INDIA in F1

Category: National Rally Championship

  • Subir Roy & Nirav Mehta champs; Aparna-Lalitha claim maiden title: TSD Nationals

    Subir Roy & Nirav Mehta champs; Aparna-Lalitha claim maiden title: TSD Nationals

    Bengaluru, 26 Feb 2023: Subir Roy and co-driver Nirav Mehta of Kolkata were crowned the National champions for 2022 winning the Overall honours in the finals of the ProSports FMSCI Indian National TSD Rally Championship 2022 (INTSDRC) while Bengaluru pair from IT sector, Aparna Pathak and Lalitha Gowda, clinched their maiden National title in the Ladies Class here on Sunday.

    The National Championship is run as part of Southern Safari. The Nationals is promoted by PROSPORTS and the Grand finale is organized by Karnataka Motor Sports Club.

    Another Bengaluru pair Harish and navigator Chandrashekar won the INTSDRC2 class while Aritra Chakraborthy and navigator Soham Pal from Kolkata won the Novice class National title. With the completion of the TSD Nationals, FMSCI has successfully completed 12 Nationals for the year 2022.

    Veteran pair, Subir and Nirav hit jackpot

    Subhir Roy (left) and Neerav Mehta after receiving the National Championship Overall winners award for 2022 in Bengaluru on Sunday.

    Subir Roy and Nirav were rallying together for 12 years now and the 59-year Subir, who made his debut in the local Kavi Guru rally at Kolkata in 2002, is a veteran of many events including some cross-country rallies like the Desert Storm, Dakshin Dare and the Himalayan rally. He has also participated in the Indo-ASEAN Rally organized by the Ministry of Defence. From 2016, he has been taking part in the TSD Nationals with consistent podium finishes but the title has been eluding the duo. Finally, the Kolkata duo laid their hands on the National Championship in a Volkswagen Polo 1.6 with 12 zeros and managed 24 secret TCs and difficult Time Controls to pip defending champions, compatriots Ajgar Ali and Mustafa, on a tie-breaker. The result shows the tough competition for a TSD rally where navigation plays a crucial role with or without a ‘tabulating’ meter.

    “It was a pleasure to win the National title. Nirav and I stood on the podium many times in the 12 years we were together, but this is special. I want to give many thanks to the Karnataka Motorsports Club and CoC Sujith for organizing such a technical and transparent rally with great hospitality. I thank my family and all my supporters,” said Subir Roy, in his hour of glory.

    Maiden title for Aparna & Lalitha as they dominate ladies class

    Aparna Pathak and Lalitha Gowda, the two lady drivers from Bengaluru are a well-known team in TSD scene.

    Though no one in their families is into motorsports, a chance drive in the Times Women’s Drive in 2018 saw Aparna get hooked to the rallies and she found Lalitha, who began her career with the Mumbai to Lavasa TSD rally in 2009 in Mumbai, as her navigator. The pair won many rallies and partnered together for a number of podiums after coming together for the Rally of Chikkamagalur in 2019. They made their debut in the TSD Nationals in 2021 at Siliguri and clinched their maiden title this year. They also become the inaugural Ladies Class National winners.

    Aparna Pathak (left) and Lalitha Gowda after receiving the National Championship winners award (Ladies Class) from Sujith Kumar BS, Head of PROSPORTS, the Promoters.

    “We feel very delighted to win the first INTSDRC women’s championship. It was a very close competition and all the teams have given their best. The route was extremely scenic and well-planned. It gave a glimpse of the rich landscape of Karnataka from dams to coffee estates, and the green cover,” said Aparna Pathak.

    “We would like to thank FMSCI, Women in Motorsports (WIM), all the motorsport clubs for organising qualifying rounds and bringing the national-level championship back.  A special thanks to ProSports and KMSC for the exciting grand finale,” echoed Lalitha and Aparna together.

    Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) has changed the nomen clature of the TSD Championship and went back to the old, INTSDRC for 2022. Last year, the name was Indian National Regularity Run, which was sponsored by JK Tyre and was held in 17 qualifying venues. However, FIM Asia Vice-President and multiple National TSD Champion navigator Sujit Kumar BS, did all the hard work behind the screens as Promoter ProSports salvaged the dying Nationals by accepting to conduct the delayed Nationals. They took up the responsibility and successfully completed the three zonal qualifying rounds in South, East, and West and the finals.

    With a thrust on improving the opportunities for women through Women in Motorsport concept, the Federation, for the first time provided the status of a National Championship to the Ladies Class. The other Championship were the Ladies Class was given the National status this year is Sprint (2w).

    This year there were 20 qualifiers and the Finals were held in Bengaluru. “The Club”, on Mysore road near Rajarajeswari Nagar, an old venue which saw, the start and end of, many a National rally in their halcyon days, was once again the venue where the ceremonial start was held. After the flag-off on Friday, the 700-Km rally went to Hassan on Saturday and the novel night stage was introduced after many years again and it went through the coffee estates in a loop nearby Hassan on Saturday night. On the second leg on Sunday, the participants went through scenic routes and picturesque locales passing through Virajpet and returned to Bengaluru, where the Prize Giving was held at “the Club” again.

    The 40 undisclosed Time Controls (TC) were placed strategically, and many provided surprises to make the rally a thrilling experience. The route was set by experienced Sujith and Bhaskar of Karnataka Motor Sports Club, who organized the Southern Safari, the name given to the final round of the TSD Nationals.

    Novice class National Champions Harish and Chandrashekar with the Chief Guest.

    Clerk of the Course and multiple former National TSD champion Sujith Kumar said: “The popular TSD Nationals received huge response in all the three zones and 20 finalists fought for honours in the Grand Finale which ran from Bengaluru to Hassan and back to the Garden City. We are happy to keep the TSD culture alive as it is the entry-level gateway to bigger things in motorsports.”

    The Nationals sponsored by Annapoorneshwari  Developers, Maithri Estates, Sidvin, Vamcy Merla and Vammudi Vijay offered a total Prize money was about Rs. 2.3 lakhs and four National titles.

    INTSDRC is one of the 12 National Championships conducted by fmsci in different motorsports disciplines, for both 2-wheelers, four-wheelers and Karting. Gymkhana, Dirt Track, four-wheeler Drag and Sprint Nationals were not held this year.

    Final Results: (Car # number)

    1. INTSDRC: 1. #4 Subhir Roy and Neerav Mehta (Penalty time: 00:01min, 33seconds); 2. #10 Ajgar Ali & Mustafa (01.33); 3. #6 Ganesh Moorthy & T Nagarajan (02.26); (Tie broken by number of zero TCs: Subir 12; Ajgar 9)

    2. INTSDRC-2: 1. #18 Harish & Chandrashekar (02.03); 2. #8 Anil Abbas & Amal Abbas (02.22); 3. #9 Aparna Pathak & Lalitha Gowda (02.32);

    3. INTSDRC –WOMEN: 1. #9 Aparna Pathak & Lalitha Gowda (02.32); 2. #11 Sheena Sabarwal & Trupti Gupta (03.38); 3. #14 Gitika Pant & Neena Jain (04.03);

    4. INTSDRC- NOVICE: 1. #24 Aritra Chakraborthy & Soham Pal (27.17); (Lone finisher).

    Fmsci Indian National Champions (TSD):

    1. INTSDRC: Subhir Roy and Neerav Mehta;
    2. INTSDRC-2: Harish & Chandrashekar;
    3. INTSDRC –WOMEN: Aparna Pathak & Lalitha Gowda;
    4. INTSDRC- NOVICE: Aritra Chakraborthy & Soham Pal.
  • Rajendra claims 8th Nationals; Samuel Jacob fastest rider: Sprint Nationals

    Rajendra claims 8th Nationals; Samuel Jacob fastest rider: Sprint Nationals

    Bengaluru, 26 Feb 2023: Multiple National champion and ace rally rider Rajendra RE clinched the Open Class to claim his 8th National title, while his teammate Samuel Jacob became the National Champion in the other feature class and also bagged the ‘fastest rider’ tag in the finals f the Motorsports Inc fmsci Indian National Rally Sprint Championship for the year 2022 conducted along with Indian Dirt Fest, that concluded here on Sunday.

    But it was the talented first year student of B.Com in DG College of Commerce, Satara, Tanika Shanbagh, astride a Hero Xpulse 200 in Hero MotoSports colours, who stopped the TVS juggernaut winning the Ladies Class with ease and grace. It was her maiden National championship title win. She became the first Ladies Sprint champion as the Class got the fmsci National Championship status only this year (2022). Last year, she dared a risky entry but her injured ankle did not allow her to push. Her teammate Karan Kumar, added one more title for Hero MotoSports, winning the Group D upto 260cc class. Imran Pasha and Karthik made it four titles for the riders from TVS stable after Rajendra and Samuel Jacob.

    Maiden National title for Tanika Shanbagh as she wins
    the Sprint Nationals in Bengaluru on Saturday. INDIAinF1 pic

    Another star rider, Samuel Shajan Jacob, 29, who has a Masters in Logistics and Supply Chain Management, also knows a bit about sprockets and chains. He won the National title in the Group A upto 600cc class to add fourth National title to his exploits, and became the fastest rider of the Sprint Finals clocking a blistering 6min, 06.41sec ahead of Rajendra and Nataraj in the Group A class, which was dominated by Petronas TVS Racing riders. Born in Udupi the genial giant, won the longer INRC 2w Championship Overall title in 2020 along with his Group B class title, which he retained in 2021 for his third crown. Today, it is his fourth National title and maiden Sprint title in his class Group A upto 600cc class.

    However, it was Shivamogga’s Rajendra, 37, who claimed the National title in the Premier Open Class upto 600cc clocking 06:06.70 beating Jacob from Udupi. Imran Pasha, also from TVS came third in the finals. Rajendra, who has 7 titles in two different classes in the longer 2w Rally Nationals including two overall titles in 2019 and 2022, it is the maiden title in Sprint Nationals, and his 8th title. (2014 & 2015 upto 165cc; 2016, 2017 & 2018 upto 260cc; 2019 & 2022 Group A overall) .

    Bengaluru’s 26-year defending champion Pavan BK, clinched the title in the Group B 131cc to 165cc class with a hat-trick to boot. He has been dominating this class for sometime now, and would have clinched a National double in the next higher Gr.B 166 to 260cc class but a minor fall in the final corner prevented a possible podium. “Overall it was a flat out race and I enjoyed it thoroughly. I am so thrilled to make it a hattrick,” said Pavan, who came back from a mid-season injury with determination and hardwork. He has four National titles under his belt winning this class in 2020, 2021 and 2022, beside another title in the Group B 166 to 260cc class in 165cc in the 2w National Rally Championship, the longer format INRC.

    Bengaluru’s Pavan BK on a hattrick as he admirably came back from an injury to retain his title in the Group B 131 to 165cc class in the Sprint National Final on Saturday.

    International rider and celebrated racing star Anish D Shetty took the Championship victory in Group B 261cc to 400cc class while Imran Pasha from TVS won the 166 to 260cc class. Durgesh (upto 130cc) and Karthik K (Scooter class) were the other National champions 2022 in their respective classes.

    Jeemon Antony, the Kerala cop who speeds like a Bullet train.

    In the heavyweight Bullet class, 40-year Jeemon Antony won the Championship crown. The strong-willed but humble cop, always wears a smile on his face which does not show the two titanium rods that support his spine when he is on duty standing all the time policing the traffic in a Kerala city. Once on a crime beat, this Senior Civil Police Officer in Ernakulam stole the victory from big boys, Bruce Lee Naresh, Tribal Café fame Dev Venkatesh and India’s first Hero Dirt Track champ Asad Khan, but without a penny in sponsorship. Three cheers to this disciplined warrior, Jeemon Antony, who proved that life begins afresh at 40, with a maiden National Championship title. “I am very happy to finally win an Indian National title. It is a great moment after all the hardwork and months of bed rest and recovery,” said an elated Jeemon Antony. His bullet was tuned by Aneesh Anoop.

    “The wide participation and close competition has shown that the Sprint Nationals popularity has increased with the successful zonal rounds. Despite time constraints we managed to finish the Nationals with the support of both riders and teams,’’ said former Indian National Rally Champion Jaidas Menon, the Clerk of the Course and the man behind Motorsports Inc, the Promoters.

    After the regional rounds, the qualified riders competed in the grand finale and the winners here were declared National champions in the 10 classes in the delayed 2022 championship.

    Indian National Champions 2022 (Sprint) (Provisional):

    1. Bullet Class:                        Jeemon Antony;
    2. Group A Upto 600cc:      Samuel Jacob;
    3. Group B 131cc to 165cc: Pavan BK;
    4. Group B 166cc to 260cc: Imran Pasha;
    5. Group B 261cc to 400cc: Anish D Shetty (PRN Motorsport);
    6. Group B Upto 130cc:       Durgesh J;
    7. Group D Upto 260cc:      Karan Kumar (Hero MotoSports);
    8. Ladies Class:                       Tanika Shnbagh (Hero MotoSports);
    9. Open Class Upto 600cc: Rajendra RE;
    10. Scooter Class:                    Karthik K;
  • Rajendra, Overall National Rally Champ; Sarath Mohan, claims Experts class title

    Rajendra, Overall National Rally Champ; Sarath Mohan, claims Experts class title

    Nashik, 5 Feb 2023: Multiple National champion from Petronas TVS Racing team, Rajendra RE, regained the overall crown for 2022 in the top Super Bikes Pro-Expert class winning the Rally of Nashik while Sarath Mohan clinched his maiden National title in the other premier Expert class, without even shifting a gear, as the sixth and final round of the MRF MoGrip fmsci National Rally Championship for two-wheelers – 2022 concluded here on Sunday.

    Sarath Mohan, claims Experts class 1A National title

    Meanwhile, Sarath Mohan from Mallapuram, Kerala, clinched the National crown in the Super Bike Expert Group A Class 1A with two rounds to spare and did not take part in the Rally of Nashik, as the dates clashed with his Rally Raid cross-country training in UAE.

    Other champions who clinched the National title with a round to spare are Sasi Kumar K in the Super Sport 165 Group B Class 3, TVS rider Imran Pasha, in the Super Sport 260 Group B Class 4 and VS Naresh, in the Super Sport 550 Group B Class 6.

    P2 good enough for Aishwarya to clinch 6th consecutive Ladies title

    Today, Bengaluru’s TVS talent Aishwarya Pissay came second behind rookie local rider Tanya Singh, who won the Ladies class. The champion took it easy, with one hand on the title, and the second place was enough to clinch her a sixth-straight title. Second in the championship standings, Kerala rider Fazeela, did not take part in the Nashik Rally.

    Entering the final round with a 12-point lead, the TVS speedster, Aishwarya, avoided any risks as she navigated the technical course with deft control on her TVS TR 200R, a lean machine that rounded off her 2022 campaign. She maintained steady pace and cleverly played it easy to clock 40min, 21.597seconds for the two special stages before the final stage was cancelled today.

    Oldest still the quickest – Venu claims title beating younger boys

    Veteran Venu Ramesh Kumar, a privateer from Coimbatore who is the oldest competitor in the Nationals, gained points with his consistency and clinched the title in Super Sport 400cc Group B Class 5. TVS Racing star Shamim Khan, astride a NTorq won the Scooter class crown.

    Going into the final round with 73 points, a third place was enough for Venu Ramesh Kumar to clinch the National title in Class 5 as his closest rival Hansraj Saikia (also 73) from Assam did not take the start as his bike did not arrive. Russell Jossy won the Nashik Rally and Amog Nag finished second.

    Third Special Stage cancelled

    The Rally of Nashik was organised by AW Events. The six-round MRF MoGrip fmsci National Rally Championship for two-wheelers, promoted by GodSpeed Racing, concluded with champions decided in eight classes. With time lost due to incidents in Stage 1, the final Special Stage (SS 3) was cancelled. Two other Support classes, including one for Star of Maharashtra, were also held.

    Petronas TVS Racing factory rider from Shivamogga, Rajendra, began with a blistering 15min, 58.429 seconds in the first Special Stage (SS) and pelted out another fastest time in SS2 but with his teammate and nearest rival Abdul Wahid Tanveer, pulling out in the very first stage, the 2019 National champion, won the title with ease. Rajendra began with a fourth place in the first round and did not start Round 2. Later, he won all the four rounds to clinch the National title again.

    Shamim Khan (80), who was leading by just three points against Pinkesh Thakkar (77) needed a victory and he did it in style clocking fastest times in both the stages today. Syed Asif Ali came second and Thakkar finished third.

    Of the 49 entries, 47 took the start only 40 riders finished the course in Nashik.

    National Rally Championship classes 2W) title winners for year 2022 (Provisional):

    Class 1: Super Bike Pro- Expert: Rajendra RE, (TVS, Shivamogga) Points 112;

    Class 1A: Super Bike Expert Group A: Sarath Mohan (Mallapuram) 100;

    Class 2: Super Sport 130cc Group B: Chalass K Bose (Kottayam) 136;

    Class 3: Super Sport 165cc Group B: Sasi Kumar K (Coimbatore) 108;

    Class 4: Super Sport 260cc Group B: Imran Pasha J (TVS, Mysuru) 125;

    Class 5: Super Sport 400cc Group B: Venu Ramesh Kumar (Coimbatore) 88;

    Class 6: Super Sport 550cc Group B: Naresh VS (Bengaluru) 125;

    Class 7: Group B Ladies Class: Aishwarya Pissay (TVS, Bengaluru); 118;

    Class 8: Group B Scooters upto 210cc: Shamim Khan (Nashik) 105;

    Provisional Results (Rally of Nashik):

    Class 1: Super Bike Pro- Expert: 1. Rajendra RE, (TVS) 32min, 19.538sec; 2. Samuel Jacob (TVS) 33:25.601; 3. Nataraj R (TVS) 33:46.862.

    Class 1A: Super Bike Expert Group A: 1. Badal S Doshi 37:34.399; 2. Tabish Rizvi 40:40.487; 3. Yogesh Kagale 43:10.991.

    Class 2: Super Sport 130cc Group B: 1. Chalass K Bose 37:39.479; 2. Anoop Manjappa 39:37.944; 3. Nadir Khan 44:57.644.

    Class 3: Super Sport 165cc Group B: 1. Niraj Wanjale 38:14.280; 2. Muzaffar Ali 41:05.577; 3. Rahul S Mokashi 41:41.440 (including 10sec penalty);

    Class 4: Super Sport 260cc Group B: 1. Imran Pasha J (TVS) 33:30.616; 2. Banteilang Jyrwa (TVS) 33:40.991; 3. Sachin D 34:03.492.

    Class 5: Super Sport 400cc Group B: 1. Russel Jossy35:45.979; 2. GS Amogh Nag 36:14.097; 3. Venu Ramesh Kumar 36:58.612;

    Class 6: Super Sport 550cc Group B: 1. Hitesh S Ghadge 39:49.175; 2. Nilesh Y Thakare 41:46.765; 3. Santosh Sarkale 41:59.796.

    Class 7: Group B Ladies Class: 1. Tanaya S Singh40:04.057; 2. Aishwarya Pissay (TVS, Bengaluru) 40: 21.597;

    Class 8: Group B Scooters upto 210cc: 1. Shamim Khan (TVS) 36:07.905; 2. Syed Asif Ali 36:25.659; 3. Pinkesh Thakkar 36:54.406.

    Class 9: Super Stock Group D upto 450cc: 1. Sabarish R 36:28.257; 2. Goutham Rao R 38:43.776; 3. Tanay S Kasera 39:28.858.

    Class 10: Star of Maharashtra: 1. Lokesh A Bhosale 38:17.522;  2. Amarendra Sathe 39:43.636; 3. Kaustubh Machhe 45:53.070;

  • Rajendra favourite for title; Tanveer takes the fight to final round

    Rajendra favourite for title; Tanveer takes the fight to final round

    Nashik, 4 Feb 2023: Petronas TVS Factory rider Rajendra RE begins as hot favourite, as the fight goes to wire with teammate and defending champion Abdul Wahid Tanveer on Sunday for the Overall National Rally title. The Rally of Nashik, the sixth and final round of the MRF MoGrip fmsci National Rally Championship is flagged off here on Saturday and the three competitive stages will be run on Sunday.

    With Champions already decided in many classes, the entries fell to 49 (including two ladies) and there are only four factory bikes in the Super Bike Pro-Expert Class here making it a family affair. However, the compact field has high competition with Rajendra, the 2019 National champion, leading by eight points and he needs to just finish ahead of Tanveer.  But the reigning champion, who began with a win this year, could only garner three second place in the next three rallies (all TVS riders did not participate in Round 2). Thus to win the title, Tanveer not only needs to win the rally outright, but hope that Rajendra finishes third or behind.

    In four classes, champions were decided before the final round here. They are Sarath Mohan, Sasikumar K, Imran Pasha and VS Naresh.

    Sarath Mohan, Expert class National champion

    Sarath Mohan from Kerala, who met with a serious accident in the 2021 Chikmagalur round, made a stunning comeback with a clean sweep of all the first four rounds. Having garnered an unbeatable lead and winning the title  in the Super Bike Expert (Group A) Class 2 by fourth round itself, the aggressive rider skipped the next two rounds opting to train in the dunes of Dubai preparing for bigger Rally Raid international events.

    165cc National champ is Sasikumar

    Sasikumar K also became the National champion in the Super Sport 165 Group B Class with a round to spare. He took an unbeatable 47-point lead over second-placed Francis PV. Both these top riders are not present in Nashik and the class has only four entries.

    Imran Pasha bags Class 4 title – 260cc Group B

    Imran Pasha, another Petronas TVS Racing team rider, has pocketed the Super Sport 260 Group B Class 4 title on his RTR 200 with 100 points beating his nearest rival Adnan Ahmed who has only 70 points. He won all the four rallies he took part.

    Naresh is 550cc Group B champion 2022

    VS Naresh, also captured the National crown astride a Himalayan in the the Super Sport 550 Group B Class 6.

    Aishwarya all set for 6th consecutive title

    In other classes, Aishwarya Pissay looks set to lay her hands on the sixth consecutive National crown in the Ladies class. The Women in Motorsports campaign reduced from 8 lady riders in ‘Round 1 to only two in the final round. (Read a detailed report here).

    Veteran rider and the oldest among the lot in the entire 2W rally field, is locked in a tough battle with Hansraj Saikia of Assam in the Super Sport 400cc Group B class 5. Despite missing Round 2, he garnered 73 points, the same as the Saikia. Amog Nag in third has 64 points and has an outside chance to sideline the top guns.

    In the Scooter class 8, Shamim Khan on an NTorq has a slender lead of three points from Aprilia riders Pinkesh Thakkar (77) and Subramanya T (58).

    The MRF Rally of Nashik will have a 17.5-Km Special Stage (SS) run thrice from Nandgaon Kolikharwal, all in forward direction, for a combined competitive distance of over 52.5Km, mostly broken tarmac. Along with a transport section of about 70Km, the total rally distance will be 122.5Km.

    The six-round MRF Mogrip fmsci National Rally Championship for two-wheelers 2022 promoted by GodSpeed Racing is one of the 12 Nationals conducted in various motorsports disciplines by fmsci, the National Federation.

    Start Order for the final rally:

    #
         		BIB
    No    		RIDER
         		VEHICLECONTESTTEAM 
    11RAJENDRA RERTR450CLASS 1HOSUR
    22ABDUL WAHIDRTR450CLASS 1HOSUR
    33SAMUEL JACOBRTR450CLASS 1HOSUR
    44NATRAJ RRTR450CLASS 1HOSUR
    55IMRAN PASHARTR 200CLASS 4HOSUR
    66SACHIN DRTR 200CLASS 4HOSUR
    77BANTEILANG JYRWARTR 200CLASS 4HOSUR
    88BADAL S DOSHIKTM 500 EXCFCLASS 1ANAVI MUMBAI
    99TABISH RIZVIEC 350FCLASS 1AMUMBAI
    1010VENU RAMESH KrDUKE390CLASS 5COIMBATORE
    1111HANSRAJ SAIKIAKTM DUKE 390CLASS 5GUWAHATI
    1212GS AMOGH NAGKTM 390 DUKECLASS 5BENGALURU
    1313RUSSELL JOSSYDUKE 390CLASS 5NAVI MUMBAI
    1414AISHWARYA P MRTR200CLASS 7HOSUR
    1515CHALASS K BOSESTUNNERCLASS 2KOTTAYAM
    1616ANOOP MANJAPPASTUNNERCLASS 2BENGALURU
    1717NIRAJ WANJALEIMPULSECLASS 3PUNE
    1818JEEVARATHINAM JAPACHE RTR 180CLASS 4BENGALURU
    1919MUZAFFAR ALIIMPULSECLASS 3BHOPAL
    2020RAHUL S MOKASHIIMPULSECLASS 3PUNE
    2121SAMPATH GOWDA CAPACHE RTRCLASS 3BENGALURU
    2222YOGESH KAGALEDUKE 200CLASS 1AKOLHAPUR
    2323NADIR KHANYBXCLASS 2BHOPAL
    2424HITESH S GHADGEHIMALAYANCLASS 6PUNE
    2525NILESH Y THAKAREHIMALAYANCLASS 6NASHIK
    2626SANTOSH SARKALEHIMALAYANCLASS 6NASHIK
    2727SHAMIM KHANNTORQ 124CLASS 8HOSUR
    2828PINKESH THAKKARAPRILIA SR 150CLASS 8PUNE
    2929SUBRAMANYA TAPRILIA SR 150CLASS 8PUNE
    3030GOUTHAM NAPRILIA SR 125CLASS 8PUNE
    3131KARTHIK NNTORQ 124CLASS 8HOSUR
    3232SYED ASIF ALINTORQ 124CLASS 8HOSUR
    3333VENKATESH SHETTYAPRILLA SR 150CLASS 8MUMBAI
    3434AAKASH SATPUTEAPRILIA SR 150CLASS 8PUNE
    3535HITEN THAKKARSR150CLASS 8NASHIK
    3636SABARISH RRTR200CLASS 9BENGALURU
    3737GOUTHAM RAO RRTR 200CLASS 9BENGALURU
    3838ABHIMANYU RAYXPULSECLASS 9PUNE
    3939TANAY S KASERAADVENTURECLASS 9NAVI MUMBAI
    4040ROHIT TIWARIHIMALAYANCLASS 6PUNE
    4141LOKESH A BHOSALEXPULSECLASS 10PUNE
    4242AMARENDRA SATHEXPULSE 200CLASS 10PUNE
    4343KAUSTUBH MACHHEXPULSE 200 4VCLASS 10NASHIK
    4444SURYA K TATINENIXPULSE 2004VCLASS 10NASHIK
    4545PURSHOTTAM MATEXPULSECLASS 10PUNE
    4646SHRIDHAR PANDEYXPULSE RALLYCLASS 10PUNE
    4747TANYA S SINGHXPULSE 2004VCLASS 7PUNE
    4848GAURAV PATHAREGLADIATORCLASS 2MUMBAI
    4949HARSHAL KADBHANE**XPULSECLASS 10NASHIK
  • Petronas TVS Racing talent Aishwarya Pissay, eyes her 6th straight National title

    Petronas TVS Racing talent Aishwarya Pissay, eyes her 6th straight National title

    Nashik, 4 Feb 2023: PETRONAS TVS Racing factory rider, Aishwarya Pissay, the only FIM World Cupper from India is all set for the final round of the MRF MoGrip FMSCI National Rally Championship (INRC-2w) 2022 .

    The Bengaluru racing star, is eyeing her record sixth consecutive National Rally crown when action begins after a gap of over two months with the Rally of Nashik, the sixth and final round of the GodSpeed Racing’s MRF MoGrip FMSCI National Racing Championship – 2W 2022 here on Sunday.

    The 2019 FIM Bajas World Cup champion in the Ladies class, after her brief stint in the ‘Big Boss Kannada’, was back in November to do what she loves the most – biking, and won the fifth round in Pune to set-up a grand finale. Later, the final round here was put off and the multiple-National title holder, Aishwarya Pissay is leading the championship table in her class, despite missing a round earlier, and is raring to go to defend her title once again. She has put in over a month’s training on her reliable TVS TR 200R, including on tarmac sessions, and is ready for the final hurrah.

    Supported by PETRONAS TVS Racing, Aishwarya, who is also backed by Micro Labs, IIFL and Surana College, won the first round in Chikkamagaluru by a mile after which the 27-year-old missed the second round. Pissay then came back strongly to reclaim the title-lead with splendid victories in the next three rounds in Coimbatore, Bengaluru, and Pune respectively.

    “I am eagerly waiting to get back into competitive racing. The terrain will be broken tarmac and very technical. I have trained hard during this long break on my much-accomplished TVS TR 200R that is based on the TVS Apache RTR 200. I thoroughly enjoyed riding the motorcycle, all thanks to which I am going strong into the last race of the season. I will be giving my 100 per cent to win one more National title,” said the talented Bengaluru rider.

    The MRF Rally of Nashik will have a 17.5-Km Special Stage (SS) run thrice from Nandgaon Kolikharwal, all in forward direction, for a combined competitive distance of over 52.5 km, mostly broken tarmac. Along with a transport section of about 70 km, the total rally distance will be 122.5 km. The ceremonial flag-off from Amboli Holiday Home, Opp Amboli Dam, Tal Trimbakeshwar will take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday while the Special stages will be held on Sunday.

    The six-round MRF MoGrip FMSCI National Rally Championship for two-wheelers (INRC-2w)2022 promoted by GodSpeed Racing is one of the 12 Nationals conducted in various motorsports disciplines by FMSCI.

  • Karna Kadur-Nikhil Pai win K1000, clinch Indian National Rally title with a round to spare

    Karna Kadur-Nikhil Pai win K1000, clinch Indian National Rally title with a round to spare

    Tumakuru (Karnataka), 4 Dec 2022: All the hard work and years of patience paid rich dividends as Bengaluru rally stars Karna Kadur and co-driver Nikhil Vittal Pai claimed the Indian National Rally Championship, with a round to spare here on Sunday. This is the second National overall title for the talented duo, who won their maiden Nationals in 2016 in the top class.

    Kadur along with Nikhil Pai, one of the senior-most navigators in the country along with Musa Sherif, brought the second National title for Volkswagen Polo. Pai, who made his INRC debut aboard a two-wheeler in 1992, the victory is a justification for his meticulous work ethic, deep knowledge of the sport and the terrain that helps him to guide his driver, engineers in the car set-up and other technical aspects beyond his call of duty, the pace notes.

    On the other hand, the seven-time National champion Karna Kadur, who switched from Road Racing to Rally and delighted his fans with his exploits as a young driver of Red Rooster Racing took a mind-boggling tumble in Nashik in 2009 when he graduated to a powerful Mitsubishi Cedia. Undaunted, the champion in him went on to build a successful career, which missed a probable maiden National title in 2012 due to the controversial “Penalty” at the Coffee Day rally in Chikmagalur.

    Multiple National champions in the sub-categories, Karna and Nikhil bagged full 40 points with their overall INRC class victory, including full leg points, while their nearest rival Gaurav Gill (Musa Sherif), drew a blank in this round, remaining on 44 points. The Bengaluru duo garnered a total of 112, an unbeatable lead of 68 points, to clinch the National Overall title.

    Driving a Volkswagen Polo 1.0 Comfortline tuned by Leelakrishnan, the Arka Motorsports stalwarts clinched their maiden Overall Karnataka-1000 title by finishing first in the Prasaditya 46th Karnataka-1000 Rally, the third and penultimate round of the Blueband FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship at the Special Stage run near Gubbi, in Tumakuru taluk, despite suffering a heavy damage to their car after clipping a rock.

    Karna Kadur and long-time co-driver Nikhil Pai, after winning INRC Overall title.
    Photos by Anand Philar.

    Finishing second, over a minute behind Kadur was Mangaluru’s Aroor Arjun Rao (co-driver Satish Rajagopal, Bengaluru) of Mandovi Racing while Delhi’s Philippos Matthai (Harish Gowda, Bengaluru), who returned to rallying after a 13-year break, finished third Overall.

    Karna Kadur & Nikhil Pai in action on Sunday. Photo by Anand Philar

    Matthai also took the honours in INRC 3 category while Virajpet’s Suhem Kabeer (Jeeva Rathinam, Bengaluru) topped in the INRC 2 class. Further down the grid, Chikkamagaluru’s Aeman Ahmed (Sagar Mallappa, Bengaluru) of Ammyfied Racing won in the INRC 4 class with Delhi’s Arnav Singh Pratap (Arjun SSB, Bengaluru) of  SNAP Racing bagged the Junior INRC crown. Chandigarh’s Samrat Yadav (Chandrashekar M, Bengaluru) of Ammyfied Rallying emerged champion in the Gypsy Challenge, a non-championship category.

    The 34-year old Kadur, who enjoyed a comfortable lead after Leg-1 on Saturday, kept his wits about him after suffering some heavy damage to the sump guard in Sunday’s second Stage when he clipped a rock. His mechanics carried out the necessary repairs in 20 minutes flat during the service break which enabled Kadur to continue and finish the second loop without much ado.

    A six-time INRC winner himself, N Leelakrishnan, mentor and coach, gives an appreciative hug to his ward Karna Kadur, who brought the legend his 20th National title as “Tuner” in the Indian National Rally Championship. Photo by Anand Philar (FB)

    Reflecting on the weekend, Kadur said: “It (the win) still hasn’t sunk in, but I am very happy that we won our first K-1000 Rally. We had a fairly smooth run yesterday, but this morning, we had a scare when we clipped a rock in the second Stage.

    “The damage was pretty bad in the front because the sump guard got cut. I managed to come back to service and the boys did a tremendous job in carrying out the necessary repairs, including some cutting, chopping and welding, besides fabricating and fitting a new sump guard, all in 20 minutes flat. 

    “We checked into parc ferme with just 30 seconds to spare. All kudos to our team who did a tremendous job. Yes, a pretty emotional moment. My dad (late Prakash Kadur) never won a K-1000 Rally and so, I am first in the family.”

    Meanwhile, seven times National champion Gaurav Gill (Musa Sherif), who retired in Leg-1 with a drive-shaft issue on Saturday, suffered another setback after rejoining for Leg-2 today with a broken front right knuckle leading to his retirement in the day’s second Stage after being the fastest in the first.

    The last round of the INRC 2022 promoted by Blueband Sports is scheduled to be held at Meghalaya pending approval from FMSCI.

    Provisional final classification:

    Overall / INRC: 1. Karna Kadur /Nikhil Pai (Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (01hr,13mins, 56.5secs); 2. Aroor Arjun Rao (Mangaluru)/ Satish Rajagopal (Bengaluru, Mandovi Racing) (01:15:11.9); 3. Philippos Matthai (Delhi)/ Harish Gowda (Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (01:16:54.0).

    INRC-2: 1. Suhem Kabeer (Virajpet) / Jeeva Rathinam (Bengaluru, Pvt) (01:16:57.1); 2. Rahul Kanthraj / Vivek Y Bhatt (Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (01:17:28.5); 3. Harkrishan Wadia (Delhi) / Amber Udasi (Chandigarh, Arka Motorsports) (01:25.08).

    INRC-3: 1. Matthai  / Harish; 2. Maninder Singh Prince (Delhi) / Vinay Padmashali (Bengaluru, JK Rallying) (01:17:23.1); 3. Arnav Singh Pratap (Delhi) / Arjun SSB (Bengaluru, SNAP Racing) (01:19:51.7);

    INRC-4: 1. Aeman Ahmed (Chikkamagaluru) / Sagar Mallappa (Bengaluru, Ammyfied Racing) (01:28:11.4); 2. Rakshith Iyer (Mysuru) / Avinash CA (Bengaluru) (01:31:40.4); 3. Deepak Chandra / Raghuram CG (Bengaluru, DC Racing) (01:43.58.4).

    Junior INRC: 1. Arnav / Arjun; 2. Pragathi Gowda / Trisha Alonkar (Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (01:20:13.2); 3. Ajay Sankar (Kollam) / Rohit Gowda (Bengaluru) (01:21:24.1).

    Gypsy Challenge (Non-Championship): 1. Samrat Yadav (Chandigarh) / Chandrashekar M (Bengaluru, Ammyfied Rallying) (01:18:26.7); 2. Himanshu Arora (Delhi) / Vikram Thakur (Chandigarh, Ammyfied Rallying) (01:22:01.9); 3. Kariappa Mekerira (Kodagu) / Supreeth Sagar (Bengaluru, Ammyfied Rallying) (01:26:06.9).

    All Women (Open): 1. Pragathi Gowda / Trisha Alonkar; Shivani Pruthvi / Deepti Pruthvi (Davangere, Pvt) (01:24.16.6); 3. Nikeetaa Takkale (Pune) / Deeksha Balakrishna (Bengaluru, Snap Racing) (1:29:20.9).

  • Karna Kadur takes sizeable lead; Gaurav Gill retires: K1000

    Karna Kadur takes sizeable lead; Gaurav Gill retires: K1000

    Tumakuru (Karnataka), 3 Dec 2022: The Bengaluru pair, Karna Kadur and co-driver Nikhil V Pai of Arka Motorsports, stepped up to the challenging terrain to finish Leg-1 as the Overall leaders in the Prasaditya 46th Karnataka-1000 Rally, the third round of the Blueband FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) here on Saturday which also saw the retirement of previous edition’s winner, Gaurav Gill (Musa Sherif) due to mechanical issues.

    The day’s schedule was shortened to four Special Stages as against scheduled six following a delayed start due to a technical hitch. However, Kadur, the championship leader, kept his focus and came up with a well-paced drive to take a 47.4-second lead over Palakkad’s Fabid Ahmer (Sanath G) on completion of Leg-1 with Mangaluru’s Aroor Arjun Rao (Satish Rajagopal) of Mandovi Racing in third, trailing the leader by one minute. Four more Stages are scheduled to be run tomorrow (Sunday), the concluding day of the event.

    Ahmer, who missed the 2021 National championship narrowly, leads in the INRC 2 category while Maninder Singh Prince (Suraj Keshava Prasad) of JK Rallying is ahead in the INRC 3 category.

    Fabid Ahmer and co-driver Sanath G in action on Saturday. Photos: Anand Philar

    Leaders in the other classes were: Aeman Ahmed (Sagar M) of Ammyfied Rallying, in INRC 4; Arnav Pratap Singh (Arjun SSB) of SNAP Racing in JINRC and Samrat Yadav (Chandrashekar M) in Gypsy Challenge which is a non-championship category.

    As well as Kadur drove today, the expected clash with seven-times National champion Gill dissipated in the day’s very first Stage with the Delhi star pulling out due to an issue with the gearbox of his Mahindra XUV 300 barely two Kms in the first Stage. “We had put in some new parts, but in SS-1, we had to pack up due to some issue with the gearbox. I was looking forward to the event as the Stages were to my liking. We will restart tomorrow and I hope to score some leg points,” said a disappointed Gill.

    Kadur, aiming to win the National title this season, and who leads Gill by 44 points in the championship standings, said: “We stuck to our plan today which was to bring the car home. We pushed more in the second loop in the afternoon and made time on our morning run. I enjoyed the drive today. As for tomorrow, again, our aim will be to finish the event, exercise caution where required and push when we can. The car is still a work in progress and I am learning it all the time. Hopefully, we will have a good run tomorrow.”

    Maninder Singh Prince and Vinay Padmashali lead INRC3 after Day 1.

    The Prasaditya Karnataka-1000 rally is being organised by the Karnataka Motor Sports Club under the aegis of FMSCI, the governing body of motorsports in India and promoted by Blueband Sports.

    Of the 65 cars that took the start, 24 cars logged DNF and failed to finish on Day 1. Some of the cars will take the start again on Sunday for leg points.

    Provisional partial classification (After Leg-1): (After Day1)

    Overall / INRC: 1. Karna Kadur / Nikhil V Pai (Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (36mins, 03secs); 2. Fabid Ahmer / Sanath G (Palakkad) (36:50.4); 3. Aroor Arjun Rao (Mangaluru) / Satish Rajagopal (Bengaluru, Mandovi Racing) (37:04.7); 4. Suhem Kabeer (Virajpet)/ Jeeva Rathinam (Bengaluru) (37:09.300); 5. Aditya Thakur (Solan) / Virender Kashyap (Shimla, Chettinad Sporting) (37:21.7); 6. Jahaan Singh Gill (Chandigarh)/ Suraj Keshava Prasad (Bengaluru, SNAP Racing) (37:50.700); 7. Maninder Singh Prince (New Delhi) / Vinay Padmashali (Bengaluru, JK Rallying) (38:10.9); 8. Philippos Mathai (New Delhi) / Harish KN (Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (38:10.9); 9. Samrat Yadav (Chandigarh) / Chandrashekar M (Bengaluru) (38:54.300); 10. Arnav Pratap Singh (Delhi) / Arjun SSB (Bengaluru, SNAP Racing) (39:05.9); 11. Pragathi Gowda / Trisha Alonkar (Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (39:08.7);

    INRC 2: 1. Ahmer / Sanath; 2. Suhem Kabeer (Virajpet) / Jeeva Rathinam (Bengaluru) (37:09.3); 3. Aditya Thakur (Solan) / Virender Kashyap (Shimla, Chettinad Sporting) (37:21.7); 4. Jahaan Singh Gill (Chandigarh)/ Suraj Keshava Prasad (Bengaluru, SNAP Racing) (37:50.700).

    INRC 3: 1. Maninder Singh Prince (New Delhi) / Vinay Padmashali (Bengaluru, JK Rallying) (38:10.9); 2. Philippos Mathai (New Delhi) / Harish KN (Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (38:10.9); 3. Kuber Sharma (Solan) / Kunal Kashyap (Shimla) (38:18.1); 4. Arnav Singh Pratap (Delhi) /Arjun SSB (Bengaluru) (39:05.900).

    INRC 4: 1. Aeman Ahmed (Chikkamagluru) / Sagar M (Bengaluru, Ammyfied Rallying) (43:25.2); 2. Rakshith Iyer (Mysuru) / Avinash CA (Bengaluru) (43:45.6); 3. Jagbir Nirwan (Patiala) / Karanpreet Mattu (Kurukshetra) (47:43.2); 4. Ruthuparna Vivek (Chikkamagaluru) /Santosh Thomas (Hyderabad) (59:18.900).

    Junior INRC: 1. Arnav Pratap Singh (Delhi) / Arjun SSB (Bengaluru, SNAP Racing) (39:05.9); 2. Pragathi Gowda / Trisha Alonkar (Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (39:08.7); 3. Ajay Shankar (Kollam) / Rohit Gowda (Bengaluru) (40:47.8); 4. Shivani Pruthvi/ Deepti Pruthvi (Both Davangere) (41:21.900).

    Gypsy Challenge (Non-championship): 1. Samrat Yadav (Chandigarh) / Chandrashekar M (Bengaluru) (38:54.300); 2. Himanshu Arora (Delhi) / Vikram Thakur (Chandigarh, Ammyfield Rallying) (40:14.300); 3. Kariappa Mekerira (Kodagu) / Supreeth Sagar (Bengaluru, Ammyfied Rallying) (43:02.200); 4. Darshan Nachappa /Abhinav Ganapathy (Both Kodagu, Ammyfied Rallying) (43:14.300).

    Fabid Ahmer on Saturday. Photo courtesy Twitter @JKtyreracing
  • Prasaditya 46th K1000 Rally flagged off: INRC Round 3

    Prasaditya 46th K1000 Rally flagged off: INRC Round 3

    Tumakuru (Karnataka), 2 Dec 2022: The Prasaditya 46th Karnataka-1000 rally, the third round of the Blueband FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship, was flagged off here today by former Minister S Shivanna to signal the start of the event which will be run near here over two days starting Saturday, Dec 3.

    The Prasaditya K1000 rally, which has attracted 65 entries, is being organised by the Karnataka Motor Sports Club under the aegis of FMSCI, the governing body of motorsports in India and promoted by Blueband Sports.

    Following a reconnaissance run this morning of the Special Stages, most of the competitors expressed happiness at the terrain which was variously described as fast, flowing and technical.

    Championship leader, Bengaluru’s Karna Kadur (co-driver Nikhil Pai) of Arka Motorsports, said: “I am quite pleased with the Special Stages. The terrain is a good mix of fast, flowing corners, a few jumps and water splashes which should make for a good viewing for the spectators. We have prepared the car well and hope to finish strongly.”

    Delhi-based seven times National champion and Arjuna Awardee Gaurav Gill (Musa Sherif), who is currently second in the championship, was impressed with the Special Stages. “I quite liked the stages. The organisers have put in a lot of hard work to prepare the route which I think will take rallying to the next level. The Stages are quite fast in some sections and also technical with blind corners and crests. The pace notes have to be spot-on and it will also test your driving skills. I won the 2021 event despite many setbacks and I hope I can win my eighth K-1000 title on Sunday,” he said.

    Karna Kadur holds advantage with a handsome lead

    The battle is all set to resume between championship leader Karna Kadur of Arka Motorsports on MRF Tyres and 7-time National champion Gaurav Gill, a private entry in yellow colours, supported by JK Tyres.

    The popular Karnataka-1000 rally, the oldest rally in the in the country, which has attracted 65 entries is being organised by the Karnataka Motor Sports Club under the aegis of FMSCI, the governing body of motorsports in India and promoted by Blueband sports.

    Karna Kadur and co-driver Nikhil Pai, who won the South India Rally, the first round of the season, lead the championship table with 72 points while strong contenders Gaurav Gill and co-driver Musa Sherif, who had a mechanical failure in first round came back strongly with a victory in the second round in Coimbatore have 44. While Gill will be gunning for his 8th K1000 victory, Kadur with a 28-point lead will be safe and cautious, looking to bag crucial points to protect his lead. With a total of 40 points on offer, the dark horse of the rally, will be defending champions from Himachal Pradesh, Aditya Thakur and Virender Kashyap, who are trailing third with 34 points.

    Guttedar leads INRC2

    Bengaluru pair of Ritesh Guttedar and co-driver Lokaranjan lead the INRC2 standings with 47 points followed by Thakur and Kashyap while another experienced duo Rahul Kantharaj and Vivek Bhat are in third.

    Another Himachal pair Kuber Sharma and Kunal Kashyap lead the INRC3 table while Samrat Yadav and Chandrasekhar M leads the Gypsy class. The Junior INRC will see close competition between the top-two ladies teams. While Dr Shivani Pruthvi (Dr Deepthi) leads the table with 66points, Pragathi Gowda (Trisha Alonkar) is just a point behind with third-placed Arnav Pratap Singh (Arun SSB) on 40 points.

    27 entries for INRC3

    The top INRC class has six cars while there are nine entries in INRC2 category and ten in INRC4. The bulk of rally cars with 27 entries will feature in the popular INRC3 class. There are 13 entries in the Gypsy section for the Challenge Cup, which is a non-championship class.

    “The iconic K-1000 rally is running continuously for close to five decades, except a couple of years, and has once again attracted the cream of talent from all over the country. KMSC has put in place all safety requirements and I wish all the drivers a happy rally,” said Gautham Shantappa, the President of KMSC, who is also the vice-president of FMSCI.

    10 Special Stages of dirt tracks

    The K-1000 rally will have 10 Special Stages. There will be four physical stages with an total special stage competitive distance of 119.11km. The 15.10-km long Hatyalu and Kondli (9.67km) will be run thrice on Saturday while the cars will take on Yallapura (6.87km) and Thirtharama (15.53km) on Sunday. Along with a liaison distance of close to 105 km, the total distance of the rally will be about 224km.

    The final round of the INRC, the Rally of Nagaland is scheduled for Jan 12-14 subject to approval by FMSCI, as it is a new venue.

  • TVS’ Rajendra wins K1000; Sarath Mohan, top privateer

    TVS’ Rajendra wins K1000; Sarath Mohan, top privateer

    Bengaluru, 14 Aug 2022: Former National champion  Rajendra RE of Petronas TVS Racing notched up a hard-fought second consecutive victory beating teammate and defending champion Abdul Wahid Tanveer in the K1000 2-wheeler rally, the fourth round of the GodSpeed Racing fmsci MRF Mogrip National 2w Rally Championship 2022 organised by Karnataka Motor Sports Club here at the Tribal Adventure Cafe on Sunday.

    While Tanveer began the season with a victory at Chikmagaluru, Rajendra bounced back with a fine victory at Coimbatore in Round 3, and with this K1000 win, he took a narrow 1-point lead on the championship table with two rounds to go. All the TVS riders missed Round 2 due to new technical regulations.

    Rajendra, the Shivamogga talent, started cautiously as some parts of the Special Stages remained slushy but still clocked the fastest times in all the six Special Stages. However, despite having about 8-second lead, he threw caution to winds and clocked a blistering 7min, 12.207sec in the final Special Stage to make over 12 seconds that left Tanveer clueless. Nataraj, finished a distant third. Samuel Jacob and Imran Pasha (SS 260cc) completed the top-5 sweep for TVS.

    Sarath Mohan and Naresh VS are the only riders who have won all the four rounds, thus far, and are well on their way to National Championship honours.

    All-win streak continues: Sarath Mohan sweeps all rounds in Superbike Expert class

    Kerala’s Sarath Mohan, astride a Husqvarna FE450, became the top privateer, taking sixth place in the overall standings, behind Petronas TVS Racing team, who once again made a clean sweep of all the top five places. Sarath, the 25-year talent from Mallapuram, won the Superbike Expert Class 1A beating state mate Sinan Francis (KTM 450) of Kochi by a huge margin. In fact, his big lead helped him overcome the time he lost going off-route due to a missing ‘bunting’ in the stages and a road penalty later. Still he was fastest in all the stages. “I missed the route and lost about two minutes in the Banana farms. But I am quite happy to continue my winning streak,” said the talented rider, who aims to shift to longer cross-country rallies abroad by 2024. Mithun Gopal of Thiruvananthapuram, on a Suzuki RM450, won the bronze to make the class an all-Kerala affair.

    Bengaluru’s Naresh VS conquered the Royal Enfield Class 6 astride a Himalayan. Naresh was fastest in all the six stages taking a healthy five-minute lead before his nearest rival Mahesh Kumar suffered a 1min, 40-sec road penalty. Sajeer Ismail from Ernakulam came third.

    Bengaluru’s Aishwarya Pissay, the 2019 World Cup Baja winner, took back the championship lead in the Ladies class with a facile victory. With Aishwarya missing Round 2, Fazeela of Ernakulam, took the title lead after Round 3, but today she lost over six minutes in the very first Special STage and had to be content with a fourth place. Bengaluru’s Sameera Dahiya came second on an Impulse and Deeksha Shrivasta, the reigning Sprint champion, finished third.

    Imran Pasha of Mysore won the Supersport 260cc Group B class comfortably despite easing off in the last stages where teammate Banteilang Jyrwa clocked the fastest times. However, the TVS talent and former champion did a creditable job taking the overall fifth position on his RTR200 punching above his weight to beat more powerful bikes. Mangalore’s Adnaan Ahmed who won Round 2 at home, finished third.

    Bengaluru’s Anoop Manjappa on a Stunner defeated Chalass Bose (Kottayam) despite a 1min 10sec penalty in the Supersport 130cc class. Chikkamagaluru rider Sudarshan B on a Gladiator finished third. However, Bose, the Kottayam rider, leads the table by a narrow six-points by virtue of his two wins and two second places while Anoop, has two wins and a second and could only finish fourth in Coimbatore, losing precious points.

    But Gidyun Benjamin, who clocked fastest times in all the six stages, lost to Sasi Kumar K in the Supersport 165cc Group B class due to a road penalty of 2min 50seconds. Varun Kumar came third. Sasi Kumar, breathes easy as he now tops the table with 83 points as, Francis PV, the table topper going into Round 4, had a terrible crash and suffered a leg fracture.

    Mumbai’s Russel Jossy on a KTM 390 clocked fastest times on all the stages except SS4 but his nearest rival Amog Nag lost over 4min Liaison penalty and just managed to beat veteran Venu Ramesh Kumar by about 11 seconds. Coimbatore’s Venu, a regular in the rally scene for over a decade bagged another podium and still leads the Supersport 400cc Group B championship standings going into the final two rounds. Assam’s Hansraj Saikia, who came fifth, is second behind Venu in the standings.

    Sanjay Somasekhar won the Superstock Group D upto 450cc class beating Naveen Somasekhar, also of Bengaluru while C Pradeep took the third place.

    Pinkesh Thakkar of Aprilia JB Racing topped the standings winning the Scooter class while BK Pawan won the Star of K1000 title.

    Of the 87 entries, a total of 76 bikes finished the rally while 10 “Did Not Finish” (DNF) and one rider Harish Eranty could not take the start on time.

    Provisional Results (Ro 4 K1000):

    Class 1: Superbike Pro-Expert:

    1. Rajendra RE (Petronas TVS Racing; Shimoga) RTR 450; 51:21.156;

    2. Abdul Waheed Tanveer  (Petronas TVS Racing; Bengaluru) RTR 450;  51:41.457;

    3.  R Nataraj (Petronas TVS Racing; Mysore) RTR 450;  53:00.815;

    4. Samuel Jacob (Petronas TVS Racing; Udupi) RTR 200;  53:04.462;

    5. Imran Pasha (Petronas TVS Racing – Mysore) RTR 200; 55:55:636;

    6. Sarath Mohan (Pvt- Mallapuram) Husqvarna;  57: 03.707;

    Class 1A:

    1. Sarath Mohan (Pvt- Mallapuram) Husqvarna;  57: 03.707;

    2. Sinan Francis (Pvt- Vennala/Kerala) KTM 450; 01:00:36.723;

    3. Mithun Gopal (Pvt- Trivandrum ) Suzuki RM450; 01:13:42.547;

    Class 2:

    1.  Anoop Manjappa (Pvt – Bengaluru) Stunner; 01:06:44.802; (including 1min, 10sec penalty);

    2.  Chalass K Bose (Pvt – Kottayam) Stunner; 01:07:21.388;

    2.  Sudharshan B (Pvt. Chikkamagaluru) Gladiator 01:09: 01.048; (including 1min, 20sec Penalty);

    Class 3:

    1. Sasi Kumar (Pvt -Coimbatore) Impulse; 01:00:11:700;

    2. Gidyun Benjamin (Pvt – ) 01:01:02. 528; (including 2min, 50sec penalty);  

    3.  Varun Kumar (Pvt. – Bengaluru) Impulse; 01:02:47:117;

    Class 4:

    1. Imran Pasha (Petronas TVS Racing – Mysore) RTR 200; 55:55:636;

    2. Banteilang Jerwa (TVS -Shillong) Xpulse; 57:51.299;

    3. Adnan Ahmed (Pvt -Mangaluru) Xpulse; 58:34.018; (incl. 1.30sec penalty)

    Class 5:

    1. Russel Jossy (Pvt – Mumbai) KTM390; 01:02: 06.696; (20sec penalty);

    2. Amogh Nag (Pvt – Bengaluru) KTM390; 01:07:28.620; (4min, 10sec penalty);

    3.  Venu Ramesh Kumar (Pvt – Coimbatore) KTM390; 01:07:39.403;

    Class 6:

    1. Naresh VS (Pvt – Bengaluru) Royal Enfield; 01:02:32.481;

    2. Mahesh Kumar (Pvt – Kochi) Royal Enfield; 01:09:26.454;

    3. Shajeer Ishmail (Pvt – Ernakulam) Royal Enfield; 01:10:14.099;

    Class 7:

    1. Aishwarya Pissay (Petronas TVS Racing – Bengaluru) RTR 200; 01:07:24.068;

    2. Sameera Dahiya (Pvt – Bengaluru) Xpulse; 01:24:17.364;

    3. Deeksha Srivastava (Pvt – Pune) Impulse; 01:31:13.909;

    4. Fazeela (Pvt – Ernakulam) Impulse; 01:45:09.443;

    Class 8:

    1. Pinkesh Thakkar (Aprilia JB Racing)Aprilia; 01:06:27:709;

    2.  Karthik Naidu (Petronas TVS Racing –Bengaluru) NTorq; 01:06:29:973;

    3. Subramanya T (Pvt – Bhopal) NTorq; 01:06:46:747;

    Class 9

    1. Sanjay Somashekar (Pvt – Bengaluru) Xpulse; 01:00:25:746;

    2. Naveen Somashekar (Pvt – Bengaluru) Xpulse; 01:06:14:891;

    3. C Pradeep (PRN Motorsports – Bengaluru) Xpulse; 01:06:37:032;

    Class 10: Star of K1000

    1. BK Pawan (Pvt.- Bengaluru) Xpulse;  01:03:47.017;

    2.  Gowtham Rao R (Pvt. Bengaluru) Impulse; 01:04:02.918;

    3. L Bharath (Pvt. Bengaluru) Impulse; 01:10:27.572.

  • Abdul Tanveer, Rajendra renew battles; Aishwarya, Sarath raring to go

    Abdul Tanveer, Rajendra renew battles; Aishwarya, Sarath raring to go

    Bengaluru, 12 August 2022: Defending champion Abdul Wahid Tanveer, who is leading the table will renew his battle with Petronas TVS Racing teammate Rajendra RE, in the iconic K1000 rally, the fourth round of the fmsci MRF MoGrip National Rally Championship for two-wheelers which begins at Tribal Adventure Cafe, near Devanahalli, near here on Saturday.

    With the championship throwing three different winners from the first three rounds, Tanveer has taken the Overall lead with 43 points followed by 2019 champion Rajendra on 37 points while Samuel Jacob of Mangalore, also from TVS is in third position with 33 points. Sarath Mohan is leading the Superbikes Expert class while Aishwarya Pissay, also from TVS, is way ahead in the Ladies class and is gunning for her sixth straight National title.

    Karnataka Motor Sports Club (KMSC), with the support of sponsors MRF, have made sure that all arrangements are in place, including a technically-challenging terrain. Promoted by GodSpeed Racing, the premier two-wheeler round of the Indian Rally Nationals, has attracted 87 entries from all over the country. “KMSC is the oldest motorsports club in India hosting the Indian National Rally Championship for over 45 years and we are glad to bring back its more popular cousin, the K1000 two-wheeler National rally. All the safety protocols are in place and KMSC wishes the very best to all the riders for a safe and successful rally. We have also re-introduced the Star of Karnataka for the benefit of local riders,” said Gautham, President of KMSC.

    “Due to rains, the terrain has become more challenging and with the season at the mid-way stage the competition is at its peak and we are expecting a thrilling rally,” said 7-time National champion, Shyam Kothari of GodSpeed Racing, the Promoters.

    Petronas TVS Factory Racing team have dominated all the classes they have taken part and two of its leading lights former champion Rajendra RE of Shivamogga and defending champion Abdul Wahid Tanveer of Mysore will be the strong contenders for overall lead along with Mangaluru privateer Adnaan Ahmed. With no time to fix the fuel pumps as per new regulations, TVS opted out of the back-to-back second round in Mangaluru, which was won by Adnaan Ahmed.

    Kerala privateer Sarath Mohan has dominated the Superbikes Expert class. The Mallapuram rider who missed the last year’s title due to an injury, is back with a bang winning all the rounds. Chalass K Bose, Imran Pasha, Naresh VS, Pinkesh Thakkar and veteran Venu Ramesh are the other riders to watch in their classes.

    Sarath Mohan, who is leading the Superbikes Expert class after three rounds.

    Meanwhile, the star attraction of the event will be the only World Cup winner from India in motorsports, Aishwarya Pissay, who is on a quest for sixth consecutive National title in Ladies class. The 2019 FIM WC Bajas winner, is fresh from her exploits in Baja Aragon Spain. Talented Fazeela of Kochi, who is leading the table, will be another lady rider to watch out for.

    On Sunday, the riders will cover a total distance of 154 kms which includes six Special Stages comprising 57 kms of competitive rally distance on dirt tracks at the Tribal Adventure Cafe, near Devanahalli. The ceremonial flag-off will be on Saturday. The Championship will conclude with two back-to-back rounds in Pune and Nashik in November.

    The results are being presented Live by Zeitmesser India. Watch the race through live results here:

    MRF Mogrip fmsci National Rally Championship 2w – 2022 Round 4 – K1000 – Zeitmesser India Presents Live Results. click here.