing) before clinching the cliff-hanger with a last-lap overtake as the two crossed the finish line with little separating them. Both Rajini and Jagan thus notched their third consecutive wins in the championship having scored a double apiece in Round-1 last month.
Also scoring maximum points was 20-year old from Thrissur, Anfal Akdhar (Rockstar Racing) in the Novice (Stock 165cc) category.
Rajini, 41, rode his Yamaha R3 with craft and guile that reflected his vast experience as he bided his time after starting from P6 before making a decisive move, to move to the front of the pack and stayed there with ease. The local star, who had won both the races in Round-1 last month, was confident personified to finish ahead of Rockers Racing’s Soorya PM from Chennai, who could not defend his pole position, and Hyderabad’s Rahil Shetty (Gusto Racing).
Prakash Kamath of Bokaro Steel City celebrates after his CBR150 victory on Saturday. “At the start, I avoided getting caught up in the bunch, but gradually, I made my through the field,” said Rajini after the six-lapper.
Later, Jagan and Sethu battled hard but fair. Starting from pole position, Sethu yielded ground to Jagan but midway through the six-lapper, the Honda ace regained the lead to set up a last-lap humdinger. The pair took the last corner of the last lap in tandem and raced side-by-side to the finish line where Jagan just about got his nose in front for a thrilling win as Sethu, for the third race in a row finished second. Behind the pair, KY Ahamed finished third after close fight with his TVS Racing team-mate Deepak Ravikumar who ran wide entering the home straight on the last lap.
Earlier, starting the six-lap race from P3 on the 38-bike grid, Anfal Akdhar had to fight hard for his victory as he received close attention from pole-sitter Allwin Sundar (AS Motorsports) and Alwin Xavier (Sparks Racing), also from Thrissur. Sundar, winner of both races in Round-1 last month, eventually fell out of contention due to some issues with his bike, leaving Akdhar and Xavier to fight for the top honours. Akdhar managed to keep his wheel in front as he crossed the finish line just ahead of Xavier.
The One-Make Championships organized by MMSC also witnessed dominating rides. In the Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup, Kavin Quintal (NSF 250R) and Kevin Kannan (Honda Hornet 2.0) posted their third victory apiece.
Jinendra Kiran Sangave, the 12-year old from Kolhapur (TVS Rookie) won the Rookie RTR 200 Race 1 clocking 12:48.856 for a comfortable victory as he was streets ahead of the fied. Chiranth V of Bengaluru time 13:04.132 to put compatriot Shreyas Copparam Hareesh at bay and managed a narrow second with Shreyas, the baby of the grid, clocking 13:04.992 for the third.
Jinendra Kiran Sangave, a 7th class, Kolhapur government school student, posed for medea after his win on Saturday at MMRT. In the Girls’ RTR Race 1 over five laps, it was a battle between Youth and and Experience and the Chennai school girl Rakshitha Dave maintained her unbeaten run clocking 11:15.447 for another win even as Renuka Gajendran (Bengaluru), an Aviation specialist currently with Infosys took second on the podium with Zigna Pamnani (Kalyan) in third place.
In the CBR150 class Race 1, Prakash Kamath from Bokaro Steel city clocked 3:14.859 to beat Shubankar Joshi of Pune (13:23.925) and Johann local rider Reeves Emmanuel (13:27.157) came third.
Rakshitha Dave The results (Provisional – all 6 laps unless mentioned):
National Championship:
Prostock 301-400cc (Race-1): 1. Rajini Krishnan (RACR, Chennai) (11mins, 21.868secs); 2. Soorya PM (Rockers Racing, Chennai) (11:23.279); 3. Rahil Shetty (Gusto Racing, Hyderabad) (11:23.414).
Pro-Stock 165cc (Race-1): 1. Jagan Kumar (TVS Racing, Chennai) (11:46.731); 2. Rajiv Sethu (Idemitsu Honda SK69 Racing) (11:46.778); 3. KY Ahamed (TVS Racing) (11:47.691).
Novice (Stock 165cc) Race-1: 1. Anfal Akdhar (Rockstar Racing, Thrissur) (13:05.852); 2. Allwin Xavier (Sparks Racing, Thrissur) (13:05.980); 3. Sarvesh Balappa (Sparks Racing, Hubballi) (13:17.967).
One-Make Championship organized by Madras Motor Sports Club:
Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup – NSF 250R (Race-1): 1. Kavin Quintal (Chennai) (11:08.113); 2. Mohsin Peramban (Valanchery) (11:22.860); 3. Sarthak Chavan (Pune) (11:22.959 – incl 10-sec penalty for jump start).
CBR 150 (Race-1): 1. Prakash Kamath (Bokaro Steel city) (13:14.859); 2. Shubankar Joshi (Pune) (13:23.925); 3. Johann Reeves Emmanuel (Chennai) (13:27.157).
Hornet 2.0 (Race-1): 1. Kevin Kannan (Chennai) (13:26.735); 2. Alwin Sundar (Chennai) (13:35.033); 3. Rajkumar C (Coimbatore) (13:35.134).
TVS Apache Open (RR310, Race-1): 1. Navaneeth Kumar (Puducherry) (11:49.658); 2. Amarnath Menon (Calicut) (11:50.606); 3. Vivek Pillai (Chennai) (11:50.729).
Rookie (RTR 200, Race-1): 1. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (Kolhapur) (12:48.856); 2. Chiranth V (Bengaluru) (13:04.132); 3. Shreyas Copparam Hareesh (Bengaluru) (13:04.992).
Girls (RTR 200, Race-1, 5 laps): 1. Rakshitha Dave (Chennai) (11:15.447); 2. Renuka Gajendran (Bengaluru) (11:30.442); 3. Zigna Pamnani (Kalyan) (11:39.959).
Photo courtesy Anand Philar @Facebook Rahil Pillari Shetty Photo courtesy Anand Philar @Facebook Jagan Kumar Photo courtesy Anand Philar @Facebook Champ Rajinikrishnan Photo courtesy Anand Philar @Facebook
Are you a rider or a driver? Want your profile in this website contact editor at 98455 69496 About Madras Motor Sports Club
Since its humble beginnings in 1953, the Madras Motor Sports Club has grown in stature as the hub of motorsport activity in India. Having moved its racing activities from Sholavaram to its present location, the MMRT circuit in Sriperumbudur in 1979, MMSC has kept pace with changing times by upgrading facilities. At a cost of about Rs 20 Crore, the MMSC built a pit complex comprising 20 garages, VIP hospitality suites and a viewing gallery, on the eastern side, apart from a second Paddock on the western side with its own short circuit. Parallelly, MMSC imported timing equipment specifically for Drag racing. The Control Room too was upgraded with state-of-the-art hardware while the track itself was improved to meet the exacting FIA standards for Grade-2 certification. MMSC also constructed a 500-capacity grand stand with provision for garages / storage below. In another upgrade, the MMSC purchased Digi flags from TAG Heuer Chronolec that will be positioned strategically around the track. The facilities are also extensively used by various vehicle manufacturers for testing their products, displays and corporate days.
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Kavin Quintal emerges as fastest rider on Friday
Irungattukottai (Kanchipuram District, TN), 10 Sept. 2021: Talented teen racer Kavin Samaar Quintal emerged as the fastest rider of the day on the opening day of the Round 2 of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship which began at the Madras Motor Race Track here on Friday.
Coached by Tadayuki Okada san, the 16-year Kavin, astride a Honda NSF250R, the best bike on the day with a racing pedigree, blazed the MMSC track with ease and grace to notch up the quickest lap of the day, 1min, 50.085sec in the 30-minute practice session on the 3.717-km tarmac that saw temperatures of over 30 degree centigrade on a “not-so-hot day”, about 70-km from Chennai here.
Another talented teen, Sartak Chavan from Pune did his best lap in 1:50.700, about half a second behind Kavin’s second-best time of 1:51.079. Geoffrey Revival Emmanuel of Chennai was the third quickest clocking 1:52.809 in a grid of 12 riders who were selected for this One-Make Championship by Honda India.
Kavin Quintal, fastest rider of the day on Friday. Photo David Bodapati In the first round held on August 22, Kavin won the Race 2 with a best lap of 1min 49.793sec followed by Sartak (best lap 1:50.595) in second place and Bengaluru’s Samuel Martin took third on the podium (Best lap 1:52.177). Earlier he also won Race 1, and made it a double for the Round 1 week-end.
Promoted and organised by Madras Motor Sports Club, at MMRT, the best active facility in India for riders and drivers, the National Championship saw top riders like Rajini Krishnan, Rajiv Sethu, Jagan and other young and veteran riders, including a bevy of woman riders take part under strict COVID19 restrictions and the new-look Grand Stand which gave the appearance of a Big Sporting Facility for the laymen on the Highway for the first time, was dotted with colourful chairs begging for guests to be seated, but alas that has to wait till the pandemic is tamed.
Blissfully cool and calm, the 11th Class student of Sir Matha School in Chennai said: “I was testing old tyres and suspension. I had fun today and I thank my team for giving a good bike,” before rushing to watch and cheer the rookies taking part in the CBR150 Novice class.
NSF250R is a racing machine for the new era. Powered by 4-stroke engine with 249cc displacement specially designed for racing, it’s light, compact, high output and high in performance. It is a perfect bike to provide integration of high power and rider-friendliness.
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Bottas on pole for Sprint ahead of Hami, Verstappen
Monza (Italy), 10 Sept. 2021: Valtteri Bottas will start tomorrow’s sprint qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix from the front of the grid after he beat Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamlton by a tenth of a second. Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship leader Max Versatappen will start third.
The opening segment of qualifying in Formula 1 Heineken Gran Premio D’italia, the 14th of the 22-round F1 World Championship, which was run at frenetic pace on Friday, with traffic proving a constant issue as drivers sought the best window for their laps. Verstappen was one of those to suffer and after posting an opening time of 1:22.108 his second flyer, aimed at raising him from P10, the Dutchman was hampered by three slow-running cars ahead and was forced into a third attempt. He made no mistake on his final flying lap, however, and vaulted to third, behind Hamilton and Bottas.
The 2021 Italian Grand Prix, which takes place over 53 laps of the 5.793-kilometre Autodromo Nazionale Monza on Sunday, September 12.
Further back there was a close call at the end of the session for 2022 Mercedes signing George Russell. The Williams driver look set to be eliminate in 16th place after failing to make the most of his final flying lap, but the Briton was granted a reprieve when AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda fell foul of track limits and the Japanese driver’s time was deleted.
It meant that Russell’s team-mate Nicholas Latifi was the first to exit the session in P16, followed by Tsunoda, Haas’ Mick Schumacher, Alfa Romeo’s Robert Kubica and the second Haas of Nikita Mazepin.
In Q2 Hamilton seized control of P1 with his first flyer of the segment, with the Mercedes driver setting a target of 1:19.936. Verstappen struggled to get close to that time and at the end of the opening runs he sat in sixth place with a lap of 1:20.710, over seven tenths of a second adrift of his title rival.
Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez was at even greater risk and ahead of the final runs he lay in 10th place, just a couple of hundredths of a second clear of Alpine’s Esteban Ocon. Perez led his team-mate out of the pit lane for the final runs, aiming to give Verstappen a tow and that meant the Mexican would endure a nervy end to the session.
While his assist helped Vesrtappen to jump to an eventual fourth place behind Hamilton, Bottas and McLaren’s Lando Norris, Perez’s final lap of 1:20.882 was only good enough to raise him to eighth as the final laps came in. He began to slide back but his luck held and his fall halted in a safe P10 .
Eliminated at the end of Q2 in 11th and 12th place respectively were Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll with the Aston Martin drivers being followed out of the session by the Alpine cars of Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon and the Williams of George Russell.
If the second segment had suggested that Red Bull were struggling for pace at power sensitive Monza then Verstappen dispelled that notion in the first run of Q3. Hamilton set the pace with a lap of 1:19.949 but thanks to a tow from team-mate Perez, Verstappen was able to put in a lap just 0.017s behind the Mercedes driver to a provisional front-row berth.
It looked like being a close call between the two title contenders in the final runs but in the end it was Bottas who took the spoils. Profiting from a tow from Hamilton, the Finn powered to top spot with a lap of 1:19.555. Hamilton, a tenth behind, took second and Verstappen, who failed to improve on his final flyer, qualified third.
Fourth place went to Norris, with McLaren team-mate Daniel Ricciardo in fifth ahead of the AlphaTauri of Pierre Gasly. Carlos Sainz narrowly beat team-mate Charles Leclerc as Ferrari finished seventh and eighth and Perez who had again aided Verstappen with a tow ended up in ninth place just ahead of Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi.
The F1 Sprint Race will be telecast by Star Sports Select 2 from 8pm (IST) to 8.30 pm in India.
2021 FIA Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix – Qualifying
1 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:19.555
2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes Mercedes 1:19.651 0.096
3 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:19.966 0.411
4 Lando Norris McLaren 1:19.989 0.434
5 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren 1:19.995 0.440
6 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri 1:20.260 0.705
7 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:20.462 0.907
8 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:20.510 0.955
9 Sergio Perez Red Bull Racing 1:20.611 1.056
10 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo 1:20.808 1.253
11 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin 1:20.913 1.358
12 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 1:21.020 1.465
13 Fernando Alonso Alpine 1:21.069 1.514. -
Ducati rider Jack Miller tops timesheets on Friday
Aragon (Spain), 10 Sept. 2021: Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team) topped Day 1 at the Gran Premio TISSOT de Aragon, the Ducati rider putting in a late lunge as the final few minutes decided the combined timesheets. He enjoys nearly three tenths of breathing space at the top by the end of play, with Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) next up at a venue he and his machine have enjoyed some good success at – carrying that momentum from Silverstone. Third went the way of Cal Crutchlow (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) as the Brit pulled a seriously fast one to complete the top three on Day 1, and the number 35 was top Yamaha to boot. The top 17 were covered by nine tenths on Friday, and from second to 21st it’s just a single second in the Gran Premio TISSOT de Aragon, the 12th of the 19-round MotoGP World Championship here on Friday.
FP1
Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) started the day with a statement. The eight-time World Champion laid down a 1:48.048, putting him a whopping 0.971 clear of reigning Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar). However, Mir did get within almost half a second on his final flying lap before that was cancelled, so the Suzuki rider seemed to have a little more in the locker initially…Over a second off the number 93, Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) was a consistent presence near the top as he ended the session in third, with Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) taking fourth with a late move up the timesheets to within 0.013 of the Italian. Thick and fast thereafter came Miller, Aleix Espargaro, Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing), Championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu), with gaps ranging from 0.008 between the latter two and up to a maximum of 0.079 between Zarco and Quartararo. Close? Very. Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team) completed the top ten, 0.130 off Nakagami.
On Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) watch, the Spaniard did 21 laps and got down to a 1:50.187 in his first official session with the Noale factory – about a second off Bagnaia in third.
Iker Lecuona (Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing) crashed early in the session, rider ok, before Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) took a tumble in the latter stages at Turn 5, rider also ok.
FP2
Fortunes changed as Marc Marquez grabbed more headlines but this time for a crash, with number 93 sliding out from behind Alex Marquez. Rider ok but frustrated, and he didn’t improve so ended up in P20 on the FP2 timesheets… just ahead of Joan Mir in a real reversal of FP1 for the two.That was despite the number 93 still leading the combined times with five minutes to go too, but a final flurry of activity in the afternoon saw everything change. Aleix Espargaro and Lecuona charged, then Miller set down his serious marker to beat Marc Marquez’ FP1 best by a margin. Aleix Espargaro did that next, before Crutchlow put in a stunner to slot into second.
Quartararo pipped the FP1 marker next, with Bagnaia – who also crashed earlier in the session – then pipping the Frenchman too and slotting into fourth. Next came Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing), before his teammate Johann Zarco was the final mover and shaker. Almost literally, as the Frenchman leapt up more than ten places despite a serious front end moment on his final lap.
Combined timesheets
After the mad dash to the top, the combined timesheets saw everyone improve in the afternoon minus Marc Marquez. So Miller reigns with 0.273 in hand over Aleix Espargaro, with Crutchlow ending the day just 0.011 further back as top Yamaha, seriously impressing as his stand-in duty continues.Zarco takes fourth ahead of Martin and Bagnaia – that’s four Ducatis in the top six as they show early promise of having moved forward a lot since our last visit to Aragon – and the margins remain tiny. Quartararo is P7, 0.002 off Bagnaia.
Eighth is where Marc Marquez’ FP1 chart-toppper fits in, 0.014 slower than El Diablo’s best from the afternoon, with Nakagami in ninth and Enea Bastianini (Avintia Esponsorama) completing an impressive day in tenth overall – and therefore the last rider currently on to take a place in Q2.
That leaves Pol Espargaro out as it stands, down in P11, with last year’s Aragon winner Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) in P12. The comes Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), with a new chassis for the Austrian factory to explore too.
Mir ends the day in P21, Rossi in P19 and Viñales splits the two, although on a slightly different mission to those around him. The number 12 ended the day 1.142 off Miller after his first two official sessions with Aprilia.
That’s a wrap on Friday, with plenty to talk about and surely even more to come on Saturday. The final push in FP3 gears us up for qualifying, which starts from 14:10 (GMT +2)… so make sure to tune in!
MotoGP top-5 on Friday:
1 Jack Miller – Ducati Lenovo Team – Ducati – 1:47.613
2 Aleix Espargaro* – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini – Aprilia – +0.273
3 Cal Crutchlow – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – Yamaha – +0.284
4 Johann Zarco* – Pramac Racing – Ducati – +0.375
5 Jorge Martin* – Pramac Racing – Ducati – +0.410*Independent Team rider
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Stunning lap by Indian ace Jehan Daruvala gets him P2; misses pole by 0.041sec
Monza (Italy), 10 Sept 2021: A stunning lap by ace Indian racer Jehan Daruvala could get him only P2 as he missed the pole by a whisker, the closest margin this season as Championship leader Oscar Piastri became the first repeat polesitter of the season in Monza, finishing first in Qualifying for the second round in a row to add four more points to his title advantage. His main rival, Guanyu Zhou, was only 0.051s off pole but had to settle for third with Jehan Daruvala claiming his first front-row start of the season, missing out on pole by just 0.041s in the FIA Formula 2 Championship held along with Formula 1 World Championship at the famed track here on Friday.
The Mumbai-born Indian potential for F1 said: :It is an amazing car, thanks to Carlin Racing. It is also one of the closest qualifying sessions of the season so far. P2 it is and a front row start for the Feature Race on Sunday. I am really happy with my lap.”
Théo Pourchaire led the field out onto the Monza tarmac, hoping to make the most of the clean air, but the Frenchman was down in 10th after the first lot of runs, despite a positive Sector 1.
It was Ralph Boschung, from the back of the pack, who slotted into first place at the end of that run, the Swiss driver punching in 1:32.609 to put his Campos at the front.
Championship leader Piastri – who was on pole last time out at Silverstone – found his bearings on the next tour, stealing first from Boschung by two tenths. Meanwhile, Free Practice’s fastest man, Dan Ticktum, had taken third.
After losing the Championship lead to Piastri in Silverstone, Zhou needed a big weekend in Italy, but the UNI-Virtuosi racer was lagging behind in P8 with 12 minutes to go. Heading to the pits for a fresh pair of Pirellis, Zhou managed to improve five places to third when he returned, but was still unable to challenge his main rival in P1.
Enough life remained in his tyres for a final attempt with two minutes to go and this time, Zhou did manage to beat Piastri. However, the Australian was just a few places further back in a slipstream fuelled train and managed to beat him by 0.051s, retaking his position at the top of the timesheet.
Daruvala benefitted from a slipstream himself to dive into second place and bump Zhou down to third, by a mere 0.016s. Only 0.202s separated the top five, with Liam Lawson in fourth and Felipe Drugovich fifth. Meanwhile, Boschung equalled his best Qualifying result at this level with sixth, ahead of Pourchaire and Ticktum.
Finishing 10th overall, David Beckmann will start ahead of Jüri Vips in Saturday’s reverse grid Sprint Race 1, which takes place at 8.50am local time.
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Alwin Sundar takes pole position in Novice category
Chennai, September 9: Local collegian Alwin Sundar (AS Motorsports) grabbed pole position in the Novice (Stock 165cc) category as the second round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship commenced at the MMRT, here on Friday.
Sundar, who leads the championship after his double in the previous round last month, clocked a best of 02 minutes, 07.596 seconds, followed by two riders from Thrissur, Allwin Xavier (Sparks Racing) (02:08.911) with Anfal A (Rockstar Racing) (02:09.069). The trio will head a 38-bike grid for the first race tomorrow.
Earlier, Bengaluru-based Anish Damodar Shetty (Race Concepts), who is placed second in the championship astride a KTM RC 390, topped the practice session in the premier Pro-Stock 301-400cc category, clocking a best lap of 01:53.332, ahead of Hyderabad’s Rahil Shetty (Gusto Racing, 01:53.469), also on a KTM, and Soorya PM (Rockers Racing, 01:53.876) on a Yamaha.
Championship leader, Rajini Krishnan (RACR, 01:54.126), who won both the races in Round-1 last month, was slightly off the pace in fifth position on his Yamaha R3, behind Jagadeesh N (Sparks Racing, 01:53.968).
In the other premier category, the Pro-Stock 165cc, Idemitsu Honda SK69 Racing’s Rajiv Sethu (01:56.899) was the quickest in the practice session, with two TVS Racing riders, defending champion and arch-rival Jagan Kumar (01:57.132) and Deepak Ravikumar (01:57.773) trailing in second and third spots.
The qualifying session for both the Pro-Stock category will be held tomorrow followed by first of the two races.
The Girls (Stock 165cc) too warmed up for tomorrow’s qualifying session with title holder Ann Jennifer (Sparks Racing) emerging quickest in practice run with a 02:10.097, followed by Round-1 race winner Ryhana Bee (RACR, 02:10.277) and Puducherry’s Lani Zena Fernandez (Speed Up Racing, 02:10.578).
In the One-Make Championships organized by the Madras Motor Sports Club, Navaneeth Kumar from Puducherry (TVS Open), Hyderabad’s Baddam Deepika Reddy (TVS Girls) and Prakash Kamath from Bokaro Steel City (Idemistu Honda CBR 150) qualified for pole positions in their respective categories.
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UAE-based Indian Anshul Gandhi to race in Spanish F4
By David Bodapati
Bengaluru, 8 Sept 2021: Jodhpur-born Indian racing teen, Anshul Gandhi, all of sweet 16, has joined GRS Team and is scheduled to make his single-seater debut in the Round 5 of Formula 4 Spanish Championship, which takes place from September 18 to 19 in Ricardo Tormo Circuit, Valencia, just a few kilometres away from his new team’s base, the GRS team said today.
The Rajasthani currently living in UAE, had earlier qualified for the IAME X30 one-make karting World Juniors, after winning the 2019-20 UAE IAME X30 Junior championship, which unfortunately were cancelled due to the world-wide COVID travel restrictions.
This year he made it to the two Karting World Finals winning 2020-21 UAE Rotax Max Challenge DD2 Championship and as a runner-up in UAE IAME X 30 Senior Championship. World finals are scheduled later in the year in October for IAME in Italy, and in December for Rotax in Bahrain.
Anshul recently took part in Rotax Max Challenge International Trophy at Le Mans, France and was the only Indian among 216 drivers from 30 countries, making sure that the Tri-colour was on display at the venue along with other major motorsporting giants.
The GRS team in a statement on Wednesday said: “It is with great pleasure for GRS Team to announce the arrival of Indian driver Anshul Gandhi to the team. The young driver will make his single-seater debut in the Formula 4 Spanish Championship season at Ricardo Tormo Circuit, in Valencia”. His teammate at the F4 Spanish event will be Ryabov.
“Throughout the year, Gandhi has participated in testing sessions with GRS Team, allowing him to know team and to prepare his racing debut. The job done so far has been satisfactory and the team is looking forward to welcoming Gandhi in Valencia and to offering him the best service on his maiden formula race,” the team added.
Anshul Gandhi with team GRS. Photo courtesy Twitter @GRSteam_ “I have been testing with GRS for the last few months and the progress has been really promising. The team’s support and guidance really helped me smoothly transition from Karting to single seater. I am really excited and looking forward to my debut race in Formula 4 at Valencia in the ongoing Spanish F4 Championship. I would like to take this opportunity to thank GRS Team Principal, Josep, his team and my coach, Álvaro Barba for their continued support and guidance,” said Anshul Gandhi.
Eldest of the two Barba Lopez brothers, the former Spanish F3 race winner is an accomplished racing driver with high credentials and experience in high-performance coaching required at this level and the Indian, who moved to UAE looking for better pastures in Motorsports, is expected to shift gears and move up to competition in Europe, generally considered as a breeding ground for budding `speed’ aspirants.
Josep Trinidad, CEO & Team Principal said: “We are very excited to receive and welcome Anshul into the team. Having two cars on track will help us to improve the overall performance. The relationship and the job done with Gandhi have been positive since Day, so we are convinced we will perform really well in Valencia”.
GRS will face the next round of Formula 4 Spanish Championship with two cars on track, something that will definitely be helpful for both competitors. The team is evolving and improving at a fantastic rate throughout the season and the presence of a new driver proves that a good job is being done.
You can follow Anshul on Instagram at @anshul_g18 and Twitter @anshulg_18
or at INDIAinF1.com, your website for all Indian motorsports activities.
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India’s top racers vie for top honours in MMSC 2w Nationals: Round 2
Chennai, 8 Sept 2021: If the action-packed lung-opener a fortnight back is any guide, then more fireworks are in the offing in the second round of the MRF MMSC fmscil Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2021, commencing on Friday, September 10, at the MMRT circuit behind closed doors due to the ongoing Covid-19 related restrictions.
There is much to enthuse about the National championship whose growing popularity is reflected in the 100-plus entries across all categories. The National championship comprises Pro-Stock 301-400cc, Pro-Stock 165cc, Novice (Stock 165cc) and Girls (Stock 165cc) classes with all bikes running on MRF tyres which have received thumbs up from the competitors.
The 18-race card also includes TVS and Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup One-Make Championships organised by the Madras Motor Sports Club. TVS are showcasing their Apache machines in the Open (RR 310), Rookie (Under-19 age group) and Girls (both RTR 200) categories, all of which have attracted sizeable entries.
In the first round last month, Honda introduced the Hornet 2.0 via a double-header as a support event to their top-end NSF 250R which is of World Championship Moto3 spec, and the CBR 150.
KTM and Yamaha too have sizeable presence while offering support in a variety of ways to some 17 teams that are in the fray across all categories. Thus, the championship is a confluence of leading manufacturers and the best of Indian racing talent.
MMSC president Ajit Thomas said: “The response to the championship this year has been quite extraordinary considering the challenging times we are in due to the Covid-19 situation and consequent restrictions. One notable feature is that the riders are not only getting more competitive, but also younger with the numbers growing steadily year-on-year. As always we are grateful to our title sponsors MRF Tyres while we also acknowledge the significant contributions by the two-wheeler manufacturers who are leaving no stone unturned to spot and nurture young talent from grassroot level up.”
The competition in Round 2 is expected to be even more sharper with front-runners looking to add to their tally of points. Veterans Rajini Krishnan (RACR) and Jagan Kumar (TVS Racing) put on brilliant exhibition of their undoubted riding skills with a double apiece in the premier Pro-Stock classes, 301-400cc and 165cc, respectively. The duo will again be the cynosure this weekend.
The Novice category has been an eye-opener with entries filling up well ahead of the deadline for submission. As such, the double-header last month boasted of a 39-bike grid, the biggest in the championship with Alwin Sundar winning both the races. The Girls category, an initiative launched by MMSC a few seasons ago, has improved in quality with lap times going down with Ryhana Bee (RACR) winning the race last month.
About Madras Motor Sports Club
Since its humble beginnings in 1953, the Madras Motor Sports Club has grown in stature as the hub of motorsport activity in India. Having moved its racing activities from Sholavaram to its present location, the MMRT circuit in Sriperumbudur in 1979, MMSC has kept pace with changing times by upgrading facilities. At a cost of about Rs 20 Crore, the MMSC built a pit complex comprising 20 garages, VIP hospitality suites and a viewing gallery, on the eastern side, apart from a second Paddock on the western side with its own short circuit. Parallelly, MMSC imported timing equipment specifically for Drag racing. The Control Room too was upgraded with state-of-the-art hardware while the track itself was improved to meet the exacting FIA standards for Grade-2 certification. MMSC also constructed a 500-capacity grand stand with provision for garages / storage below. In another upgrade, the MMSC purchased Digi flags from TAG Heuer Chronolec that will be positioned strategically around the track. The facilities are also extensively used by various vehicle manufacturers for testing their products, displays and corporate days.
