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Category: Domestic
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PG Abhilash, Srikanth Gowda declared winners of MRF Rally of Coimbatore
FMSCI Press Release – Protest Upheld
Chennai, 18 August 2016:
PG Abhilash and Srikanth Gowda of Team R3A PGA Motorsports were declared winners of the MRF Rally of Coimbatore after the Stewards upheld the protest lodged by him (Abhilash), said a Press Release from the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India today. They were also declared the winner of the IRC category, it added.
The next round MRF Rally of Maharashtra is scheduled between 27-28 August 2016 at Nashik which is a tarmac rally. Closing date of entries is on Monday, 22nd August 2016.
You can read the FMSCI Press Release here.
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Abhilash-Srikanth protest upheld; declared Coimbatore rally winners
Coimbatore, 18 August 2016: PG Abhilash and co-driver Srikanth Gowda won the MRF Rally of Coimbatore in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8 as the stewards upheld their protest and elevated them to the winner status on August 18 in the Indian Rally Championship (IRC) class.
The Coimbatore rally, which opened the season, was held on July 23 and 24. Though the Provisional results were announced, the final results were withheld following the protest.
Earlier, JCT Rallying’s Samir Thapar (co-driver Gurinder Singh Mann) came first and also were the fastest overall in the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X before they were demoted by the stewards. Thus, Abhilash PG and co-driver Srikanth Gowda) in the Evo VIII finished overall first and in the IRC class. Mohammed Khasim, along with co-driver Sanath G, was third in the Mitsubishi Cedia.
Earlier on July 24, Amittrajit Ghosh and co-driver Ashwin Naik led a 1-2 finish for the Mahindra Adventure team as they won the first round of the MRF FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship INRC class here on Sunday, July 24.
Ghosh and Naik, who scored their third win in this event. Finishing second behind them were team-mates Sunny Sidhu and co-driver PV Srinivas Murthy while young Dean Mascarenhas from Mangaluru along with Shanmugha SN came third in the INRC Overall class.
Mascarenhas also topped the time charts in the INRC 2000 class after nursing his Volkswagen Polo to the finish ahead of Bopaiah KM (Karumbaiah G) and Team Yokohama India’s Karna Kadur (Nikhil Pai).
The FMSCI Cup class honours went to KJ Jacob (co-driver Manoj Mohanan) with Tarun Reddy (co-driver Lalit Kishore) finishing second while Veeresh Prasad (co-driver Suraj M) completed the podium.
One of the biggest disappointments of the one-day Rally was the retirement of favourite Gaurav Gill (co-driver Musa Sherif) of Team Mahindra Adventure in the day’s very first Special Stage due to a mechanical problem as the brand new knuckle that was fixed on Thursday, sheared off. Gill was permitted to rejoin the Rally, but could not score any points.
Speaking on his victory, Ghosh said: “We had a few problems with our car throughout the day, but happy that we managed to bring the car back safely. In the third and last loop, I had gearbox problem and ran both the Stages in third gear, not wanting to take any chances.”
Final classification: (after the protest was upheld on Aug 18):
INRC Overall: 1. Abhilash PG / Srikanth Gowda (Pvt) (Evo VIII, 1hr, 1min, 42.3sec); 2. Amittrajit Ghosh / Ashwin Naik (Mahindra Adventure, XUV 500) 1 (1:3:15.1 secs); 3. Sunny Sidhu / PV Srinivas Murthy (Mahindra Adventure, XUV 500) (01:03:59.3); 4. Dean Mascarenhas / Shanmugha SN (Pvt) 3 (VW Polo, 01:04:23.3).
INRC 2000: 1. Dean Mascarenhas / Shanmugha SN (Pvt) (VW Polo, 01:04:23.3); 2. Bopaiah KM / Karumbaiah G (Pvt) (VW Polo, 01:04.47.5); 3. Karna Kadur / Nikhil Pai (Team Yokohama-India) (VW Polo, 01:05:03).
FMSCI Cup: 1. KJ Jacob / Manoj Mohanan (Pvt) (Honda City, 01:08:41.1); 2. Tarun Reddy / Lalit Kishore (Pvt) (Honda City, 01:11.44.7); 3. Veeresh Prasad / Suraj M (Pvt) (Honda City, 01:13.13.5).
IRC: 1. Abhilash PG / Srikanth Gowda (Pvt) (Evo VIII, 01:01.42.3); 2. Samir Thapar / Gurinder Singh Mann (JCT Rallying) (Evo X, 01:01.03.6); 3. Mohammed Khasim / Sanath G (Pvt) (01:09.32.9).
Note: Result changed after the protest by Abhilash was upheld.
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Deepak Chinnappa beats the `champ’ to clinch a fine victory
Chennai, 17 July 2016: Bengaluru’s Deepak Paul Chinnappa (Race Concepts ENEOS) denied title favourite Arjun Narendran from Coimbatore (Red Rooster Racing) a clean sweep in the Indian Touring Cars class by winning the third outing in the MRF MMSC FMSCI Indian National Racing Championship, at the MMRT track, Sriperumbudur, near hear on Sunday. However, Arjun clinched the Championship title with a round to spare as he amassed points with a difference of over 50, the maximum that can be gained in the next round. It has to be remembered that Arjun gained from the last race in Coimbatore where potential contender was dashed off the field. The veteran was let off with a paltry Rs.10,000 penalty.
Deepak Paul Chinnappa (centre), winner of the Indian Touring Cars race flanked by Arjun Narendran (left) who finished and second and third placed Ashish Ramaswamy (July 17) Equally impressive performances came from Chennai competitor Vikash Anand who scored a double in the MRF F1600 class as also Raghul Rangasamy who won both the races in the F1300 Rookie Championship while Mumbai’s Ananth Pithawalla (Team N1) won the Indian Junior Touring Cars race and private entrant Deepak Ravikumar took the honours in the Super Stock category.
Starting second, Chinnappa eased past pole-sitter Ashish Ramaswamy (Red Rooster Racing) when the lights went off and built up a commanding lead. Meanwhile, Narendran, who had won both the previous races, did well to move to third after starting last on the grid and then went past Ramaswamy to slot in behind Chinnappa, but could not gain another place. Ramaswamy finished third.
“I had a good start and managed to build a big lead. I was concerned about preserving the tyres which were wearing out fast, and over the last few laps, I had to brake at least 150 metres earlier than normal, but the early lead helped me to maintain my track position to win,” said the 29-year old Chinnappa who thus chalked up his second win in eight starts this season.
For Vikash Anand, it was an up-and-down day. After having won the first race on Saturday, Anand struggled in the second and finished a distant sixth after a couple of off-track excursions while Hyderabad’s Anindith Reddy took the honours. However, Anand managed to gather himself and win the third race for a double.
The Indian Junior Touring Cars race saw a straight battle between the two championship contenders Ananth Pithawalla from Mumbai (Team N1) and Keith Desouza (UNIMEK Racing) with the former coming through while Deepak Ravikumar, a private entrant, topped in the Super Stock category that was run concurrently with the IJTC grid.
Raghul Rangasamy expectedly won the F1300 Rookie Championship race to complete a double despite going off the track when leading midway through the eight-lapper.
Meanwhile, Ishaan Dodhiwala and Niranjan Todkari emerged winners in the two Volkswagen Vento Cup races in contrasting styles. Dodhiwala came up with a fine move to get past front-runner and guest driver from China Li Li Huiwei on the last lap while Todkari enjoyed a lights-to-flag win.
The results (Provisional):
MRF F1600 (Race 2 – 10 laps): 1.Anindith Reddy (Hyderabad) (18mins, 47.123secs); 2.Raghul Rangasamy (Chennai) (18:56.753); 3.Sandeep Kumar (Chennai) (19: 07.235). Race-3 (8 laps): 1. Vikash Anand (Chennai) (15:34.366); 2. Anindith Reddy (Hyderabad) (15:38.277); 3. Raghul Rangasamy (Chennai) (15:41.771).
Indian Touring Cars (Race-3, 8 laps): 1. Deepak Paul Chinnappa (Race Concepts ENEOS) (16:29.580); 2. Arjun Narendran (Red Rooster Performance) (16:30.919); 3. Ashish Ramaswamy (Red Rooster Performance) (16:41.682).
Indian Junior Touring Cars (Race-2, 8 laps): 1.Ananth Pithawalla (Team N1) (17:48.538); 2.Keith DeSouza (UNIMEK Racing) (17:51.754); 3.R Srihariram (Red Rooster Performance) (18:37.810).
Super Stock (Race-2, 10 laps): 1.Deepak Ravikumar (Pvt) (18:26,830); 2.Dean Mascarenhas (Race Concepts) (18:32.320); 3.Chandresh Tolia (Team Game Over) (18:37.404).
F1300 Rookie Championship (Race 2 – 8 laps): 1.Raghul Rangasamy (WSRF) (16:23.799); 2.Arya Singh (Momentum Motorsports) (16:28.025); 3.C Tejas Ram (WSRF) (16:30.914).
Volkswagen Vento Cup (Race-2, 10 laps): 1.Ishaan Dodhiwala (Hyderabad) (21:39.143); 2.Li Huiwei (China) (21:41.809); 3.Sirish Chandran (Pune) (21:52.109). Race-3 (8 laps): 1.Niranjan Todkari (Pune) (17:05.060); 2.Ketith DeSouza (Goa) (17:05.816); 3.Ishaan Dodhwala (Hyderabad) (17:14.866).
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 a progressive program for 2016. From the days of Sholavaram , MMSC built its own racetrack which was inaugurated in 1979 and secured its FIA Grade-2 international certification in 2015, making it the only club which owns such a facility. The club has organised the Porsche Super Cup, Formula Campos, Formula Asia, Asian touring car championships, Formula 3, Tata Prima Truck racing championship, the Asian 2-wheeler racing championships 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/AP Media Comm press release
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Resurfaced MMRT ready to host Round 4
Chennai, July 14: After a four-month break, the resurfaced Madras Motor Race Trust track in Sriperumbudur near here, now in its 26th year, will play host to the fourth round of the MRF MMSC FMSCI Indian National Racing Championship that includes the showpiece MRF Formula 1600 besides the touring cars and the Volkswagen Vento Cup, beginning Friday.
The 3.7 Kms long track, which has a FIA Grade 2 certification to run all races outside of Formula 1, has been resurfaced with Polymer Bitumen as part of the multi-crore upgrade of the facility, including laying of a second short-loop of 1.9 Kms to complement the existing 2.1 Kms loop besides expansion of Race Control tower, building of garages to accommodate 120 cars and 600 two-wheelers in Phase 2 starting in September, and spectator seating in the infield providing 90 per cent view of the track.
Chairman of the Meet and a member of the MMRT board of trustees Vicky Chandhok said: “The MMRT track is among the busiest of its kind in the World. Last year, it was booked for nearly 300 days. As such, we decided to upgrade and expand the facility. Now, with two fully operational tracks for rent, we can accept more bookings for testing and corporate events besides of course regular racing.
“Since the surface is fresh, it could be a bit slippery with no rubber on the track, but I expect the timings to be at least 1.5 seconds quicker as it settles down. For this weekend, we have kept required personnel and equipment on stand-by to carry out running repairs if necessary.
“Over the next four months, the renovation works will continue and completed in time for the start of the 2017 season in January. Our total budgeted outlay is about Rs 12 Crores as of now.”
The weekend will see three races each in the MRF F1600 whose championship winner will get a ticket to race in the Road to Indy shootout in the United States later this year, the VW Vento Cup and the premier Indian Touring Cars class while the Indian Junior Touring Cars, the Super Stock and the F1300 Rookie Championship are all double-headers.
Local challenger Karthik Tharani heads the MRF F1600 class with 106 points following his four consecutive wins in six outings, followed by Raghul Rangasamy (84), Vikash Anand (78), who marked his return to competitive racing after an 18-month break with a double in the previous round in March, Sandeep Kumar (68), Anindith Reddy (63) and Goutham Parekh (63).
Coimbatore star Arjun Narendran of Red Rooster Performance team is comfortably placed in the ITC class with 118 points, having won four races from five starts. Trailing Narendran is Bengaluru’s Deepak Paul Chinnappa (Race Concepts) on 67, just ahead of veterans B Vijay Kumar (Prime Racing) from Coimbatore (56) and Sivaramakrishnan (53) of Chennai.
Just four points separate leader Keith Desouza (116) of UNIMEK Racing from Goa and Mumbai’s Ananth Pithawalla (112) of Team N1 in the IJTC class. This pair has won all the six races so far between them with Pithawalla triumphing in four.
In the Super Stock class, Veeresh Prasad (79), Alisha Abdullah (78), Raghul Rangasamy (77), Dean Mascarenhas (66) and Adith KC (63) are the front-runners while WSRF team-mates CJ Tejas Ram (116) and Rangasamy (105) head the F1300 Rookie Championship field.
The Volkswagen Vento Cup has six drivers tied for the top three spots with Ishan Dodhiwala and Karminder Pal Singh (108 points each) leading, ahead of Keith Desouza and Aditya Pawar, both on 74, and Aditya Pawar and Jeet Jhabakh together on 62.
eom/AP Media com press release
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TVS Racing to support Alisha Abdullah Racing Academy for Women
Chennai, 3 June 2016: TVS Racing, undisputed leader in two-wheeler racing, announced an exclusive collaboration with the new Alisha Abdullah Racing Academy for Women– India’s first training school for women racers. TVS Racing will support the academy with the racing bikes and technical expertise. The academy has shortlisted 18 women riders who will race exclusively for TVS Racing Team in the first year.
The first batch of 18 students at the Alisha Abdullah Racing Academy for Women has been selected from 80 entries after clearing rigorous tests. These riders are now being trained to improve physical fitness and hone their racing skills. The academy is based in Chennai and the racers will be trained on a hired racing track according to their training requirements.
Alisha Abdullah, founder of the Alisha Abdullah Racing Academy for Women said, “We are proud to be associated with TVS Racing as it is India’s most professional two-wheeler racing team with the best motorbikes and trainers. This association will help the academy develop the best talent among women racers as they get exclusive access to best in class machines, racers and technology. I also hope our racing academy attracts and encourages more women racers to get into motorsports in India.”
Arvind Pangaonkar, Head – TVS Racing Team said, “We are thrilled to collaborate with the Alisha Abdullah Racing Academy for Women and believe this initiative will help create opportunities for women racers in India. TVS Racing is strongly committed to promote two- wheeler racing in India and generate interest and improve support for the sport in India. We make continuous efforts to take the sport to as many sections of the society as possible and create the ultimate machine and promote the riders for these machines.”
TVS Racing was established in 1987 with the objective of improving the performance of its bikes. Over the years it has provided valuable data, design inputs, development of reliable motorcycle models, excellent vehicle dynamics & handling etc. The true evidence of it is seen in products like the new TVS Apache RTR 200 4V. TVS Racing has helped enhance the performance and handling capabilities of the TVS Apache series of motorcycles basis the experience on the track.
Since the past 33 years TVS Racing has been actively participating on and off- road racing events such as road racing, Super-cross and Motocross, Dirt Tracks, Rally etc. TVS Racing is the only factory team in India to have any woman rider as a part of their team. In early 2015, TVS Racing became the first Indian factory team to take part in the Dakar rally, which is the longest and toughest rally in the world. TVS Racing won eight championships across all forms of two-wheeler motorsport events Supercross, Rallies and Road racing last year.
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Mira, Rahul and Aadityansh Dominate in Vadodara at JK Tyre IndiKarting National Series
Vadodara, 17 May 2016 : The JK Tyre IndiKarting National Series, powered by Tata Motors, brought kart racing back to Gujarat after a span of 13 years! Searing hot temperatures did not deter the 108 participants who came to race from all corners of India, at the Erda’s Speedway in Vadodara. The JK Tyre IndiKarting National series has been created with the intention of promoting motorsport at a grass root level and the success was evident with the very high number of first time racers. Award to all the winners were given away by Mr. Bharat Dangar – Mayor of Vadodara, Mrs. Tejal Amin – Chairperson of Navrachana Educational Trust and Dipen Gada – a renowned architect, on completion of the round.Aaroh Ravindra from Mumbai dominated Race one of the Pro Senior Category, to win comfortably ahead of National Series leader, Aanjan Patodia of Pune. Rahul Sharan of Race Concepts, Bengaluru finished third. The finishing order of Race one was reversed to get the starting grid for Race two and this race proved to be the most exciting race of the event. The lead exchanged numerous times before Rahul Sharan emerged ahead of Aaroh and Aanjan. The three racers fought tooth and nail with a lot of overtaking happening amongst the three. Rahul eventually held his nerve to take his maiden victory ahead of Aaroh and Aanjan. Race three saw Aaroh grab an early lead and pull away, before he had to retire with a snapped chain. Rahul Sharan inherited the lead and held his position to win ahead of Aanjan Patodia and Rishab Rathi.
The Pro Cadet racers were extremely competitive as always. The youngest participant on the grid, seven year old Ranvir Singh from Pune had good pace to win Race one ahead of Aadityansh Kaulshi and Shaurya Kapani. Race two saw Aadityansh emerge winner under the reverse grid start ahead of Ranvir Singh in second ahead of Mumbai’s Shaurya Kapani. Race three was once again won by Aadityansh, while Saatvik Kogileti from Bengaluru came 2nd ahead of Hoshmand Elavia of Mumbai.
The Pro Junior too witnessed exciting action as Jonathan Kuriakose won Race one ahead of local girl – Mira Erda. Aditya Joshi from Pune was third. Race two saw the tables turn as Mira stormed to victory ahead of Aditya Joshi and Nitish Deshmukh from Pune. Mira once again dominated the third race in the Pro Junior, winning ahead of Jonathan and Aditya. Importantly Mira was the only girl on the Pro Grid and became the first girl to win a race in the JK Tyre IndiKarting National Series.
The support categories saw numerous first time participants. The Senior Amateur and Senior Open were both won by Mohammed Ridhaf, while Akshay Gupta came second in the Amateur followed by Mohd. Mubeen Shamsi. Bangalore’s Alex Bora took a well deserved second place in the Senior Open ahead of Akshay Gupta. The Interschool final was won by Mira Erda ahead of Reetwiz Mishra and Nitish Deshmukh. The top three in all these categories will represent Vadodara in the National Finial in the NCR region in June.
The Senior Plus was won by Nikhil Agarwal ahead of Guwahati racer, Samarth Choudhury, while Chintan Parikh who came all the way from Jamshedpur came in third. The corporate Final was won by Cyrus Dastoor from Pune ahead of Honey Patel and Priyank Aslalia. The Women’s demo saw Rajshree Chauhan win ahead of Parina Rana and Neema Erda, while the Master Demo was won by Jaiminirushi Patel ahead of Cyrus Dastoor and Parashanran Chari.
“In spite of the searing heat, it was great to see such a turnout in Vadodara. The fact that so many have travelled here from all over India is proof of the growing interest in motorsport. JK Tyre’s sponsorship to the series is crucial to us being here.” said Rayomand Banajee, promoter of the National series.
The next leg of the JK Tyre IndiKarting National Series will be conducted in Ludhiana on May 28 and 29, before ending with the final round in the National Capital Region on June 11 and 12.
eom/Press Release
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Sarath Kumar to debut in Asian Road Racing – Super Sports 600cc
Chennai, 5 May 2016: With active support from WOW Digit HK, India’s Sarath Kumar will make his debut in the Super Sports 600cc class of the 2016 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship this weekend.
The 24-year old Chennai-based rider, who has competed in the Asia Dream Cup in the past, will join the ARRC in the second round to be held at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand, on May 8-9 after missing the first round in Johor, Malaysia, in April due to a knee injury.
Thanks to Mr John Sudheer, Director, True Pursuit Global Management, who introduced WOW Digit HK to support Sarath Kumar in the ARRC, the Indian’s move to the 600cc class comes after riding smaller motorcycles for four years.
Sarath’s team-mates at Team T.Pro Yuzy Honda NTS Racing are Japanese riders Tomoyoshi Koyama and Taiga Hada, both with plenty of skill and experience.
On facilitating support for Sarath’s ARRC campaign, Sudheer said: “India as a country has always been very cricket-centric and I believe we have much more talent in India in other sports also. So when I heard about Sarath, his talent and performance in the international series, I decided to support him. It will be great pride to see India in the Asian level championship.
“I know WOW Digit personally and it is an upcoming brand across Asia. So I brought them on board as a main sponsor for the team. They saw an immediate synergy with ARRC as it travels to different parts of Asia that are our key markets. Although WOW Digit does not have a direct connect with moto racing, the excitement of racing and the viewership across Asia will give the brand a good reach. So, it’s a win-win situation.”
On his expectations from Sarath, Sudheer said: “We now know that the class is competitive from what we saw during the first round in Johor, Malaysia, and as long as he participates in the right spirit and learns the techniques this season, we will be proud of an Indian participation,” Sudheer said.
Sarath Kumar said: “This is a big opportunity. I have been riding 250cc for long now, but my bodyweight and height were becoming a disadvantage. Hence, this was the only move I could make and thanks to my team Honda, Mr John Sudheer, Ten10 Racing and WOW Digit, this opportunity has come at the right time.
“It is one the toughest grid in the World today, maybe even tougher than World Super Sport, but ARRC will provide a great platform for me to work hard, ride and learn from the best in Asia. Having missed the first round due to knee injury that I am still recovering from, it is going to be a tough task to catch up and learn the bike and get up to pace.
“Since 2011 in World Championship, I have always been involved in international racing, thanks to Ramji Govindarajan of Ten10 Racing who has been working hard to keep my international career going for so many years. However, this switch is critical to my racing career as this will define my future in international racing.
“I want to thank Mr John Sudheer whose support helped put an Indian in the Asia Championship. WOW Digit is a new era brand and will be great to work with them and promoting and carrying their brand with us across Asia.
“Also Ten10 Racing has been the backbone in my racing career, being beside me even during tough times and injuries. Vinoth Kannan of Ten10 Racing has been constantly working with me on my fitness and Ramji Govindarajan has been mentoring me for so many years to make me a professional racer that I am today. I will always be indebted to Ten10 Racing.”
The 2016 ARRC Calendar is:
Round 1 – Johor Circuit, Malaysia, April 1-2 (completed); Round 2 – Chang International Circuit, Thailand, May 7-8; Round 3 – Suzuka Circuit, Japan, June 4-5; Round 4 – Sentul Circuit, Indonesia, August 6-7; Round 5 – Buddh International Circuit, India, October 1-2; Round 6 – Chang International Circuit, Thailand, December 3-4
eom/AP Media Comm release
Sarath Kumar file photo by Anand Philar -
Brayan Perera seals FJRS championship
Coimbatore, 3 May 2016: Sri Lankan Brayan Perera clinched the championship in the Formula Junior Racing Series promoted by Meco Motor Sports which concluded at the Kari Motor Speedway here on Sunday. Brayan scored a total of five wins in 10 races spread over two rounds.Brayan, who had won three of the five races in the first round during the April 16-17 weekend at the same venue, finished the series with a tally of 72 points, just four clear of second-placed Ashwin Datta (Chennai) who had three wins while Assam’s Alex Bora ended up third with a tally of 53 (two wins).
In the Support races (two-wheelers), Faraz Shariff (600cc), Anthony Peter (300cc) and Aishwarya M (ladies) achieved a double apiece in the second round.
FJRS is a new entry-level Formula Racing Series for Rookie drivers who have attended the Meco Racing Academy and an affordable step up from karting to racing. More importantly, this Series becomes the grooming ground for a seat with the Meco Racing Team taking part in the JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship.
The Series comprised of 10 races held over two rounds with support events in the form of two-wheeler races. The competitors in the FJRS drove the Formula LGB 1300 cars which belonged to Meco Racing and run by Meco Racing as a Single Make Class.
The results:
Formula LGB 1300 (Race 1, 10 laps): 1. Brayan Perera (Sri Lanka) (12mins, 46.417secs); Alex Bora (Assam) (12:48.582); 3. Ashwin Datta (Chennai) (12:51.820). Race 2 (7 laps): 1. Datta (13:02.959); 2. Arya Singh (Kolkata) (13:04.025); 3. Kevin Perera (Sri Lanka) (13:05.096). Race 3 (12 laps): 1. Bora (16:48.928); 2. Datta (16:49.692); 3. Sneha Sharma (Mumbai) (16:52.834). Race 4 (12 laps): 1. Datta (17:18.692); 2. Brayan Perera (17:23.392); 3. Bora (17:23.547). Race 5 (12 laps): 1. Brayan Perera (16:43.458); 2. Datta (16:45.247); 3. Rupesh Sivakumar (16:54.843).
Support Races (2-wheelers) – 400cc Open (Stock) Race 1 (8 laps): 1. Faraz Shariff (10:18.573); 2. Aditya Rao (10:22.217); 3. Yashal RL (10:22.495). Race 2 (10 laps): 1. Faraz Shariff (12:49.239); 2. Aditya Rao (12:52.867); 3. Rameez Ebrahim (13:28.878).
300cc (Stock) Race 1 (8 laps): 1. Anthony Peter (11:03.852); 2. Mohammed Arif (11:30.662); 3. Jai Kiran SV (11:55.322). Race 2 (10 laps): 1. Anthony Peter (14:11.137); 2. Guru Prasath (+1 lap); 3. Jai Kiran SV (+1 lap).
165cc (Stock, Novice) Race 1 (8 laps): 1. Anish D Shetty (11:09.944); 2. Yashas RL (11:10.575); 3. Anthony Peter (11:11.133). Race 2 (10 laps): 1. Anthony Peter (13:56.204); 2. Anish D Shetty (13:55.752); 3. Yashas RL (14:05.626).
Ladies (165cc, Stock) Race 1 (6 laps): 1. Aishwarya M (09:22.003); 2. Gopika Dharamshi (10:43.121); 3. Poorani Giridharan (+1 lap). Race 2 (6 laps): 1. Aishwarya (09:20.191); 2. Gopika (10:06.744); 3. Poorani (10:52.061).
eom/AP Media Communications release
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Hat-trick of wins for Lankan Brayan Perera: Formula LGB 1300
Coimbatore, 18 April 2016: Sri Lankan Brayan Perera dominated the first round of the introductory Formula Junior Racing Series promoted by Meco Motor Sports by winning three of the five races in the Formula LGB 1300 category at the Kari Motor Speedway here over the weekend.
Over the action-packed two days of the event which was exclusively meant for aspiring young talent wishing to take the big step from Karting to single-seater open-wheel racing, Perera won the first, fourth and fifth races besides a podium in the second outing to underline his prowess.
Alex Bora (Assam) and Ashwin Datta (Chennai) took the honours in the other two FJRS races that boasted of a 12-car grid.
In the two-wheeler support races, Yashas RL (400cc), M Sudhkar (300cc), Anish Shetty (165cc, Novice) and Pooja Dabhi (Ladies, 165cc) achieved a double apiece.
The second round of the series will be held at the same venue on April 30 and May 1. The FJRS is a new entry-level Formula Racing Series for Rookie drivers who have attended the Meco Racing Academy and an affordable step up from karting to racing. More importantly, this Series becomes the grooming ground for a seat with the Meco Racing Team taking part in the JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship.
The results:
Formula LGB 1300 (Race 1, 10 laps): 1. Brayan Perera (12mins, 35.721secs); 2. Alex Bora (12:36.516); 3. Sneha Sharma (12:44.595). Race 2: 1. Bora (12:41.753); 2. Perera (12.42.731); 3. Sneha Sharma (12.47.699). Race 3 (12 laps): 1. Ashwin Datta (15:14.502); 2. Sneha Sharma (15:18.405); 3. Jason Huggins (15:21.604). Race 4 (12 laps): 1. Perera (15:05.904); 2. Bora (15:10.225); 3. Datta (15:19.657). Race 5 (12 laps): 1. Perera (17:48.866); 2. Gokul Manesan (17:49.358); 3. Huggins (17:50.262).
Support races (2-wheeler): Up to 400cc – Open (Race 1, 8 laps): 1. Yashas RL (10:15.435); 2. Faraz Shariff (10:19.911); 3. Aditya Rao (10:22.904). Race 2 (10 laps): 1. Yashas (13:51.980); 2. Siddharth (14:00.601); 3. Shariff (14:07.167).
Up to 300cc – Open (Race 1, 8 laps): 1. M Sudhakar (10:50.887); 2. Anthony Peter (10:53.934); 3. Mohammed Arif A (11:20.866). Race 2 (10 laps): 1. Sudhakar (13:41.603); 2. Peter (13:43.552); 3. Pranav Shukla (14:16.070).
Up to 165cc – Novice (Race 1, 8 laps): 1. Anish D Shetty (11:02.408); 2. Anthony Peter (11:07.502); 3. A Amala Gerald (11:15.942). Race 2 (4 laps): 1. Shetty (05:33.949); 2. Peter (05:36.014); 3. Rajkumar (05:39.228).
Ladies (Stock – up to 165cc, 6 laps): 1. Pooja Dabhi (09:22.531); 2. Shruthi N (09:32.604); 3. Rehana Reya (09:43.537). Race 2 (6 laps): Dabhi (09:34.697); 2. Shruthi (09:34.930); 3. Reya (09:55.264).
About Meco Motor Sports
Meco Motor Sports is India’s No. 1 motorsports management enterprise started by Indian racing legend, Akbar Ebrahim, regarded as the best racer of his era. He was the first Indian to race at international circuits. His illustrious career of over four decades has seen him dominate not only the Indian tracks but also take the international tracks in his stride. During his long association with motorsports as a racer himself, he had the chance to see the sport from the inside. He had a good idea of where India stood in terms of talent, infrastructure, training and opportunities; the pros and cons. He knew the obstacles a racing aspirant would have to face and wanted to clear those obstacles one at a time to clear the path for the future generation.
This passion of Akbar’s, coupled with his incredible knowledge of motorsports and business acumen, gave rise to Meco Motor Sports (MMS), built on a dream to change the landscape of motorsports in India. MMS today is the biggest names in Indian motorsports. They not only own and manage premier racing tracks across India, but also organize India’s top racing events and championships besides running a racing academy.
MMS has diversified to cover as many aspects of motorsports as it possibly could. So, as a flagship company, MMS has different operational arms that take care of various aspects of the sport.
What MMS has made sure is that the future of motorsports in India holds consolidation, expansion and more international exposure. Above all, it holds a relentless drive towards the adrenaline rush of the waving flags, the adrenaline burn and the podium finish!
eom/AP Media Communications release
Photo caption:
Sri Lankan Brayan Perera (centre), the overall winner of the first round of the Formula Junior Racing Series conducted by Meco Motor Sports in Coimbatore over the weekend, flanked by second-placed Alex Bora from Assam (left) and Chennai’s Ashwin Datta who was third Overall. -
Lohit Urs tops in Asia Cup, wins National title; Gill clinches Overall Coffee Day Rally title
Lohitt Urs and his co-driver Shrikanth Gowda expectedly won the title in the FIA Asia Cup category besides emerging National champions even as Gaurav Gill (co-driver Musa Sherif) took the Overall crown in the Coffee Day India Rally which concluded here on Sunday.Mysorean Urs, driving the Mitsubishi Evo VIII, destroyed the Asia Cup field with relative ease despite encountering set-up problems on Saturday which cost him some time.
Having registered for the FMSCI Indian Rally Championship, Urs collected sufficient points to win the title despite finishing Overall second behind Gill who ended an otherwise wretched season on a high, but lost his National crown.
“I am obviously delighted to win the Asia Cup and the National championship. We had some problems with the car early on, but we managed to set things right,” said Urs.
Reflecting on his performance, Gill, who scored the second win of the IRC season, said: “It has not been the best of seasons for me with so many non-finishes. I am of course disappointed to lose my National title, but feel good to finish the season on a high. We lost some 40 seconds yesterday due to mechanical problems. However, we managed to put it all behind us and win here.”
For Team Yokohama, it was a double delight as Bengaluru pair of Rahul Kanthraj and his co-driver Vivek Bhatt came out on top in the IRC 2000 class and also sealed the championship in their category, as did Karna Kadur (co-driver Vivek Ponnusamy) in the IRC 1600 category.
While it was smooth sailing for Kanthraj who thus completed a clean sweep by winning all the four IRC rounds, Kadur was a bit lucky as overnight leader Dean Mascarenhas (Shanmuga SN) was docked a one-minute penalty for early check-in at a Time Control and thus finished second.
Also, IRC 1600 championship leader Dr Bikku Babu retired on Saturday and it paved the way for Kadur’s triumph. “Not the way I wanted to win the championship with Dr Babu retiring and Dean getting a penalty which helped me. But, it is nice to win considering that we had issues with the car through the weekend,” said Kadur.
The three-day event, which was also a contender for a round of the 2016 Asia Pacific Rally Championship, was supported by Karnataka Toursim and Indian Oil.
Provisional classifications:
FIA Asia Cup: Lohit Urs / Srikanth Gowda (Pvt, Evo VIII) 1 (2hrs, 14 mins, 11.2 secs); Satyan Kochar / Amit Wagchoure (Pvt. VW Polo) 2 (02:32:13.2); Pradeep RG / Shekar 3 (Pvt, Evo VIII) 3 (02:37:22.5).
IRC Overall): Gaurav Gill / Musa Sherif 1 (Mahindra Adventure, XUV 500) 1 (02:06:18.6); Lohitt Urs / Srikanth Gowda (Pvt, Evo VIII) 2 (02:06:34.2); Amittrajit Ghosh / Ashwin Naik (Mahindra Adventure, XUV 500) 3 (02:07:08.5).
IRC 2000: Rahul Kantharaj / Vivek Y Bhatt (Team Yokohama, Cedia) 1 (02:11:16.0); Younus Ilyas / Paul Thomas (Pvt, Cedia) 2 (02:12:09.4); Sumit Punjabi / Shahid Salman (Pvt, Cedia) 3 (02:12:44.1).
IRC 1600: Karna Kadur / Vivek Ponnusamy (Team Yokohama, VW Polo) 1 (02:07:29.3); Dean Mascarenhas / Shanmuga SN (Pvt, VW Polo) 2 (02:08.08.5); Bopaiah KM / Karumbaiah KS (Pvt, VW Polo) 3 (02:09:58.6).
FMSCI Cup 1600: Druva Chandrasekhar / Jeevarathinam J (Pvt, Honda City V-Tec) 1 (02:10: 45.5); Adith KC / Harish KN (Pvt, Honda City V-Tec) 2 (02:12:46.5); Michu Ganapathy / Venu Ramesh Kumar (Pvt, Maruti Baleno) 3 (02:15:01.4).
eom/AP Media Communications release and photos
