INDIA in F1

Category: Indians Abroad

News about Indians racing in different motorsports events abroad

  • Kari grabs the honours in free practice, Maini 9th fastest: GP3 Series

    Niko Kari has laid down a marker for his rivals for the final round of the 2017 season by claiming the top spot on his final lap of the Yas Marina Circuit in this morning’s free practice session, biding his time before claiming the honours when his rivals had no chance to usurp him for a lap time that was less than a tenth faster than Dorian Boccolacci and Nirei Fukuzumi. Meanwhile, Indian driver Arjun Maini of Jenzer Motorsports, was 9th fastest.
    The Finn’s best time of 1:55.796 after the chequered flag had dropped was the quickest of a string of fast laps that came in the final minutes of a session which saw times tumbling throughout but was otherwise quiet, with no major off-track drama given the short gap before this afternoon’s qualifying session.
    The track opened to warm and sunny conditions, with a number of drivers spending time on the top of the timesheets: Fukuzumi was the first person under the 2 minute mark with Kari, Dan Ticktum and Leonardo Pulcini swapping P1 between them until Boccolacci grabbed the top spot just before the 20 minute mark and held on until late into the session as everyone worked on their race simulations.
    With 5 minutes remaining everyone turned up the wick once more: Anthoine Hubert picked up the pace ahead of a string of drivers swapping the top spot between them, with Giuliano Alesi, Kevin Joerg, George Russell, Kari and Fukuzumi rotating through before Boccolacci reclaimed P1 with 2 minutes remaining. Ticktum went purple in sector 1, soon overtaken by Boccolacci, and it looked like the Frenchman had done enough as he slowed in the 2nd sector only to hear that Kari had claimed P1, leaving him no time to improve as he rolled to the flag.
    Behind the top 3 Ticktum, Russell, Hubert, Raoul Hyman, Pulcini and Arjun Maini were among the 14 drivers within a second of the top spot, promising fireworks in this afternoon’s qualifying session in just a few hours’ time.
    Provisional Qualifying Classification
    Driver
    Team
    Laptime
    Laps
    1.
    Niko KARI
    Arden International
    1:55.796
    19
    2.
    Dorian BOCCOLACCI
    Trident
    1:55.865
    18
    3.
    Nirei FUKUZUMI
    ART Grand Prix
    1:55.886
    18
    4.
    Daniel TICKTUM
    DAMS
    1:56.006
    16
    5.
    George RUSSELL
    ART Grand Prix
    1:56.071
    18
    6.
    Anthoine HUBERT
    ART Grand Prix
    1:56.159
    18
    7.
    Raoul HYMAN
    Campos Racing
    1:56.225
    16
    8.
    Leonardo PULCINI
    Arden International
    1:56.323
    19
    9.
    Arjun MAINI
    Jenzer Motorsport
    1:56.558
    18
    10.
    Steijn SCHOTHORST
    Arden International
    1:56.607
    19
    11.
    Marcos SIEBERT
    Campos Racing
    1:56.608
    17
    12.
    Kevin JOERG
    Trident
    1:56.612
    17
    13.
    Giuliano ALESI
    Trident
    1:56.640
    17
    14.
    Jack AITKEN
    ART Grand Prix
    1:56.641
    18
    15.
    Ryan TVETER
    Trident
    1:57.068
    16
    16.
    Bruno BAPTISTA
    DAMS
    1:57.255
    18
    17.
    Juan Manuel CORREA
    Jenzer Motorsport
    1:57.885
    18
    18.
    Alessio LORANDI
    Jenzer Motorsport
    1:58.723
    18
    19.
    Julien FALCHERO
    Campos Racing
    1:58.820
    14
    20.
    Tatiana CALDERON
    DAMS
    1:59.345
    9
  • Tough debut for Jehan Daruvala at Macau Grand Prix as he finishes 10th

    Tough debut for Jehan Daruvala at Macau Grand Prix as he finishes 10th

    Jehan Daruvala finishes 10th at Macau World Cup. 19 Nov 2017; Photo by James Gasperotti

    Macau: Jehan Daruvala of the Sahara Force India Academy, overcame numerous hurdles, while gaining valuable experience, on his debut at the FIA F3 World Cup. The nineteen year old Indian finished a commendable tenth in his rookie race at the Macau Grand Prix. The notoriously unforgiving street circuit witnessed high drama throughout the weekend with most sessions witnessing either a red flag or a safety car, due to multiple accidents.

    Jehan’s weekend at the Macau Grand Prix began with the Indian teenager finding his way around his the circuit during his first time on track. The Grand Prix in Macau deviates from the normal racing format, with the average of 2 qualifying sessions deciding the start position for a qualifying race, which in turn decides the grid for the Grand Prix race.

    The 6.1 Guia street circuit is considered as one of the toughest circuits in the World and numerous F1 stars have raced and won here, enroute to F1. The circuit has no run-off at most corners, while metal armco barriers or walls, line the edge of the narrow circuit for most of its length. The added twist of the extremely high speeds that can be achieved, often result in mayhem with multiple crashes in all categories.

    Jehan’s progress was hampered after crashes in practice 1 and qualifying 1, as it was for numerous other experienced and rookies alike. However the young Indian improved significantly in the second practice session which saw him just 1.1 seconds off the pace, in tenth position. Qualifying 2 undid his efforts after a crash on his first quick lap left him down in nineteenth. Jehan started nineteenth in the qualifying race, but unfortunately by then he had damaged too many tyres in his accidents. He was forced to use an old set for the race and could do little in terms of progressing up the order and eventually finished the race in sixteenth.

    The FIA F3 World Cup Race at the Macau Grand Prix proved to be the most exciting. Jehan finally on fresh tyres immediately made a move once the lights went out. He was unfortunately forced wide and once again hit the barriers. Luckily the only damage that Jehan had was a slow puncture. He soon had to make an unscheduled pit-stop to change the punctured tyre and then resumed his race on track. He was fortunate to pit during a safety car period which meant he did not lose too much ground to the leaders.

    Jehan joined the race in last and put his head down to close the gap. He soon started overtaking cars and also benefitted from others crashing. Jehan eventually took the chequered flag in a commendable tenth position, 10.45 seconds behind the race winner. Up ahead, the race was one of the most exciting races in the history of the Macau GP. The early leaders crashed in the first few laps after which Jehan’s teammate, Habsburg from Austria took the lead from Brazilian favourite, Sergio Camara on the last corner of the last lap! Ironically however, both crashed as they exited the last corner and handed victory to British racer Daniel Ticktum who started from eighth.

    “I expected a mixed weekend – and it was exactly that. It was a steep learning curve with absolutely no margin for error. My qualifying race was compromised because ran out of tyres. At the start of the GP race I was forced into the barriers, which was a shame because I had good pace. Considering all the set-backs, I am happy with the pace I managed at the end, in my first Macau GP. I have learnt a lot and would definitely love to come and race here again next year” said Jehan after his top ten finish in the FIA F3 World Cup.

    Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher, David Coulthard are some of the Formula 1 winners who have won the Macau Grand Prix in the past besides, numerous other F1 racers who have participated but were unable to win.

    eom/Press Release

  • Double for Drugovich in MRF Challenge opener

    Bahrain, 17 Nov, 2017: Felipe Drugovich, the 17-year-old Brazilian, got his 2017 MRF Challenge campaign off to a perfect start by winning both races in the season opener at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, here on Friday.

    Drugovich pulled off a last lap move on Manuel Maldonado, cousin of former F1 racer Pastor Maldonado, to win Race 2. Presley Martono also passed Maldonado on the run up to the chequered flag to beat the Venezuelan by 0.010 secs to take second spot. In Race 1, Drugovich benefitted from race leader Rinus van Kalmthout’s retirement to win ahead of Martono and Dylan Young.

    Earlier in the day van Kalmthout was dominant in qualifying to put his car on pole position by almost half a second. He set a 2:00.754 to set the fastest time of the weekend. Drugovich qualified 2nd, albeit 0.461secs off with Karkosik in 3rd place. Falchero qualified in 4th place ahead of Martono and Friday pace setter Pavan Ravishankar.

    The season got underway with van Kalmthout having the perfect start from pole position to lead into the first corner. Drugovich followed him in 2nd place with Dylan Young jumping from 7th to 3rd after getting a brilliant start. Drugovich managed to stay with van Kalmthout for the first few laps before the Dutch driver started pulling away at the front. Meanwhile Martono passed Young for 3rd and started catching Drugovich. It was heartbreak for van Kalmthout as he was forced to retire from the lead with 2 laps to go due to a mechanical problem. Meanwhile Martono closed up right behind Drugovich and the two cars were side by side as they headed down the main straight. Martono tried to get past but Drugovich held on to win the first race of the season. Young crossed the line in 3rd place to take only his second podium in championship. Alex Karkosik finished in 4th place ahead of Maldonado, Julien Falchero and Robert Megennis.

    In the reverse grid based Race 2, Maldonado jumped Falchero to lead into the first corner. Drugovich had a strong start from 6th on the grid to slot into 3rd behind the fast starting Karkosik. Karkosik and Drugovich put pressure on Maldonado but the Venezuelan did well to stay in front. Van Kalmthout, who started last, sliced through the field and was upto 6th place on lap 5. Martono passed Falchero into the first corner on lap 6 while 2nd placed man Karkosik was forced to retire with a mechanical problem. On the last lap Drugovich out braked Maldonado to take the lead, with Martono close behind. Coming out of the last corner and heading into the start finish straight Martono managed to get his nose ahead to beat Maldonado by 0.010secs. It was heartbreak for Maldonado who slipped from 1st to 3rd on the last lap. Behind the top 3, Falchero finished in 4th ahead of the charging van Kalmthout, with Megennis and Ravishankar rounding off the top 7.

    Double winner Felipe Drugovich, commented, “I am really happy to win both races today. In qualifying we were still trying things with the setup. We were lucky to win Race 1 with Van Kalmthout retiring. In race 2 I had a great start and managed to get behind Maldonado. He made a small mistake into the final corner and I took advantage to pass him into the first corner. It has been a great start and I hope we can do the same tomorrow.”

    Presley Martono impressed with a double podium finish in the season opener. He commented, “The car was great today and I felt that we really nailed the setup. I have to improve my starts and then I feel I can challenge for the win. Overall I am very happy with today’s performance.”

    Race 3&4 will take place tomorrow.

    MRF Challenge 2017, Round 1, Bahrain, Qualifying:

    1. Rinus Van Kalmthout – 2:00.754
    2. Felipe Drugovich – 2:01.215
    3. Alex Karkosik – 2:01.533
    4. Julian Falchero – 2:01.900
    5. Presley Martono – 2:01.961

    MRF Challenge 2017, Round 1, Bahrain, Race 1:

    1. Felipe Drugovich – 20:33.897
    2. Presley Martono – 20:34.546
    3. Dylan Young – 20:38.456
    4. Alex Karkosik – 20:40.984
    5. Manuel Maldonado – 20:43.096

    MRF Challenge 2017, Round 1, Bahrain, Race 2:

    1. Felipe Drugovich – 20:33.019
    2. Presley Martono – 20:34.689
    3. Manuel Maldonado – 20:34.699
    4. Julian Falchero – 20:36.847
    5. Rinus van Kalmthout – 20:39.456

    eom/press release

     

    eom/press release

     

  • Underweight Ruhaan disqualified after a creditable 12th: World Rotax Max Challenge

    Underweight Ruhaan disqualified after a creditable 12th: World Rotax Max Challenge

    File photo by Ruhaan Alva team

    Portimao (Portugal), 11 Nov 2017: Ruhaan Alva, the 11-year old schoolboy from Bengaluru and representing the Birel Art India team, marked his debut in the World Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals here on Saturday with a creditable 12th place finish in the Micro Max category out of 34 starters, only to be disqualified on a technicality.

    Ruhaan, supported by Play Factory and Sona Miller, was disqualified for being underweight by a mere 100 grams during the mandatory post-race weigh-in. As per regulations, the kart along with the driver in full racing gear, including the helmet, should weigh 110 Kgs, but Ruhaan tipped the scales at 109.9 Kgs.

    “We are absolutely shattered, but there is nothing we can do about it. Ruhaan had put in so much effort going into the World Finals and we had come to Portugal with a lot of hopes. So, an extremely disappointing finish to the week though Ruhaan

    The Grand Finals saw 360 karters from 59 countries competing in various age-group categories, and Ruhaan came through a week-long competition that saw four rounds of free practice, three qualifying heats, the Pre-Final and the Final with a consistent performance which won him much high acclaim.

    Though Ruhaan finished just outside the top-10 group, he improved with each outing and clocked his best lap of one minute, 07.992 seconds around the 1.5 Kms long circuit in the 10-lap Final that was won by France’s Louis Iglesias.

    Ruhaan opened the week with a best lap of 01:11.295 in the first of the practice sessions. As he grew in confidence and learnt the track, his times dropped. He qualified 10th for the Pre-Final and 13th for the Final.

    “It was a great learning experience for me, competing against the best in the World. I thought I could have done much better, but am happy that I could finish 12th in a field of 36 in my category that was extremely competitive. Of course, it was very disappointing to get disqualified for being underweight,” said Ruhaan who was punching above his weight considering that many of his competitors had more track time.

    Ruhaan thus completed an otherwise excellent season as he finished third overall in his category in the Italian Easykart Championship and second in the FMSCI Indian National championship.

    eom/revised with inputs from Ruhaan’s release on Nov 12, 12.30pm

  • Ruhaan Alva raring to go: World Rotax Max Challenge finale

    Ruhaan Alva raring to go: World Rotax Max Challenge finale

    Ruhaan Alva after booking the berth for World Finale in Bengaluru on Oct 15. Photo by Srinivasa Krishnan

    Bengaluru, 5 Nov 2017: Schoolboy Ruhaan Alva, supported by Italian manufacturer Birel Art, will be making his debut in the World Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals commencing in the beachside town of Portimao, Portugal, from tomorrow (Monday) as 360 competitors representing 60 countries will vie for titles in various age-group categories.

    Ruhaan, the 11-year old from Bengaluru, who finished third Overall in the recently-concluded Easykart series in Italy, has entered in the 125 Micro Max category which has a grid of 36 drivers who have qualified from their respective National Rotax Max championships or international Rotax Max series.

    After completing formalities over the weekend, the competitors will have two days of practice sessions on Nov 6 and 7. The qualifying sessions commence on Wednesday, Nov 8, leading up to the three rounds of heats (Nov 9) and pre-finals (Nov 10) before the finals on Saturday, November 11.

    Looking ahead to his maiden participation in the Grand Finals, Ruhaan said he would put to good use his experience in the recent Eastkart championship in Italy and hoped to deliver a strong result.

    “I had a good season in Italy though it was very tough because I switched to a higher and more competitive Easykart 60 category after the first round in the Mini class which I won.

    “Despite a non-finish in one of the rounds thereafter, I still managed to tie for second place in the championship with my team-mate Patrese Lorenzo. However, since Lorenzo had participated in all the rounds in this category, he was declared second ahead of me although I had won more races.

    “It was otherwise a steep learning experience for me and it helped me to improve a lot. The experience helped me finish second in the National championship despite a few problems, including a non-finish in one of the rounds.” said Ruhaan.

    The 18th edition of the Grand Finals, which is among the most prestigious championship in the World of karting, has attracted 360 entries from about 60 countries and competing in six age-group categories.

    Race equipment like chassis, engines, tyres, fuel, tools, Kart trolleys will be provided to all participating drivers in order to guarantee equal opportunities and fair races.

    eom/press release

  • Aravind KP part of Sherco TVS team for Dakar 2018

    Bangalore, 31 October 2017: Top Indian rider Aravind KP is nominated along with two others for the Sherco TVS Factory Rally Team for the daunting Dakar Rally. Joan Pedrero from Spain will be leading the squad which also has Adrien Metge from France . The Sherco TVS Factory Rally Team has been performing strongly in all the international rallies and is aiming for a top-10 finish at Dakar 2018.

    Dakar 2018 is the 40th edition of the annual International Rally-Raid, and Sherco TVS Factory Rally Team will be participating in the event for the fourth consecutive year. The Rally will be held from January 6, to January 20, 2018. This year, the Rally will cover three countries, beginning in Lima, Peru, and passing through La Paz, Bolivia, before finally culminating in Córdoba, Argentina, after having traversed a total distance of over 9000 km.

    This will be the second time that Aravind KP will participate in Dakar Rally. Joan Pedrero will be participating at Dakar Rally for the tenth consecutive time and this will be the 3rdDakar Rally for Adrien Metge.

    Vinay Harne, President – New Product Development, TVS Motor Company says, “Our partnership with Sherco for Dakar has been a hugely rewarding experience for our racing team. We have supported Indian riders and engineers in competing in international events and that has resulted in immense learning for both the partners. We wish the Sherco TVS Factory Rally Team the very best.”

    The Sherco TVS Factory Rally team participated in 4 international rally-raids this year – Baja Aragon, Merzouga Rally, PanAfrica Rally and 2017 OiLibya Rally of Morocco – with strong finishes in each.

    Thomas Teissier, General Manager, Sherco Motorcycles said, “This is the fourth year of our partnership, and with each passing year our preparation for Dakar has become more focused and fierce. We have a strong relationship with TVS Racing, and we have worked together on the existing team structure. We are excited to have Aravind KP in our team again. The preparation has been good so far, and I have full faith in the abilities of our team for Dakar 2018. The preparation in the last two months before the race will be very crucial, and I am sure that the team will perform to the best of their ability.”

    Arun Siddharth, Vice President Marketing – Premium Two Wheelers, International Business & TVS Racing, said, “TVS was the first Indian manufacturer to participate at Dakar and this year we have stepped up our participation in, and preparation for, international rally raids. Races such as PanAfrica Rally, Merzouga Rally and OiLibya Rally have helped get more exposure, thus helping us improve our readiness for Dakar.Based on our performance at the other rally-raids this year, we are aiming for a Top 10 finish at the Dakar 2018.”

    About TVS Racing: The journey of TVS Racing began 35 years back when Sundaram Clayton Limited (ATVS Group Company) introduced its 50 cc mopeds in the arena of road racing. Since then TVS Racing has been actively participating on and off-road racing events such as road racing, Super-cross and Motocross, Dirt Tracks, Rally etc. TVS Racing is the only factory team in India to have any woman rider as a part of their team. In early 2015, TVSRacing became the first Indian factory team to take part in Dakar Rally, which is the longest and toughest rally in the world. TVS Racing won eleven championships across all forms of two-wheeler motorsport events Supercross, Rallies and Road racing last year.

    About Dakar 2018: Dakar is the biggest rally-raid in the world. The rally had attracted more than 4 million spectators on the road in 2017. This is the 40th edition of Dakar. The rally will traverse through Peru, Bolivia and Argentina this year and will cover 15 days of racing. There are more than 500 competitors from 60 countries.

    eom/press conference in Bangalore

     

  • Jehan Daruvala for FIA F3 World Cup at Macau on Nov 19

    This year’s FIA F3 World Cup will be fought out exclusively by the cream of young drivers seeking to make a name for themselves in world motor sport. Touted as the future F1 driver from India, Jehan Daruvala is the only driver from India who made it to the Macau event.. Along with four other Carlin teammates, he will be behind the wheels of a Dallara Volkswagen.

    Eight of the top ten drivers from the 2017 FIA Formula 3 European Championship will all take to the track in Macau, as well as five of the seven rookies who contested their first year of F3 competition in the world’s premier series.

    This of course means that newly-crowned FIA F3 champion Lando Norris will once again be facing his main rivals going up against the likes of Joel Eriksson, Maximilian Gunther and Callum Ilott.

    Three of the top four runners in the 2017 All-Japan Formula 3 Championship will also contest the event in the form of Sho Tsuboi, Alex Palou and Ritomo Miyata.

    While last year’s inaugural World Cup was weighted towards more experienced competitors, with Antonio Felix Da Costa winning his second Macau GP in five years from Felix Rosenqvist who was making a bid to become the first person to win three Macau GP’s in succession, this year it is guaranteed that a new winner will take to the top step of the podium.

    2016’s front-running drivers have moved on to race in the FIA Formula E Championship, although Rosenqvist will debut in the FIA GT World Cup at the Guia circuit.

    While none of the drivers on this year’s grid have won at Macau, many have some experience driving the challenging Guia Circuit. Ilott, fifth in the 2016 FIA F3 World Cup and fourth in this year’s European F3 Championship knows Macau well. His form in 2016 following Da Costa into second in the qualifying race and battling for an early lead in the final marked him as one of the fastest of the young guns at the circuit.

    Likewise Eriksson, second to Norris in the European championship with seven wins and thirteen podiums, will surely be one to watch.

    Norris also knows the undulating Macau circuit, although arguably not as comprehensively as Ilott or Eriksson. Norris first raced at Macau in the inaugural FIA F3 World Cup in 2016 when he finished 11th, after qualifying in the top ten on debut and testing the track limits when his nose cone was torn off in a qualifying race incident.

    The demanding Macau circuit with its bumpy surface, high speed main straight and 19 wall-enclosed corners is a constant challenge for both rookies and veteran drivers alike.

    This year nine of the FIA F3 World Cup contestants will be new to the track.

    The most prominent will be Mick Schumacher, son of seven time World F1 champion Michael, twelfth outright and third in the Rookie Championship of the FIA F3 European title.

    His father won the Macau GP in 1990 in spectacular fashion from Mika Hakkinen.

    Other key drivers to look out for will be:

    Sergio Sette Camara: Third in 2016 FIA F3 World Cup. Set the lap record around the Guia circuit in 2015 – a 2:10.186
    Kenta Yamashita: 2016 All-Japan F3 Champion. Impressed in the first FIA F3 World Cup finishing 4th. Currently racing in Super GT and Super Formula in Japan
    FIA Director of Single-Seater Championships, Charlie Whiting, said: “It’s very exciting to see so many young stars contesting the second FIA F3 World Cup. This is exactly what the event is all about – bringing together the top talents from the top F3 series around the world for an end-of-season showdown on this incredible circuit. Macau always resets the form book, and it’s sure to be an intense and unpredictable battle for a new driver to be crowned FIA F3 World Cup winner.”

     

    eom/FIA press release

  • Aditya Patel finishes the season with a bang, helps team with a double win: Blancpain GT Asia Series

    Aditya Patel finishes the season with a bang, helps team with a double win: Blancpain GT Asia Series

    Zhejiang: Twenty-nine year old Chennai racer Aditya Patel finished the seasonn with a bang with a double victory in along with teammate Gilbert in the 12th and final race of the Blancpain GT Series Asia Championship. The duo, piloting the Audi R8 LMS GT3, missed out on the overall championship title by a single point in the inaugural edition.

    Indian GT ace Aditya Patel and Malaysian teammate Mitch Gilbert won both the races at the final round of the Inaugural Blancpain GT Series in Asia which helped them claw back vital championship points, finishing only one point behind the final winner, Hunter Abbott.

    “What a weekend! I’ve had a fantastic year with OD Racing and the support from my sponsors Audi India, Jubilant Motorworks and 2GO Activewear has b

    Aditya-Patel-and-Gilbert-after-a-double-win-in-the-season-finale-on Sunday. Photo courtesy Aditya Patel

    een amazing! I can’t wait to see what next year has in store,” said an ecstatic Aditya to www.INDIAinF1.com through an email after the weekend.

    The OD Racing pair came into the final round 28 points behind the championship leading pair of Marchy Lee and Shaun Thong. With 50 points up for grabs, Patel and Gilbert came into the weekend with an outside chance of winning the title.

    Patel put in a lap which was good enough for second place on the grid for race 1 while Gilbert set a blinding laptime in qualifying 2 which put them on pole position for race 2.

    Starting 2nd for the first race, Aditya was quick to take the lead in wet conditions and began to open a gap between himself and 2nd place Aidan Read. The Indian then handed the car over to Gilbert who found himself in the lead even after serving a five second pitstop penalty. From there on Gilbert opened up a gap and finished comfortable with a win in race 1.

    Race 2 was held in treacherous conditions after it rained through the night and continued to rain as the day progressed. Gilbert took the start but lost a place to Martin Rump on turn one, and kept his head down through his stint, and then handed it over to Patel who served his 10-second penalty for winning Race 1 and came out in 2nd place behind Rump’s teammate Rick Yoon. However, as conditions got worse, Yoon spun and handed the lead back to Patel who cruised to the 2nd victory of the weekend. Although he roped in a maximum-points haul, the pair still missed out on the overall championship by just a single point.

    “What a weekend! We came in 28 points behind the leaders with an outside chance of winning and now we’ve finished 2nd only one point behind. We did everything we could this weekend and had a perfect weekend but in the end it wasn’t enough.

    eom/with inputs from Aditya Patel

  • Ruhaan Alva, Yash Aradhya, Aaroh Ravindra for World Rotax Grand Finale in Portugal

    Bangalore, 15 Oct 2017: Ruhaan Alva (Micro Max), Yash Aradhya (Junior Max) and Aaroh Ravindra (Senior Max) will represent India in the World Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals at Portugal from November 4-11 according to sources. Portimao in Algarve will be the venue for the 16th edition where 288 of the best kart drivers in the world will compete in four categories supported by independent chassis partners.

    Meanwhile, in the Nationals, Arjun Rajiv of Birel Art India won the Micro Max Championship while Yash Aradhya (MSport) and Aaroh Ravindra of Rayo Racing won the Junior Max and Senior Max Championships respectively. Team Rayo Racing won the team championship while Nirmal Umashankar became the best driver of the year.

    Ruhaan Alva, won the final race of the fifth and final round in the Micro Max class at the Meco Kartopia in the Rotax Max Karting National Championship organised by Meco Motorsports under the aegis of Federation of Motor Sports Clubs in India (fmsci) here on Sunday.

    However, the 11-year old Bengaluru boy, who recently won the second runners-up place in the Italian EasyKart 60cc championship, was given a third place after the stewards’ ruling following a protest. That did not, however, deny him a second place in the Micro Max championship.

    Aaroh Ravindra, Senior Max National Champion. Photos by Srinivasa Krishnan
    Ruhaan reacts at the Meco Kartopia on Sunday after hearing the news of World finals. Photo by Srinivasa Krishnan, commissioned for INDIAinF1.

    Ruhaan’s teammate Arjun Rajiv could only finish sixth and fifth in the two races this week-end but that was enough for him to garner a total tally of 416 points, eight more than Ruhaan, to win the Championship crown. Rishon MR, also of Birel Art India, came third for a clean sweep by the Birel team. Both Ruhaan and Rishon had 408 points.

    In the Senior Max championship, it was Aaroh Ravindra of Rayo Racing who won the National title with 436 points after he finished second in both the races in the last round here. Nirmal Umashankar of MSport was second with a tally of 403 points while Aanjan Patodia, also of Rayo Racing, got the second runners-up with 388 points.

    It was Yash Aradhya of MSport who won the National Championship in the Junior Max category with 432 points edging out Chirag Ghorpade, who won both the pre-finals andn finals this week-end but fell short by six points in his last-round dash with only 423 points. Yash came third in the pre-final and second in the last race of the season. Shahan Ali Mohsin MSport came third with 405 points with a second and third place this week-end.

    Championship winners:

    Micro Max

    1. Arjun Rajiv – 416 – Birel Art India
    2. Ruhaan Alva – 408 – Birel Art India
    3. Rishon M R – 408 – Birel Art India

     Winning Team Champion  – Peregrine Racing

    Junior Max

    1. Yash Aradya – 432 – MSPORT
    2. Chirag Ghorpade – 423 – BPC Racing
    3. Shahan Ali Mohsin – 405 – MSPORT

     Winning Team Champion  – MSPORT

    Senior Max

    1. Aaroh Ravindra – 436 – Rayo Racing
    2. Nirmal Umashankar – 403 – MSPORT
    3. Aanjan Patodia – 388 – Rayo Racing

    Winning Team Champion – Rayo Racing

    Maximum Number of Pole Position – Ruhaan Alva

    Maximum Number of Wins – Aaroh Ravinda

    Best New Corner – Rishon M R

    Best Driver of the Year – Nirmal Uma Shankar

    Akbar Ebrahim Most Improved Karter of the Year – Rohaan Madhesh

    eom/with inputs from official results

    edited at 11.15 am on 16 Oct 2017 correcting names following an official revisions

     

     

  • Lando Norris wins championship; Jehan Daruvala finishes 5th in the race

    Event: 10 Hockenheim
    Session: Race 1
    Track: Hockenheimring / DEU
    Pole position: Callum Ilott (Prema Powerteam)
    Race winner: Joel Eriksson (Motopark)
    Weather: sunny, 17.3 °C

    Lando Norris (Carlin) has done it, the Brit is the new FIA Formula 3 European Champion. For the young talent, who is backed by the McLaren Formula 1 team, second place behind race winner Joel Eriksson (Motopark) was enough to seal the title. Moreover, Norris secured the title of the best rookie driver. Ferdinand Habsburg (Carlin) claimed the final podium slot in the 28th race of the FIA Formula 3 European Championship season that was held in bright sunshine at the 4.574 kilometres long Hockenheimring in Germany.

    Callum Ilott (Prema Powerteam) started from pole position and initially led the race, but lost his position already on the run to the hairpin when Joel Eriksson successfully attacked him. Ferdinand Habsburg returned from the opening lap in second place, followed by Lando Norris, Callum Ilott, Jehan Daruvala (Carlin) and Pedro Piquet (Van Amersfoort Racing). On lap seven, Lando Norris attacked his team-mate Habsburg, worked his way past the Austrian and then was able to pull a gap from Habsburg. However, he was unable to attack race leader Eriksson, so that the Motopark driver brought an undisputed victory home. Lando Norris took the flag in second place, which was enough to seal the FIA Formula 3 European Championship title early.

    Behind Habsburg, Callum Ilott finished fourth at the Formula 1 track of Hockenheim, followed by Jehan Daruvala, Nikita Mazepin (Hitech Grand Prix), Tadasuke Makino (Hitech Grand Prix) and Maximilian Günther (Prema Powerteam). The German, who was the last remaining rival for Lando Norris in the battle for the title prior to the race, only started from twelfth place and eventually had to make do with tenth position. Because Joel Eriksson, one of Günther’s opponents in the battle for runner-up position in the championship, scored 25 points for his win while Günther only had one point for tenth, the Swede moved ahead of the German and is now second in the drivers’ standings.

    Joel Eriksson (Motopark): “My race was really good. Admittedly, my start was worse than Callum’s but I was able to slot in ahead of Lando. On the opening lap, I had a good slipstream in the run to the hairpin and I overtook Callum on the outside. Then, I concentrated on pulling a gap and maintaining it. Now, I am second in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship drivers’ standings and I will do everything to ensure that I will be there at the end of the season as well.”

    Lando Norris (Carlin): “Of course, I am happy that I am now the FIA Formula 3 European Champion, even though I wanted to do it at Spielberg already. Prior to the season, my team and I didn’t expect to win the title, but we worked hard and this is the well-deserved reward. However, my rivals, first and foremost Maximilian Günther, also made things pretty difficult for me. This title probably is the most important one in my career so far. In this race, my start wasn’t really good, so I dropped back to third. When I then wanted to overtake Callum, we slightly tangled, allowing Ferdinand to get past the two of us into second place. When he made a mistake later on, I was able to overtake him again. Against Joel, I didn’t have a chance anymore, our pace simply was too similar.”

    Ferdinand Habsburg (Carlin): “My start was good and so was the opening lap. In front of me, Callum and Lando were battling. I assumed that this could provide me with an opportunity to gain a place and I positioned myself accordingly. And it was exactly like that, so I was second after one lap. Later, Lando overtook me again, but I was able to bring third place home.”

    eom/FIA press release