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Category: Domestic
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Champ Drugovich unstoppable in MRF Challenge; Maiden career win for Nikanth Ram
Chennai, 4 Feb 2018: Young Nikanth Ram from Coimbatore and in Arka Motorsports livery chalked up maiden win ofMRF Challenge 2017 champion Felipe Drugovich (centre) flanked by second-placed Presley Martono (right) and third-placed Rinus van Kalmthout at MMRT, Chennai on Sunday, 4 Feb 2018. Image by Anand Philar. his saloon car racing career as the first round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Racing Championship 2018 concluded at the MMRT circuit, here on Sunday.
While Ram, a 21-year old commerce graduate from Coimbatore, bagged full points, team-mate Ashish Ramaswamy from Bengaluru achieved a double by winning the second race earlier, but retired with an expired engine in the weekend’s third outing.
Meanwhile, 17-year old Brazilian Felipe Drugovich stamped his authority in the MRF Challenge 2017 as he swept to victory in both the races run today to finish the season with 10 wins from 16 outings over four rounds.
Drugovich, who had sealed the championship on Saturday itself, had few problems in Race 3 after easing his way to the front of the field. He set such a hot pace that midway through the 20-lap race that he finished some 11 seconds in front of second-placed Indonesian Presley Martono who was followed home by Rinus van Kalmthout from the Netherlands.
In the final race of the 2017 MRF Challenge later in the day, Drugovich, starting second on the grid, got a jump on pole-sitter Rinus van Kalmthout of the Netherlands in the very first lap and then gradually increased the lead to notch another fluent win.
While Drugovich finished the season with 333 points, Martono (254) and Kalmthout (247) completed the top three positions in the championship.
In the day’s first saloon car race, Ashish Ramaswamy was again the dominant force despite starting fourth on the reverse grid. He jumped two places by the end of the first lap, tailed leader Vidya Prakash for a couple of more laps before moving into the lead. Thereafter, he kept increasing the lead to emerge a comfortable winner while veterans Vijaya Kumar and Vidya Prakash finished behind him in that order while pole-sitter Nikanth Ram was a non-finisher following a spin.
Nikanth, however, was handed a victory on the platter in the next outing when Ashish, enjoying a massive lead after starting from pole, retired with the engine problem in a fourth of the eight-lapper. Nikanth who was running second, made the best of the situation to score a maiden win in his saloon car racing career and finished ahead of Prime Racing’s Raja Ram and Biren Pithawalla of Team N1.
The results (Provisional): MRF Challenge – Race 3 (20 laps): 1. Felipe Drugovich (Brazil) (33mins, 09.353secs); 2. Presley Martono (Indonesia) (33:20.422); 3. Rinus van Kalmthout (Netherlands) (33:21.398). Race 4 (20 laps): 1. Drugovich (30:08.812); 2. Kalmthout (30:13.094); 3. Martono (30:16.118).
National Championship – Saloon cars: Indian Touring Cars (Race 2, 12 laps): 1. Ashish Ramaswamy (Arka Motorsports) (23:25.024); 2. B Vijaya Kumar (Prime Racing) (23:51.922); 3. D Vidya Prakash (Prime Racing) (23:58.350). Race 3 (8 laps): 1. V Nikanth Ram (Arka Motorsports) (15:55.693); 2. C Raja Ram (Prime Racing) (15:59.000); 3. Biren Pithawalla (Team N1) (16:11.372).
Indian Junior Touring Cars (Race 2, 11 laps): 1. Kamlesh Parmar (Team N1) (23:55.103); 2. Chrys D’Souza (Unimek Racing) (24:24.572); 3. Prabhu AS (Arka Motorsports) (24:24.812). Race 3 (8 laps): 1. D’Souza (17:48.207); 2. Prabhu (17:48.434); 3. Nikunj D Vagh (Team N1) (17:49.100).
Esteem Cup (12 laps): 1. Raghul Rangasamy (Performance Racing) (24:20.853); 2. Vinod S (Team N1) (24:33.727); 3. Archit Mylanda (Performance Racing) (25:06.829). Race 3 (8 laps): 1. Rangasamy (16:21.542); 2. Vinod S (16:30.865); 3. Mylanda (16:43.432).
Super Stock (12 laps): 1. RP Rajarajan (Performance Racing) (24:55.565); 2. Srinivas Teja K (Performance Racing) (25:18.133); 3. Swajit Acharaker (Team N1) (23:38.158 + 1 lap). Race 3 (8 laps): 1. Srinivas Teja K (16:52.869); 2. Acharaker (17:02.854); 3. Rajashekar R (Infinite Piston) (17:09.812).
Vidiem Superbikes Cup (Support race) – Race 2 (8 laps): 600cc – 1.Siddhanth Koundinya (Bengaluru) (15:30.765); 2. Vishwadev Muraleedharan (Coimbatore) (15:39.311); 3. Ritesh Sapre (Mumbai) (15:45.182).
eom/MMSC release
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Fluent win for Ashish Ramaswamy in saloon car race; Felipe Drugovich seals MRF Challenge title
MRF Challenge 2017 Champion Felipe Drugovich. An MRF image Chennai, 3 Feb 2018: Bengaluru lad Ashish Ramaswamy (Arka Motorsports) destroyed the field in the saloon car race to launch his campaign in the MRF MMSC fmsci I
Ashish Ramawamy of Bengaluru, winner of Saloon car race at MMRT on 3Feb2018. Image by Anand Philar ndian National Racing Championship 2018 in style at the MMRT circuit, here on Friday.
The day’s focus, however, was on the fourth and final round of MRF Challenge. Championship leader Felipe Drugovich, the 17-year old from Brazil was not the fastest man on the track as he finished third and sixth in the double-header which was enough for him to seal the 2017 title with still two more races to be run on Sunday.
While Drugovich sealed the championship, Rinus van Kalmthout from the Netherland and Indonesian Presley Martono won the day’s first and second race, respectively. The results took Drugovich’s tally to 283, well ahead of Martono (219) and Kalmthout (212).
Starting third on the grid behind pole-sitter Martono and Drugovich in the first race, Kalmthout was off to a brilliant start as he slipped past the front runners to take the lead in the very first lap. Thereafter, it was a virtual procession as the Dutchman scored his third win of the season ahead of Martono and Drugovich who was subsequently docked 10 grid positions for the next race due to “fuel infringement”.
The second race was red-flagged after just one lap following three different incidents, including that involving reverse grid pole-sitter Alex Karkosik (Poland) who spun off the track. On re-start, Singapore’s Danial Frost led much of the race, reduced to 15 laps before he went off and dropped to third while Martono won from Kalmthout.
The saloon car race was a one-horse affair as pole-sitter Ashish Ramaswamy never looked back after a flying start and finished some 30 seconds ahead of veteran B Vijaya Kumar (Prime Racing) and V Nikanth Ram (Arka Motorsports) who kept exchanging track positions in the latter part of the 12-lap race.
Even as Ashish pulled away into the distance, Nikanth Ram opened a good lead over Vijaya Kumar. However, in the second half of the race, Nikanth Ram spun, conceding his advantage to Vijaya Kumar who caught up and moved into second spot. Ram then barely held on to his podium position with another veteran Vidya Prakash sitting on his tail on the last lap.
Prabhu AS (Arka Motorsports), RP Rajarajan and Raghul Rangasamy, both Performance Racing, took the honours in the Indian Junior Touring Cars, Super Stock and Esteem categories, respectively, of the saloon car race.
The results (Provisional):
MRF Challenge – Race 1 (20 laps): 1. Rinus van Kalmthout (Netherlands) (30mins, 22.676secs); 2. Presley Martono (Indonesia) (30:29.174); 3. Felipe Drugovich (Brazil) (30:31.552). Race 2 (15 laps): 1. Presley Martono (Indonesia) (22:50.733); 2. Rinus Van Kalmthout (Netherlands) (22:52.713); 3. Danial Frost (Singapore) (22:54.318).
National Championship (Saloon cars, 12 laps): Indian Touring Cars – 1. Ashish Ramaswamy (Arka Motorsports) (23:18.381); 2. B Vijaya Kumar (Prime Racing) (23:48.765); 3. V Nikanth Ram (Arka Motorsports) (23:56.477).
Indian Junior Touring Cars: 1. Prabhu AS (Arka Motorsports) (23:48.082); 2. Kamlesh Parmar (Team N1) (24:08.005); 3. Nikunj D Vagh (Team N1) (24:48.633).
Super Stock: 1. RP Rajarajan (Performance Racing) (25:04.844); 2. Srinivas Teja K (Performance Racing) (23:23.023 +1 lap); 3. Swajit Acharaker (Team N1) (23:42.600 +1 lap).
Esteem Cup: 1. Raghul Rangasamy (Performance Racing) (24:46.448); 2. Vinod S (Team N1) (24:58.109).
Vidiem Superbikes (Support Race, 8 laps) – 600cc: 1. Siddhanth Koundiya (Bengaluru) (15:32.243); 2. Vishwadev Muraleedharan (Coimbatore) (15:46.550); 3. Arthur Fernando (Tuticorin) (15:46.887). 1000cc: 1. Rish Agarwal (Bengaluru) (15:06.577); 2. Himanish Amla (Bengaluru) (15:32.545); 3. Yokeshwaran K (Coimbatore) (16:03.838).
About Madras Motor Sports Club
The Madras Motor Sports Club has been the pioneer in developing and promoting motorsport in India since 1953, and we look to further improve in the years to come. It is the club’s endeavor to provide more opportunities for competitors, and to this end, it has chalked out various progressive programmes. From the days of Sholavaram , MMSC built its own racetrack which was inaugurated in 1979 and secured its FIA Grade-2 international certification in 2014, making it the only club which owns such a facility that has been further upgraded with international-standard Paddock, complete with VIP hospitality suites, 20 spacious garages and a separate Paddock on the western side with its own circuit. The club has organised the Porsche Super Cup, Formula Campos, Formula Asia, Asian touring car championships, Formula 3, Tata Prima Truck racing championship, the FIM Asia Road Racing Championships (2-wheelers) besides a host of other motorsport events over the years. The club also has active participation for its events from vehicle manufacturers who also use the Madras Motor Race Track (MMRT) extensively for testing their products.
eom/MMSC release
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Madras Motor Sports Club upgraded paddocks inaugurated
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L to R – Khushru Madan, Ajit Thomas, Indu Chandhok, Gopal Madhavan, Vicky Chandhok and Akbar Ebrahim. Image by Anand Philar Upgraded Paddock complex unveiled at MMRT
- Second Paddock on western side with own circuit
- MMSC VIP Hospitality suites, 20 spacious garages
Chennai, February 2: The trip around the Madras Motor Race Track (MMRT) taking the mediapersons to the new Paddock Building on the West was a nostalgic tour for the two `grand daddies’ of Madras Motor Sports Club.
Two founding members, Indu Chandhok and Gopal Madhavan, were excited to talk about their days. The passion, the commitment and burning desire for motorsport resulted in the duo along with a few others procuring 300 acres of farm land. “We have to negotiate with hundreds of people including the 67 farmers who sold us the land. We had to purchase in small bits and pieces and for some bits there were more than a dozen heirs who had to be the signatories for the registration. We bought the land for Rs.12 lakh, which was a huge amount and we could not sustain the loans and we sold off 100 acres after a year or so for Rs.12 lakh,” revealed Mr Chandhok, who is also one of the founding fathers of FMSCI, the Indian Federation.
In keeping with its reputation as an institution always on the move and in step with the swiftly changing times, the Madras Motor Sports Club on Friday unveiled a significant upgrade to the Paddock and related facilities. A new pit complex with garages and hospitality suites has been developed at a cost of over Rs 20 Crore, at India’s first FIA-licensed track here.
In a matter of a year, the MMSC carried out massive development work with 20 pit garages, a spectator viewing terrace and VIP hospitality suites that can accommodate up to 400 people along the the pit-lane on the eastern side, thereby creating a truly international-standard facility at the MMRT in Irrangattukottai, near Sriperumbudur.
The development work has already received rave reviews from the competitors and aficionados. The spacious garages for the teams allow the competitors and their teams to have plenty of space to work on their cars and bikes.
The new pit complex follows on from the upgrade done to the race control room with state-of-the-art hardware installed last year as well as India’s first and only bespoke a drag strip. A second paddock on the western side with its own short circuit allows the MMSC to effectively split the track into two and host two separate events concurrently.
Also being developed is a full-fledged, permanent rally track measuring 7.5 Kms. The MMSC is working closely with triple Asia-Pacific Rally champion Gaurav Gill to start a driving academy in the near future.
Earlier, work on widening of the run-off areas and resurfacing of a few sections of the track was also carried out as the circuit received FIA Grade-2 certification. The MMSC is thus the only private motorsport club in India owning an international race track.
Reviewing the development work, MMSC president Ajit Thomas said: “It has been a long journey for MMSC from its humble beginnings 66 years ago. Even after we moved our racing activities from Sholavaram to the new track near Sriperumbudur, we constantly strove to improve, not just in terms of conducting events, but also upgrading facilities over a period of time.
“In 2014, the track received FIA Grade-2 certification, but in keeping with our philosophy of ever onward, we decided to refurbish and upgrade the existing facilities at considerable expense. The new paddock and facilities will allow us to host not just racing events but also create a venue that auto manufacturers, sponsors and agencies would be proud to use for their events.”
Speaking on the occasion, Indu Chandhok, one of the founder-members of the Madras Motor Sports Club and the Trust, said it was due to the largesse of the late Chief Minister Dr MGR, who was a regular visitor to the Sholavaram Races, that the MMRT project was made possible.
The Sholavaram track belonged to the Army and the Navy who wouldn’t allow any upgrading nor resurface the surface which was being used for testing tanks. Indu approached the CM informally who immediately granted permission to the MMSC to buy the land after first offering it free which the club declined, said Indu Chandhok.
FMSCI president Akbar Ebrahim recalled his first race at the MMRT in 1990, driving for Wallace Sports managed by Vicky Chandhok while Gopal Madhavan who was in charge of the project was felicitated along with Indu Chandhok.
About Madras Motor Sports Club
The Madras Motor Sports Club has been the pioneer in developing and promoting motorsport in India since 1953, and we look to further improve in the years to come. It is the club’s endeavor to provide more opportunities for competitors, and to this end, it has chalked out various progressive programmes. From the days of Sholavaram , MMSC built its own racetrack which was inaugurated in 1979 and secured its FIA Grade-2 international certification in 2014, making it the only club which owns such a facility that has been further upgraded with international-standard Paddock, complete with VIP hospitality suites, 20 spacious garages and a separate Paddock on the western side with its own circuit. The club has organised the Porsche Super Cup, Formula Campos, Formula Asia, Asian touring car championships, Formula 3, Tata Prima Truck racing championship, the FIM Asia Road Racing Championships (2-wheelers) besides a host of other motorsport events over the years. The club also has active participation for its events from vehicle manufacturers who also use the Madras Motor Race Track (MMRT) extensively for testing their products.
eom/with inputs from MMSC press release
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TVS road-racing champs to hone the riding skills of Apache owners
National champions in their respective classes Aiswarya Pissay (left), Jagan Kumar (4th from left) listen as Pradeep (right, TVS Motorsports) explains to the Apache riders in Bangalore recently. A TVS image Apache riding skills training (ACE) participants in Bengaluru recently. A TVS Racing image Bangalore, 23 Jan 2018: TVS Motor Company kickstarted the Apache Racing Experience (ARE) 2018, for the owners of the TVS Apache series recently. The TVS Apache series first-round saw racing enthusiasts experience the full range of Apache motorcycles on the Meco Kartopia race track recently.
After a detailed theory session on track riding by National champions Jagan Kumar, Harry Sylvester, KY Ahmed, Kannan Subramaniam and Aishwarya Pissay, they were taught technique and riding skills on the race track. Track riding techniques, braking and cornering were taught before timed laps for each category of Apache RTR 160, 180 and 200 were recorded to declare the winners.
Apache Racing Experience is a platform for TVS Apache owners will be held across 24 cities in 2018-19, ARE will culminate at MMRT in Chennai. The final round will see winners across the cities compete in their respective categories – Apache RTR 160, 180 and 200 – to become the ARE Winner (category wise). TVS Racing will support the activity with necessary gear and ensure that the riders undergo professional training at the race track astride TVS Racing motorcycles, prior to the final race.
eom/posted by david bodapati/bng/TVS release
Caption: National champions in their respective classes Aiswarya Pissay (left), Jagan Kumar (4th from left) listen as Pradeep (right, TVS Motorsports) explains to the Apache riders in Bangalore recently. A TVS image
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Gaurav Gill wins MRF fmsci K-1000, clinches fifth National title: Indian National Rally Championship
Gill finally opens up a spray as his co-driver is late in getting off the podium to avoid the champagne attack from the champ. K1000
PD on 21jan2018 . Image by David BodapatiTumakuru (Karnataka), 21 Jan 2018: King of Indian Motorsports, Gaurav Gill of Mahindra Adventure annexed his fifth National title winning the premier class of the MRF Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) 2017 at the MRF 43rd K-1000 Rally, the sixth and final round of the INRC here, about 100 km from Bengaluru, on Sunday. The two-day National Championship round was organised by Karnataka Motor Sports Club (KMSC) under the aegis of Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (fmsci) and is promoted by Ramakrishna Race Performance Management (RRPM) of Kolkata. Incidentally this is also the fifth K1000 title for both Gill and Sherif.
The Chennai round of the INRC was canceled due to inclement weather and the Rally of Arunachal was postponed thereby pushing the K1000 round and the championship in 2018.
The New Delhi based, Gill, a three-time APRC champion underlined his class and control once again, winning all the five Special Stages recording an overall timing of 00:55:41.6 minutes, a 2 minute-45 second lead ahead of second finisher Arjun Rao Aroor, to take his final tally to a perfect 100 points.
Gill, along with co-driver Musa Sherif (110 points), has been unbeaten in the MRF INRC 2017, romping home in each of the four rounds that they had taken part in. He missed Round 4, the Rally of Chikmagalur, as it coincided with his assault on the APRC title, but that didn’t stop him from being crowned the undisputed king in the domestic arena. “It was a perfect day, a perfect finish for us,” Gill said, shortly after his coronation once again. “The first couple of stages were slippery but we managed to handle them well; we controlled the rally thereafter,” he added talking about the controlled aggression he displayed to conquer the fast and speedy terrain which was also tricky due to the pebbles, ditches, and grass. N Leelakrishnan with seven National titles and Naren Kumar with six are the only other drivers who have won INRC more times.
INRC 3 champion Dean Mascarenhas, despite rolling into a ditch in the first run of the Alpha Special Stage and falling behind by over 27 minutes, managed to take the second place in the overall standings by 16 minutes.
Dean (and Shruptha Padival), who entered the sixth and final round with a slim outside chance of upsetting Gill, picked up a puncture in SS2 too but hung on to keep pace with the rest of the field in the remaining stages. But the initial meltdown meant that he finished 8th (3rd in this category) and could add only 4 points to his final tally. It didn’t affect him in this category though, as he had already sealed the INRC 3 trophy in the last round itself.
Defending INRC champion Karna Kadur, however, took advantage of Dean’s bad luck and familiar home conditions to force his way to the third position in the K-1000. It ensured him two podium finishes too, the second place in his INRC 2 category and the third place in the overall Championship.
Arjun Rao finally showed his true class, taking the second place in the rally but he had to be content with a sixth-place finish in the Championship thanks to DNFs in three rounds.
As expected, Rahul Kanthraj and co-driver Vivek Bhat claimed the INRC 2 trophy, despite finishing third (fourth overall) in this category.
The only one who could have upstaged him, Younus Ilyas, pulled out during SS4 to fade out of his Championship battle with Rahul. He eventually had to settle for the third place, with Karna jumping a place to take the second position.
The FMSCI 2WD Cup was taken by Chetan Shivram and Rupesh Kholay, as they posted one more victory here.
Defending K-1000 champion Amittrajit Ghosh, who was hovering in the 3rd to 5th position all the way, crashed at the finish, in the sixth and final stage to take the overall fifth place. His car got completely smashed but he and his co-driver, Ashwin Naik, got away with minor injuries. Ghosh was stuck between the seat and the steering wheel and had to be extricated after an hour or so. He escaped with minor bruises and knees pains. The full medical report is awaited.
INRC Ranking for the National title: INRC Drivers: 1. Gaurav Gill (100 points) & Musa Sherif (110); 2. Dean Mascarenhas (67) & Shruptha Padival (69); 3. Karna Kadur (58) & Nikhil Vittal Pai (58).
INRC 2 Drivers: 1. Rahul Kanthraj & Vivek Y Bhatt (97) 2. Karna Kadur & Nikhil Vittal Pai (75); 3. Younus Ilyas & Harish K.N. (58)
INRC 3 Drivers: 1. Dean Mascarenhas (115) & Shruptha Padival (118); 2. Saddam Ali Sheikh (54) ; 3. Daraius N Shroff (51).
INRC 3 co-drivers: 1. Shruptha Padival (118); 2. Nitin Jacob (54) and 3. Mrinmoy Saha (53)
FMSCI 2WD Cup Drivers: 1. Chetan Shivram (75); 2. Fabid Ahmer (61); 3. Suraj Thomas (48).
FMSCI 2WD Cup Co-Drivers: 1. Rupesh Koley (75); 2. Suraj M (66) and 3. Thomas Paul (33).
K-1000 Provisional Unaudited Results: INRC: 1. Gaurav Gill & Musa Sherif (00:48:14.1); 2. Arjuna Rao & Satish Rajagopal (00:50:18.2); 3. Karna Kadur & Nikhil Pai (00:51:10.3)
INRC 2: Karna Kadur & Nikhil V Pai (00:51:10.3); 2. G.B. Girijashankar Joshy & Chandramouli M (00:52:03.6); 3. Rahul Kanthraj & Vivek Y Bhatt (00:52:54.2)
INRC 3: 1. Vikram Rao Aroor & Somayya (00:52:55.2); 2. Saddam Ali Saikh & Abhijeet Singh (00:56:22.8); 3. Chandan M Gowda & Vinay P.M. (01:03:43.5)
FMSCI 2WD Cup: 1. Chetan Shivram & Rupesh Koley (00:55:19.2); 2. Fabid Ahmer & Sanath G (00:55:35.8); 3. Asad Khan & Gautam C.P. (00:56:08.8).
eom/posted by David Bodapati
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K1000 preview: KMSC all-set to conduct 43rd edition; INRC final round on Sunday
K1000 KMSC logo. Courtesy KMSC facebook account Standings courtesy promoters RRPM, Kolkota (twitter) David Bodapati
Bengaluru, 20 Jan 2018: King of Indian Motorsports, Gaurav Gill of Team Mahindra Adventure and his co-driver Musa Sherif will once again be the favourites to win the Indian National Rally championship final leg, the popular K1000 (Karnataka 1000) which began its 43rd edition with the recce on Saturday morning at a terrain about 70kms from here.
The K1000 rally, a regular part of the Indian National Rally Championship is being organised by Karnataka Motor Sports Club (KMSC) one of the oldest active clubs in India. Except for a year or two, K1000 was continuously held for over forty years. It is also a founder member of the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (fmsci). The INRC is being promoted by Kolkota-based Ramakrishna Race Performance Managment (RRPM) headed by a veteran rally ace, who was on of the winners of K1000 in its early years. Along with Amittrajit Ghosh, they are the only father-son who have taken part in INRC rallies.
The number of entries for the popular K1000 this year is a luke-warm 28 which is one of the lowest in the recent years.
Fresh from their victory in the fifth round at Arunachal Pradesh, the top duo who are leading the INRC class will be followed by young gun Dean Mascarenhas and Shruptha Padival of Mangalore and another seeded pair of Amittrajit Ghosh and Ashwin Naik, who finished in that order in the overall standings of Rally of Arunachal. However, Dean and Shruptha are leading their class INRC3.
Experienced stalwarts Rahul Kantharaj and Vivek Bhat who won the INRC2 class will be gunning for a closing bang to win the championship but their job will not be easy with stiff competition coming from the likes of Younus Ilyas and Karna Kadur. The strong pair of talented Kadur and Nikhil Pai had an unfortunate DNF (did not finish) in Arunachal Pradesh, but the youngster will also be a strong favourite to win his class INRC2 besides the leading pair. Kadur slipped on the table standings after that DNF.
In the INRC overall rankings for the season, Delhi’s Gaurav Gill is leading with 75 points with Dean Mascarenhas on 63 in second and Rahul Kantharaj on 47. Karna Kadur is only four points behind at 43 while Amittrajit Ghosh slipped to 5th place with 40 points. Musa Sherif and Shruptha Padival lead the co-driver rankings with 85 and 63 points respectively. Mahindra Adventure tops with 125 points in the team championship with ARKA motorsports in second place at 90.
In the INRC2, Rahul Kantharaj (79), Younus Ilyas (58) and Karna Kadur (50) are leading the table in the Drivers’ championship with Vivek Bhat topping the co-drivers’ with 79 points over Harish KN (58) and Nikhil V Pai (50) in that order. ARKA is leading team standings in this class over Snap Racing.
In the INRC3, Dean Mascarenhas with a century is leading the Driver’s Championship and has already clinched the title in the class but is found wanting in terms of sponsors to show his talent on a better platform. Darius N Shroff, Punyabrata Barma are on 51 and 46 respectively to fight for second and third positions. Likewise, Dean’s navigator Shruptha won the co-drivers title in this class. Nitin Jacob and Mrinmoy Saha will fight for the second position.
Chettinad Sporting had won the team title in this class beating the only other team entry Snap Racing. They garnered 117 points.
Stage Distance
The total distance of the Rally will be 97.26 km. The Special Stage distance will be 69.15 km while the liaison distance will be 28.11km. The two stages Alpha and Beta will be run thrice. Alpha is 14.95 km long while Beta covers a distance of only 8.10km. The first car starts at Alpha 1 at 9 am on Sunday. The one-day rally will not have a spectator-friendly Super Special Stage this year.
“It has been another exciting season of Indian rallying. I want to thank MRF Tyres, Mahindra Adventure, CARTAir, Isuzu, Arunachal Tourism, York, Arya and Century Club for their support” Arindam Ghosh, RRPM’s Director, the promoters of the MRF FMSCI INRC, said on the eve of the rally. “Gill has dominated despite missing out on one round. He has won the other three rounds but he must bring it to the finish here to win the championship”, he added.
Supplementary Regulations on INRCindia site
The MRF 43rd K1000 Rally is round 6 of the MRF FMSCI INDIAN NATIONAL RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP (INRC) 2017 will run in compliance with the International Sporting Code of the FIA (and its appendices), the General Prescriptions of The Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI), the relevant Regulations concerning IRC championship or cup, the Supplementary Regulations and bulletins issued by the FMSCI can be found at www.inrcindia.com,
The Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) is the ASN of FIA in India. This rally is inscribed on the FIA Calendar under Asia Zone. Asia Zone competitors may take part in this rally and accrue points.
There will be two Mahindra XUVs in fray with Gill and Ghosh behind the wheels of the Team Mahindra Adventure factory team. There will be six Mitsubishi Cedias competing for the honours in different classes but all of them will be privateers. The Kodagu team of Gagan Karumbaiah and co-driver Amrith Thimmaiah will be the lone entry in the fmsci 4w Cup in a Maruti Gypsy.
eom/David Bodapati
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Karter Akshay passes away in a road accident; Aaroh excels in Pro-Sr class: Pune IndiKarting
Pune: Overwhelming response saw 119 karters take part in India’s last karting race of the season, the IndiKarting Go-Kart Race as participants from across all categories revved up their engines and showcased their talent here on Tuesday.
The successful event was, however, marred by some sad news, later that night put the entire racing community into grief. A pal of gloom engulfed as news came in that Akshay Patil passed away in a road accident. Akshay finished runner-up in the Pro-Senior Category. In case of any type of accidents, it is important to first contact motorcycle accident lawyers in Green, Waters Ogle and McCarter, who can help us proceed with the legal procedures.
The Pro-Junior and Senior classes saw some refreshing new faces. Reigning National Champion Aaroh Ravindra, had technical issues and qualified well down the order in 8th. Akshay Patil from Pune drove a brilliant Race 1 to climb from fifth to win the race while Jonathan Kuriakose and Aaroh Ravindra came second and third respectively. Race 2 was the reverse grid, where Aaroh showed his class starting from seventh, steadily climbed up the order in the 16 laps to win the race ahead of Rahul Deshpande and Monish Jain. In case of accidents, click here now to get legal help. There are ways to get legal help even after bowling injury and other accident cases.
Eventually, it was Aaroh who received the overall winner’s trophy, with Akshay Patil and Rahul Deshpande runner-up & third respectively, in the Pro Senior. Jonathan Kuriakose won the Pro Junior followed by Neil Gandhi from Mumbai. The personal injury lawyers from Malloy Law Offices, LLC can assist with injury cases.
The Pro-Cadet witnessed intense competition and very exciting racing across all three races. So close were the overall results that the three racers were tied on points at the top. Pune’s Sai Shiva Sankaran with a victory in the last race was first, ahead of Pune’s Ranvir Singh, who also won a race. Mumbai’s Hoshmand Elavia came in third. The injury lawyers located in Framingham area is what one needs to deal with the legalities of any injury related case.
The Senior Amateur category meant for racers without prior success was as usual hotly contested. Sarvesh Bode from Pune, Mumbai’s Sujosh Sen, and Mohd. Raza Sheikh from Pune sealed the podium.
The Senior Open witnessed the highest number of entries with 21 participants. Karthik Muthuswamy from Bangalore won a really close race ahead of the Bhui brothers from Mumbai – Aman, and Suraj.
Aman Singh Bhui (Chandrabhan Sharma College) won the Inter-College category ahead of Akshay More (Bandodkar College) and Asad Kadegaongar (Coplen University, Singapore). Pratham Chaoudhary (Fountain Gate) won the Inter School category ahead of Rohaan Aggarwal (Cathedral and John Connon, Mumbai). Kshitij Mahajani (Bishops) was third.
Suraj Bhui of Amrit Elastomers won the Corporate Category ahead of Jatin Vora of Jet Airways and Arish Daver from Indigo Airlines. Mayank Kundu won the Senior Plus category ahead of Mohd. Raza Shaikh and Kejas Shah. Mithlesh Jain won the Women’s Category ahead of Aishwarya Dhumal and Naomi Aggarwal. The Master Category saw a close fight too with Arish Daver emerging winner ahead of Clive Joshua and Kejas Shah.
The entire racing fraternity was shocked with grief, when early next morning news came in, of the tragic passing away of Akshay Patil in a road accident. Akshay finished runner-up
IndiKarting races at Pune attracted 119 entries. A photo by Rayo Racing in the Pro Senior Category and was a much loved and popular racer who will always be fondly remembered by the racing fraternity.
eom/Rayo Racing Release
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Gill rules the night stages of Rally of Arunachal: INRC
Itanagar, (Arunachal Pradesh), 23 Dec 2017: King of Indian motorsports and reigning Asia Pacific Rally Championship, Gaurav Gill of Team Mahindra Adventure moved closer to another National title as he won along with long-time co-driver Musa Sherif, the Rally of Arunachal, the fifth and penultimate round of the MRF fmsci Indian National Rally Championship at Ziro on Saturday. With three wins, Gill has 75 points and is leading the table with Dean Mascarenhas in second place with 63 points.
Fresh from his victory at the APRC championship victory at Chikkamagaluru, where he could not take part in the INRC which were held simultaneously. With the Mangalorean Musa Sherif making the calls, Gill was at this best speeding away through the Special Stages, as night stages made a comeback to add flavour to the first rally in the North East in the INRC on Friday.
Young Turk Dean Mascarenhas of Mangalore came overall second and won his class, INRC3. Amittrajit Ghosh (co-driver Ashwin Naik) came third.
Younus Ilyas and Harish Kumar won the INRC2 class edging out Rahul Kanthraj and Vivek Y Bhatt, who finished fifth overall, were leading the championship table in their class with only K-1000 round remaining in January. The South India Rally in Chennai is not likely to happen for want of calendar time as K1000 in Bengaluru is already pushed to the New Year.
Karna Kadur and Arjun Rao failed to finish the rally due to mechanical problems.
Provisional Results:
INRC: 1. Gaurav Gill (Musa Sherif); 2. Dean Mascarenhas (Shruptha Padival); 3. Amittrajit Ghosh (Ashwin Naik);
INRC 2: 1. Younus Ilyas (Harish Kumar); 2. Rahul Kanthraj (Vivek Y Bhatt); 3. Jacob KJ (Venu Ramesh Kumar);
INRC 3: 1. Dean Mascarenhas (Shruptha Padival); 2. Daraius Shroff (Nitin Jacob); 3. Dr Punyabrata Barma (Mrinmoy Saha).eom/
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TVS Racing’s Harith Noah wins National Supercross title beating Jinnan
Pune, 4 Dec 2017: Harith Noah made a fairytale ending to his comeback year by winning both Motos hands down to claim SX1 national title at the season-finale race of the MRF MoGrip FMSCI National Supercross Championship at Mundhwa ground here on Saturday night.
TVS Racing rider Noah had an enviable task of finishing at No. 5 position in both Motos to confirm his championship and prevent privateer CD Jinan from overhauling his points, but Noah raced impeccably to win on the 700-metre-long unique track that saw participants taking elevated start for the first time in India.
Noah had made a comeback to supercross racing early this season after having taken sabbatical for a few years and from the first round in Goa to the following rounds in Coimbatore, Jaipur, Nashik, Indore and now in Pune, the TVS Racing rider always stayed ahead of the competition with clean racing all through.
eom/God Speed Racing, the organisers’ release
Harith Noah in action for a superb win that got him the National Supercross title in his come-back year at Pune on 4 Dec, 2017. Image by God Speed Racing -
Rohith Mahalikudi wins REDBULL Desert Wings mini-Daker race, off to Peru for World Finals
Bengaluru, 2 Dec 2017: Rohith Mahalikudi of MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology came out with flying colours setting the fastest time of 7.518 secs on a specially-created track and won the remote controlled, ‘mini Dakar’ race beating seven other finalists in the inaugural edition of Red Bull Desert Wings University Challenge, a thrilling competition for student motorsport enthusiasts at the Narsee Monjee college in Mumbai on Nov. 30.
Taking place for the first time ever in India, Red Bull Desert Wings University Challenge had five qualifiers in Patiala, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bangalore and Mumbai. Winners from each qualifier competed in the finals at Narsee Monjee College, Mumbai on 30th November 2017. The winner Rohit Mahalikudi has earned an all-expenses paid trip to Peru to compete in the World Finals at the University of Le Havre on 16th January 2018. The national winner will also get the opportunity to witness the toughest rally raid the Dakar Rally in Lima, Peru. Any university student above 18 years of age and holding a valid passport is eligible to participate.
After winning the Red Bull Desert Wings Rohit said, “I never expected such a big opportunity to come my way. Two days ago I did not imagine I’d be taking part in such an event. Red Bull changed all of that, they came to my college and I took part. I’m very surprised and pleasantly shocked that I’m going to Peru, I’m sure it’s going to be an amazing experience.”
Qualifiers
Date: 12th November 2017
Venue: Thapar University, COS Complex, Patiala
Winner: Sarthak Gupta – Goswami Ganesh Dutta Sanatan Dharma College popularly known as S.D. College, Chandigarh – 14.3 seconds
Number of Participants: 81 took part (147 registrations).
Date: 18th November 2017
Venue: Birla Institute of Technology & Science, basketball court, Pilani, Hyderabad
Winner – Ashutosh Andhari – BITS Pilani – 16.183 seconds
Number of Participants: 84 took part (148 registrations)
Date: 24th November 2017
Venue: Amity University, Atrium Area, Kolkata
Male winner: Piyush Jindal – Amity University, Kolkata – 10.506 seconds
Woman winner (wildcard entry): Vidhi Singrodia – Amity University – 14.083 seconds
Number of participants: 84 took part (106 registrations)
Date: 28th November 2017
Venue: Ramaiah Institute of Technology, MSR Nagar, New BEL Road, Bangalore
Winner: Rohith Mahalikudi – M.S. Ramaiah Institute of Technology – 10.076secs
Number of Participants: 64
Date: 30th November 2017
Venue: Narsee Monjee College, Vile Parle, Mumbai
Wild Card entry winner – Desert Wings challenge conducted at IGX is – Manan Nagda
Winner: Ayush Gurnani – Narsee Monjee College, Vile Parle- 10.042 secs
Number of participants: 84
National Finals
Date: 30th November 2017
Venue: Narsee Monjee College, Vile Parle, Mumbai
Winner: Rohith Mahalikudi – M.S. Ramaiah Institute Of Technology – 7.518 secs
eom/David Bodapati/inputs from release
Rohith Mahalikudi poses after winning the Red Bull Desert Wings University Challenge 2017 National Finals in Mumbai on 30 Nov 2017. Image by Red Bull Content Pool.
