INDIA in F1

Category: Domestic

  • Mishap mars Popular Rally; Sad end to the rally

    Kochi, 21 August 2004: An unfortunate mishap in the 21st Popular Rally 2004, involving competitor No. 1 Naren Kumar and co-driver D Ramkumar, which resulted in the death of a five-year-old spectator Bobby, forced the organisers, the Kerala Auto Sports Club (KASC) to terminate the rally after four special stages which were run in the area around the forest sanctuary of Boothathankettu, about 40 kms from Kochi, here, on Saturday.

    Trailing behind Vikram Mathais by four seconds after the completion of three special stages, defending champion Naren Kumar was touching speeds of over 100 kms when the mishap happened, the young kid crossing the road unexpectedly to join his father on the other side and colliding head on with the speeding Maruti Baleno.

    According to the other spectators, the boy was on the opposite side of his father and brother just beyond a narrow bridge and ran to join them on being called. The father did not take into consideration the fast speed of the rally cars and it resulted in the unfortunate mishap. The child was rushed to hospital in the rally ambulance but succumbed to his injuries before reaching the hospital, where he was declared dead.

    An official statement released by the organisers said, “After running 4 special stages, the organisers have decided to terminate the Popular Rally 2004, in view of an unfortunate accident in a closed special stage section, wherein a spectator, Bobby, a 5-year-old boy succumbed to his injuries in an accident involving competitor No. 1, Naren Kumar. The boys was accompanied by his father and his brother.

    The fast and treacherous stages also claimed its own victims, three cars, which crashed out in the first special stage, the 15.06 km long Illythodu stage. Overall leader Philipose Mathai, the last round’s 1400cc winner, Prithveen Rajan and Rally Star Cup leader Rajesh Gadakh, all went off the road at high speeds, crashing their cars but escaping unhurt. Also going off the road was Karandip Singh, who smashed into a tree and destroyed the front arm of his car.

    After three special stages, Vikram Mathais was leading the overall field with a time of 25.40 seconds, four ahead of Naren Kumar (25.44). Arjun Balu was in third place with 26.13.

    Following are the provisional results after three stages:

    Overall: Vikram Mathais/Sujith Kumar 25.40 mins; V R Naren Kumar/D Ramkumar 25.44; Arjun Balu/Kumar Swamy 26.13.

    1400cc: Arjunrao Aroor/CK Chinappa 26.52; Ranjith Ballal/Ramesh Kumar 28.33; Sandeep Sharma/Kulbeer Singh 28.52.

    Rally Star Cup: Sanjay Agarwal/Chandra Mouli 28.20; Khalid Faraz/G S Joshi 31.40; Jasbir Singh/Jeetender Nath 35.33.

    Vikram Mathias (right) and co-driver BS Sujith Kumar with the Overall Trophy they won at the Popular Rally 2004. Photo by George Francis, Scorp News.

  • Naren-Ram begin account in style; MRF sweep podium

    Bangalore, 8 August 2004: Ace rally pair from Coimbatore, Naren Kumar and co-driver D Ramkumar of Team MRF began their title defence with a comfortable victory in the 30th Karnataka-1000 Rally, the second round of the Indian National Rally Championship here on Sunday.

    The rally which was flagged off from The Club on Mysore Road on Friday ran the Special Stages at Bagepalli, off Bellary road, about 100km from the city. Defending champions Naren and Ram, began their account this year as Philippos Matthai and co-driver Ashwin Naik stole the victory at the first round in Nashik in July. The champion duo had to contend their teammates Karandip Singh and co-driver Jaidas Menon, who finished second and Vikram Mathis and co-driver Sujith Kumar, who had to settle for third. Thus Team MRF swept the podium in the overall category.

    Prithveen Rajan along with navigator PV Srinivasa Murthy won the 1400cc category while Sanjay Agarwal and co-driver Chandramouili lifted the Rally Star Cup.

    Two physical special stages, Garuda and Banda, were run thrice each on Saturday and twice each on Sunday near Bagepalli.

    Provisional Results: Overall: 1. Naren Kumar/D Ramkumar (Team MRF) (43:32); 2. Karandeep Singh/Jaidas Menon (Team MRF) (44:28); 3. Vikram Mathais/Sujith Kumar (Team MRF) (44:29).

    1400cc class: 1. Prithiveen/PVS Murthy (45:34); 2. Arjun Rao Aroor/C Chinappa (45:51); 3. Philippos Matthai/Ashwin Naik (45:51).

    Rally Star Cup: 1. Sanjay Agarwal/ Chandramouli (48:36); 2. Chetan Shivraman/ Srikarunaya; 3. Rajesh Gadakh/Paritosh Kohok (50:03).

    The following reported is first published in Deccan Herald and reproduced here Courtesy Deccan Herald.

    Bangalore, DHNS, Monday August 9, 2004: Reigning National champion V R Naren Kumar (co-driver D Ramkumar) of Team MRF expectedly clinched the overall title with yet another stunning drive in his Baleno as the 30th Karnataka-1000 Rally, the second round of the MAI Indian National Rally Championship, concluded here on Sunday.

    Incidentally, Naren had begun his Rally career by winning the group N (unmodified) title in a Gypsy in the 1994 K-1000 and had returned the following year to claim his first ever Overall crown in an Esteem.

    Averaging 126kmph, the Coimbatore-based Naren destroyed the opposition even as his nearest overnight challenger and team-mate Arjun Balu (co-driver Kumar Ramaswamy), packed up with a broken suspension early in the first of the two 17.6 Kms stages that were run on Sunday at Bagepalli, about 120 Kms from Bangalore.

    In the bargain, the Chandigarh-Bangalore combination of Karandip Singh and co-driver Jaidas Menon, also of Team MRF, finished second, but a mere one second ahead of team-mate Vikram Mathias (Masinagudi) and co-driver Sujith Kumar (Bangalore).

    Meanwhile, Coimbatore’s Prithveen and co-driver PVS Murthy of Bangalore, spared seven seconds to local challengers, Arjun Rao Aroor and his veteran co-driver C K Chinnappa to top the 1400cc class.

    Arjun Rao and the Nashik Rally winner, Philippos Matthai tied with penalty timing of 45 minutes, 41 seconds, but the former was adjudged second on the basis of more stage wins.

    In the Rally Star Cup, Bangalore’s Sanjay Agarwal (co-driver Chandramouli), who was supported by Chettinad Sporting, topped comfortably while Chetan Shivaraman and co-driver Srikarunya of Bangalore, nursed their overnight second position despite suffering mechanical problems.

    Provisional results: Overall/1600cc: Team MRF (VR Naren Kumar/D Ramkumar) 1 (43mins, 32 secs); Team MRF (Karandip Singh/Jaidas Menon) 2 (44:28); Team MRF (Vikram Mathias/Sujith Kumar) 3 (44:29).

    1400cc: Prithveen/PVS Murthy 1 (45:34); Arjun Rao Aroor/C K Chinnappa 2 (45:41); Philippos Matthai/Ashwin Naik 3 (45:41).

    Rally Star Cup: Sanjay Agarwal/Chandramouli 1 (48:36); Chetan Shivaraman/Srikarunya 2 (49:22); Rajesh Ghadag/Paritosh Kohok 3 (50:03).

  • TVS Fiero FX Out There Adventurers World Record Challenge

    Six Bikers Touch World’s Highest Motorable Pass “Marsimik La”

    Bangalore, 2 August 2004: The “TVS Fiero FX – OutThere Adveturers World Record Challenge” Expedition of six bike enthusiasts has set a new world record by crossing four of the world’s highest Motorable Passes including Marsimik La at 18,652 feet on their TVS Fiero FX bikes. The expedition will now formally claim their entry in Guinness Book of World Records. TVS Fiero FX is the first 150 cc motorbike to touch the highest motorable pass in the world.

    In a 24-hour period between 31st July to 1st August, 2004, the expedition covered four passes i.e. Marsimik La (18,652 feet), Khardung La (18,380 feet), Tanglang La (17,582 feet) and Chang La (17,350 feet), covering a distance of 638 KMs between Leh & Pang. These passes are four of the world’s highest roads & TVS Fiero FX is the first bike to touch all the four passes with in a 24 hours period .

    Expressing his joy over this great feat, Mr. Chandan Lahiri of OutThere Adventurers & the leader of expedition said, “it was a lifetime experience to be on top of the world. The dedication, determination, courage & an excellent team work finally triumphed over all the arduous challenges like lack of oxygen, rugged terrain, snow fall, melting snow, raging rivers, landslides and avalanches. More importantly, our TVS Fiero FX bikes proved to be a great machine on these terrains and more than lived up to our expectations as for as its power, handling, maneuverability, weight and balance were just the right combination required to do this grueling job successfully.”

    Chandan is also the current world record holder of traveling across the three highest motorable roads in the world in 14 hours and 44 minutes. Other members of the expedition were Patrick Kerr, Michael Williams, Burgess Cooper, Sarosh Cooper and Saurav Gupta.

    Speaking on the occasion Mr. Cecil K. Dewars, Vice President – Corporate Communication, TVS Motor said, “Today is a great day for TVS Motor as it’s 150 CC Fiero FX was selected by the expedition team for this arduous job and has lived up to their expectations. The success of this expedition has established the fact that this new technologically advanced bike is also capable of scaling such heights & withstand the elements of any magnitude.”

    “We are thankful to the expedition team for showing faith in our Fiero FX & exploring its latent potential & strengths on the highest & most difficult terrains of the world. I also take this opportunity to thank the Indian Army & TVS’ technical team led by Victor Obed for providing back-up support to the expedition & making it a great success.”, added Mr. Dewars.

    Fiero FX with proven 150cc, 12 BHP 4 stroke engine & digital ignition combined with the intelligent carburetor delivers superb performance and mileage. The core essence of the Fiero FX includes its ‘Great looks’, ‘excellent pickup’, ‘good handling’ and ‘superior technology’. These attributes enhance its strong association as the only bike with good performance and the best engine in its category. To complement the Fiero FX, there were specially designed Snow Tyres by TVS Tyres. The patterns provide excellent drivability and maneuverability for both front and rear. The casing had been strengthened to withstand the rigor of the challenging terrain.

    Chandan is also putting together a book – Himalayan Journeys: Tips on Travelling in the Himalayas – which provides useful tips for travelers embarking on a journey into the awesome mountains. The book will contain chapters on first aid, high altitude illness, how to be a responsible tourist, how to find water in the wild, and a chapter on the history of the mighty mountain range. The book is expected to hit the stands in August.

  • Vijaykumar enthralls Chennai, bags best rider award

    Chennai, 1 August 2004: The 3rd round of the MRF National Motocross, a round of the FMSCI National Motocross Championship 2004 was a grand success. Huge crowds lined up the Kandaswami College Grounds in Annanagar Chennai to see the cream of the Indian Motocross talent vie with each other. And they were not disappointed as the teams of TVS and Yamaha gave a glorious display of skillful riding.

    The event began with the most awaited race of the all. The Indian Experts Moto 1 Foreign Class upto 250 cc. Vijay Kumar of Team TVS Racing was the cynosure of all eyes and didn’t disappoint, as he emerged first at the first turn. With Syed Eathasam and Karan Kadam of Yamaha close on his heels, Vijay Kumar led the pack into the first 4 laps. The 5th lap proved to be a very interesting one as the 3 leaders jostled with one another for the lead. With the crowd cheering on, Karan Kadam of Yamaha was hot on the heels of Vijay Kumar. The gap between them had closed noticeably and as the crowd watched in tense anticipation, Karan was ‘black flagged’ and had to retire on safety grounds as first his seat fell off and then his number plate. Vijay Kumar went on to increase his lead and win with a comfortable margin, as Yogesh Barguje of Yamaha was unable to close the gap. Limping due to an injury suffered earlier, Vijay Kumar won the hearts of all as he showed the Chennai crowd his class act.

    With all interest centering on this one race, it was no surprise as the crowd swelled as the second moto began. Vijay Kumar, battling pain, roared into the lead. With daredevil riding he slowly increased his lead as the crowd behind battled for the second and third places. Karan Kadam of Yamaha started closing the gap and almost took the lead at one stage. With the crowd urging on Vijay Kumar, he battled on till the 3rd lap, where he lost the lead to Syed Eathasham and Karan Kadam of Yamaha. As Syed took the lead a new battle began for second place. Into the 6th lap, Karan suffered an unfortunate fall enabling Vijay Kumar to whiz past. Syed won the second moto with Vijay Kumar coming in second.

    With his splendid showing Vijay Kumar of Team TVS was adjudged the best rider of the day. With his daredevil riding Vijay showed Chennai crowds why he is held in such high esteem. He was the star of the day leaving no one in doubt about his immense talent.

    The next race was the Novice Class, and Deepak John on a TVS Shogun shot into the lead into the first bend. Riding steadily he maintained his lead till the fifth lap of the race. Going into the turn into the 5th lap, he misjudged a turn and fell giving Wasim Mohd riding a Yamaha RX 135 to slip past him and move into the lead. And it stayed that way till the end with Mohd Wasim emerging victorious.

    With crowd swelling in numbers, interest centred around the next race which was the Class 2, Indian Experts above 80 cc upto 150 cc. All eyes were again drawn to Vijay Kumar of Team TVS. T. K. Viswanath had other plans and he shot into the lead ahead of more fancy names into the first corner. However in the melee immediately post the first corner, C. Santhosh of Team TVS moved into the lead. With the crowd yelling at the top of their voices, Syed Eathasham of Yamaha bore down on Santosh and the pressure was too much for Santosh who surrendered his lead. Syed rapidly built up his lead and was being threatened by both Santosh and Vijay Kumar of Team TVS till a midfield collision between the two TVS riders allowed Yogesh Barguje to move into second place. There was no catching Yogesh however and he won with time to spare.

    The next race was for Class 8 – Indian Experts above 110 c upto 250 cc. This was a fairly steady race and Bharat Kadam riding a Yamaha 250 F drove a good, steady race to win comfortably over Abhijit Jadhav.

    The race for Class 5, Indian Experts above 80 cc upto 110 cc was next. C. D. Jinan of Team TVS shot into the lead. However a major spill into the 2nd lap involving some of the leaders, led to Jinan surrendering his lead to V. Lokesh. However, Shivkumar began piling on the pressure and son moved into the lead and eventually winning with some smart and effective riding.

    Rustom Patel of Team TVS Racing dominated the Class 3 for Indian Experts winning with ease. B. V. Suresh and Sayed Zubair of Team TVS came second and third respectively.

    ShivaKumar came back to win the Class 6, Indian Experts, race for bikes above 110cc upto 180 cc. Driving with aplomb, he ensured that he didn’t lose his lead to either Jinan or Shridhar and emerged victorious. This was his second victory for the afternoon.

    Chennaites came to their feet to cheer the local class. Anandkumar drove a good race to win.

  • Philippos-Naik win maiden Overall title at Nashik

    Nashik, 4 July 2004: Talented Philippos Mathai and co-driver Ashwin Naik won the MAK Nashik Rally, the opening round of MAI Indian National Rally Championship (INRC), sponsored by Gulf Oil, which concluded here at the Rajiv Gandhi Bhavan on Sunday.

    The Nashik Rally is the season opener of Motorsports Association of India’s (MAI) ambitious 8-round calendar for 2004. The rally fraternity will move to Bangalore for the second round K1000 in August.

    Strong contender Jiby Maliakkal and co-driver Nikhil Pai, who won the final rally last year in Pune, fell into 37-second arrears on Saturday night and made an aggressive attempt to cut the gap but could make only 22 seconds and ended up second overall.

    Thus Philippos Mathai and Ashwin Naik bagged their maiden overall title. The Maliakkal and Pai duo, who lost crucial time when their 1600cc Honda City V-Tec went off the road. The duo finished 15 seconds behind clocking one hour 31minutes and 18 seconds. The duo of Mathai and Naik also won the 1400cc title. Arjun Rao Aroor and experienced CK Chinappa came second in the 1400cc class while Sandeep Sharma and co-driver Kulbir Singh Dhaliwal were third.

    The Rally Star Cup was won by Zohrab Zorabian and co-driver Rayomand Banajee ahead of Amith Kumar and co-driver Amith Anand. Rajesh Gadakh and co-driver Paritosh Kohok finished third.

    The results (provisional):

    Overall: 1. Phillipos Mathai/Ashwin Naik 1:31.18; 2. Jiby Maliakkal/Nikhil Pai (Team Chettinad) 1:31.33; 3. R. Karthikeyan/G. Satish 1:31.42.

    1400cc category: 1. Phillipos Mathai/Ashwin Naik 1:31.18; 2. Arjunrao Aroor/CK Chinappa (Methods) 1:32.40; 3. Sandeep Sharma/Kulbirsingh Dhaliwal 1:35.12.

    Rally Star Cup: 1. Sohrab Zorabian/Rayo Banerjee 1:38.16; 2. Amith Kumar/Amith Anand 1:40.07; 3. Rajesh Gadakh/Paritosh Kohok 1:44.57.

    Note: This article is manually migrated from the archives of old website.

  • TVS Racing Victorious At Speed Run 2004: Drag races

    Mumbai, 28 March 2004: MS Ravindra of TVS Racing, sets a new record as the fastest Indian Rider!!

    He was on a group B* TVS Shaolin and covered a distance of 400mts in 13.19 sec (record time), achieving top speed of 146+ km/h.

    It was a memorable day at the ‘Drag meet’ where combination of sheer engine power and lightest payload (machine + Rider wt) was at competition. The event was organised by ‘AUTOCAR’ sports magazine.
    We had considerably reduced the chassis weight by using rear frame parts (stay, seat support etc) made in aluminum, the engine was a specially tuned TVS Shaolin where the porting, carburation and exhaust complimented each other to bring out this record performance.

    *Group B: All Solo two wheelers manufactured / assembled in India, homologated with FMSCI but modified within the framework of the regulations. The frame can be lightened, porting can be done exhaust chamber can be used etc. but all modifications must be carried out in India.

    Syed Rehman of TVS Racing, did longest wheelie** !
    He covered 200 mts on one wheel, the next rider could cover only 85 mts.
    **Wheelie: is riding the two wheeler with front wheel lifted in air, this requires considerable amount of practice and skill on the part of the rider.

  • Vijay Kumar of TVS Racing excels, awarded ‘Best Rider of the Day’

    Chandigarh, 29 Feb 2004: TVS Racing dominated the first round of the MRF National Motocross Championship held in Chandigarh by winning 5 out of 6 championship races. Ace rider and reigning national motocross champion C. Vijay Kumar of TVS Racing showed his mettle by sealing top positions in both the events he participated. His daredevil skill of speed and courage earned him the ‘Best Rider of the day’ title instituted by the organisers. The crowd was in all cheers for this wonder boy as he enthralled them with his jumps in great dexterity and speed.

    The bright and sunny morning at Chandigarh began with the Moto 1 of the prestigious Group A Experts Foreign Class upto 250 CC where C. Vijay Kumar leaped into lead followed closely by his counterpart H.K. Pradeep. As the race progressed both Pradeep and Yamaha’s leading rider Yogesh Barguje had a fall putting them out of contention. T. K. Vishwanath of Yamaha went ahead past other riders except Vijay Kumar of TVS Racing who had by then consolidated his initial lead and in the end took the top position with ease. It was however interesting to note that Syed Rehman of TVS Racing, who was way behind caught in a tangle, surged past top 10 riders to take the third position.

    The day also ended with the Moto 2, which turned out to be a total entertainer. Three Yamaha riders shot into lead initially and it took a while for the TVS Racers to get out of a tangle they got into. Once Vijay kumar of TVS Racing, who was behind by almost a lap behind, got his coast cleared took on the riders ahead of him with ease. Though he managed to reach only a close second he was by then assured winner in the class with 37 points. Syed Eathasham of Yamaha racing who shot to a good lead managed to guard his position to come first in the second moto.

    Following this TVS Racing team continued to dominate leaving no stone unturned for Yamaha to take the limelight. The Group B Indian Experts upto 150 CC was easily won by C. Vijay Kumar who was leading right through. It was however, interesting to note how Syed Rehman of TVS Racing, who once again, surged from behind beating all the riders including the Syed Eathasham of Yamaha racing at the last crossing towards the finish line to become second.

    Another surprise winner of the day was the experienced C. D. Jinan of TVS Racing who took the top honours in the Group D upto 180 CC riding TVS Fiero F2. He took a formidable lead right at the beginning and maintained his pace leaving only his team mate H. K. Pradeep to offer some resistance. The only class which Yamaha Racing took number one position was the Class D Indian Experts upto 110 CC where Shivkumar of Yamaha emerged winner. Here again Syed Rehman was not too far behind him at the finish line. The second and third position in this class was sealed by TVS Racing. The novice class also saw TVS Racing taking the top honors.

    Thrilled by his win, C. Vijay Kumar of TVS Racing said “This was indeed a short and challenging track and I had told myself at the beginning come what may I must bring glory to my team. It required me to put in extra effort of staying there till the end with high speeds especially at the curves and in the end it paid off.”

    Results
    MRF NATIONAL MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 1 – CHANDIGARH
    1. Indian Experts Foreign Open – Group A upto 250 CC.
    MOTO 1
    Sl . No Rider Team Motorcycle
    1 C. Vijay Kumar TVS RACING TVS 250 X
    2 T. K. Vishwanath Yamaha Racing YZ 250 F
    3 Syed Rehman TVS Racing TVS 250 X

    MOTO 2
    Sl . No Rider Team Motorcycle
    1 Syed Eathasham Yamaha Racing YZ 250 F
    2 C. Vijay Kumar TVS Racing TVS 250 X
    3 T.K.Vishwanath Yamaha Racing YZ 250 F
    OVERALL WINNER – C. Vijay Kumar of TVS Racing with 37 points

    2. Indian Experts Group B Above 80 CC upto 150 CC
    Sl . No Rider Team Motorcycle
    1 C. Vijay Kumar TVS Racing Shaolin
    2 Syed Rehman TVS Racing Shaolin
    3 Syed Eathasham Yamaha Racing RX 135

    3. Indian Experts Group B 110 CC upto 250 CC
    Sl . No Rider Team Motorcycle
    1 B. V. Suresh TVS Racing Fiero
    2 Rustom Patel TVS Racing Fiero
    3 Chandan K. P TVS Racing Fiero

    4. Indian Experts Group D 110 CC upto 180 CC
    Sl . No Rider Team Motorcycle
    1 C. D. Jinan TVS Racing TVS Fiero F2
    2 Pradeep H.K TVS Racing TVS Fiero
    3 Shivkumar Yamaha Racing YBX Yamaha

    5. Indian Experts Group D 80CC upto 110 CC
    Sl . No Rider Team Motorcycle
    1 Shivkumar Yamaha Racing Crux
    2 Syed Rehman TVS Racing TVS Victor
    3 C. D. Jinan TVS Racing TVS Victor

    6. Indian Novice Group D Above 80 CC upto 150 CC
    Sl . No Rider Team Motorcycle
    1 Chandan K. P TVS Racing TVS Shogun
    2 Wasim Khan Yamaha Racing RX 135
    3 Deepak John TVS Racing TVS Shogun

    Non-Championship events
    The local class was one by Jeevan Jeet Singh of Chandigarh. The intermediate class A stroke 2/4 upto 250 CC / 400 CC was won by Rey Dhillion

  • Karamjit wins Pune leg by loses APRC title by a point

    Pune, 7 Dec 2003: Karamjit Singh of Malaysia won the MRF India rally with a stunning drive on a difficult terrain on the western outskirts of Pune, steering his Group A Proton to a creditable victory but failed to retain his FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship title, losing by just a point to Armin Kremer, here on Sunday.

    INRC Winners – Jiby & Nikhil

    Meanwhile, it was Jiby Maliakkal and co-driver Nikhil Pai, who clinched the honours in the Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) bringing home their Honda City VTec to a comfortable win in the 1600cc class. The INRC was held concurrently with the APRC round here in Pune. Mysore driver Lohit Urs and co-driver Musa Sherif won the 1400cc class.

    Tactical Kremer gains

    Coming back to APRC, German Armin Kremer not only won the the overall honours for the year but also took home the Production Class victory for the year 2003 by finishing 2nd overall in the final leg in Pune. Behind the wheel of a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 7, Kremer won the title on his MRF tyres-backed Mitsubhishi by garnering seven super rally points for his drive here, which proved crucial in the end.

    Before the start of the APRC final round here, four drivers were competing with a chance to win the championship. Kiwi driver Geoff Argyle was on table top with 45 points followed by Kremer on 43 and, Japan’s Fumio Nutahara was third another six points behind Kremer on 37. Defending APRC champion, Malaysian Karamjit Singh had only 34 points but still had a fair chance of clinching the title again with a maximum of 19 points on offer in the last leg in Pune. However, as one would have it, despite taking the Overall victory here, Karamjit missed a chance to retain the title by a point as Kremer managed 7 super rally points to seal the championship.

    Kremer was leading overnight after a good run in the first leg while Karamjit lost about 90 seconds due to a puncture and the three super rally points stood Kremer in good stead with Singh getting only two, which in the end proved costly for the Malaysian.

    Despite winning the next two legs and the points, Karamjit Singh had to rue the point he lost in the first leg. He increased the lead to 2 minutes 22 seconds but Kremer was cool enough to guard his second place in the last two legs, thus winning the championship.

    Italian Nico Caldarola was third in a Mitsubishi Lancer 7 and MRF team-mate of Kremer, David Doppelrieter was fourth.

    Geof Argyle had issues all the day as he had problems with shock absorber before overheating and punctures ruined his chances and he ended up at 6th place by the end of Day 1. But he still had a chance on the following days for the other legs as his contender for the championship Fumio Nutahara crashed out with a suspension issue. His team-mate Katsu Taguchi also pulled out with bad gearbox.

    Playig a tactical game and a second place enough for the championship, Kremer took it easy in the second leg and let the Malaysian Karamjit pull up a gap in the lead and was content protecting his second place. “I know I just had to come second. But I have to finish and take the second place for the bonus point for the day which is very crucial. It meant I couldn’t back-off. With the rough conditions it was difficult to know the right pace,” said Kremer. But the way he drove, Kremer judged well during all the stages on the final day. And, he finally made it by just a point.

    “I’m very happy to take the overall win because we came here looking for the Group N title for this year. So this is fantastic. This is a wonderful championship with so many countries, conditions and cultures. For European drivers it is such a good experience to have so many events with gravel and they are all so different. It is over and we now we think about next year,” concluded the champion from Germany.

    Karamjit Singh said: “I am happy to win in India as this country is very special to me. But it is a bit frustrating to lose the championship by a point.”

  • Karandip-Jaidas win Movva K1000 Rally; Naren-Ram clinch National Championship

    Bangalore, 17 Nov 2003: Team MRF’s Chandigarh-based Karandip Singh teamed up with Jaidas Menon, his long-time navigator from Bangalore to finally notch up his first triumph in nearly two years winning the overall class in the Movva Rally de Bangalore, the sixth and penultimate round of MAI Indian National Rally Championship, on Sunday.

    Driving a Honda City V-Tec, Karandip, whose last success in a National Championship event was in 2001 when he won the Karnataka-1000, saw off a late challenge from reigning National champion and team-mate VR Naren Kumar and co-driver D Ramkumar to emerge a convincing winner.

    “It certainly is a nice feeling, and I am happy that I finally broke my jinx by winning here. It has been a frustrating season, as I could not capitalise on winning positions at Chikmagalur, Nashik and Chandigarh rallies. Today, I was not very comfortable on the first two Special Stages, but thereafter, I stepped up the pace,” said the modest Karandip, the National champion in Group N (unmodified) class back in 2000.

    Meanwhile, Naren Kumar confirmed his third National Championship title with a round to spare by finishing third behind Karandip and Arjun Balu (co-driver Kumar Ramaswamy), also of Team MRF.

    The third place finish was sufficient for the 29-year old from Coimbatore to clinch the National title with a tally of 68 points with just one more round of the INRC to be gone through in Pune (December 5-7). He has aggregated 68 points to Balu’s 47 and Karandip’s 44. The maximum number of points on offer in an INRC event is 16 (10 for win and three each for the two legs).

    “It is a great relief to have the National championship race behind me. And I now look forward to a more relaxed approach for the final round at Pune next month. Yes, it certainly is a great feeling, but I would have loved to have clinched the championship by winning here in Bangalore rather than finish third,” said Naren.

    Trailing by 53 seconds overnight to Karandip, Naren stepped up the pace today and made up 58 seconds before suffering a puncture on the penultimate Special Stage that cost him about 20 seconds as he slid from second to third position.

    Though Naren had finished fifth on Saturday at the end of Leg One, he was elevated to second spot after team-mates N Leelakrishnan (Farooq Ahmed), Arjun Balu and Vikram Mathias (Sujith Kumar) conceded road penalty of 20 seconds apiece.

    Meanwhile, in a strange turn of events, the 1400cc class saw none of the three contenders finishing the event, but picking up Leg points. Under the circumstances, Lohit V Urs (co-driver M K Bopanna) and Rahul Kantharaj (co-driver Vivek Bhat) found themselves on level terms with 44 points apiece while the third contender, Karthikeyan R (co-driver Sathish G), also could not complete the event due to mechanical failure, and remained on 38 points.

    Ranjit Ballal and co-driver Shanmuga SN, who had won the Rally Star Cup category, were subsequently excluded following post-event scrutiny.

    Final unaudited Classifications (after Leg 2):

    INRC 1600cc: Team MRF (Karandip Singh/Jaidas Menon) 1 (1 hr, 29 mins, 13 secs); Team MRF (Arjun Balu/Kumar Ramaswamy) 2 (1:29:50); Team MRF (V R Naren Kumar/D Ramkumar) 3 (1:30:10); Team MRF (N Leelakrishnan/Farooq Ahmed) 4 (1:30:25); Team MRF (Vikram Mathias/Sujith Kumar) 5 (1:30:34); Jiby Maliakkal/Nikhil Pai 6 (1:32:24).

    INRC 1400cc: No finishers.

    Rally Star Cup: Ram Prashanth/Thiru Murthy 1 (1:30:51); Prithveen Rajan/PVS Murthi 2 (1:32:30); Arun Kumar/Lohit Anand 3 (1:33:0); Arjun Rao Aroor/Ashwin Naik 4 (1:35:08); Anitha Kholay/Rashmi Bopanna 5 (1:50:52).

  • Arjun Balu-Kumar Ramaswamy win Rally de Goa; MRF cars missing

    Panaji (Goa), 2 Nov 2003: Talented Ajrun Balu and co-driver Kumar Ramaswamy, the Coimbatore duo of Team MRF, steered their Honda City V-Tec, to an emphatic overall win as they bagged Rally de Goa, the fifth round of the MAI-Indian National Rally Championship, which concluded in here on Sunday.

    With this win Arjun Balu moved to the second spot on the leadership table behind Naren Kumar, who did not rally here. Other top drivers could not take part as four MRF cars did not arrive at the venue on time for scrutiny and rally. However, Naren Kumar and Ramkumar still enjoy a 28-point lead with two more rounds left in the championship. Karandip Singh and Jaidas Menon, also of MRF, are in third place.

    They enjoyed a huge lead of over four minutes to second-placed R Karthikeyan and co-driver G Satish who steered a Maruti Esteem. In the process, Karthikeyan and Satish won the INRC 1400cc category, followed by Rahul Kantharaj and Vivek Bhatt of Team Movva in second.

    But for a simple mistake, Gulf Oil-sponsored pair of Jiby Maliakkal and co-driver Nikhil Pai would have put their Honda City on the podium. But they had to be content with fourth overall after they lost considerable amount of time due an off-road excursion on Saturday. However, they tried, Jiby could not make up the deficit on Sunday and ended fourth in the eight-car field. All 8 finished the rally.

    “It was nice to win my first event since the India Rally last year, but it would have been more satisfying had my teammates too taken part,” said Balu soon after, spraying champagne over his co-driver at the parc ferme.

    Balu was referring to the absence of reigning National champion VR  Naren Kumar, Karandip Singh, N Leelakrishnan and Vikram Mathias, all of Team MRF, who could not take the start on Saturday as their Honda City cars did not arrive at the venue in time. Nevertheless, Balu had to contend with a problematic clutch that he said considerably cut into his time.

    “On the uphill sections, especially, I was struggling to go quicker, and had my team-mates taken part, I doubt I would have won. But of course, it is still nice to taste success,” said Balu who had led the field overnight by over three minutes.

    The competition in the 1400cc, however, hotted up after today’s results as Kantharaj overtook leader Lohit V Urs who too failed to take the start on Saturday. Kantharaj has 43 points to Lohit’s 40, while Karthikeyan is within striking distance of the two front-runners with a tally of 39 points.

    Meanwhile, the collegian from Manipal, Arjun Rao Aroor and co-driver Musa Sherif comfortably won the Rally Star Cup category, 49 seconds in front of Prithveen, a post-graduate student from Chennai, and co-driver PVS Murthy.

    Provisional final classifications: INRC Overall: 1. Arjun Balu/Kumar Ramaswamy (Team MRF)  (1 hr, 14 mins, 25 secs); 2. R Karthikeyan/G Sathish (1:19:02); 3. Rahul Kantharaj/Vivek Bhatt (Team Movva) (1:19:08); 4. Jiby Maliakkal/Nikhil Pai (Team Gulf Oil) (1:28:45).

    INRC 1400cc: 1. Karthikeyan/Sathish; 2. Rahul Kantharaj/ Vivek Bhatt.

    Rally Star Cup: 1. Arjun Rao Aroor/Musa Sherif (Team Mandovi) 1 (1:19:23); 2. Prithveen/PVS Murthy (1:20:12); 3. Ranjith Ballal/Shanmuga (1:22:10);4.  S Ram Prasanth/Thiru Murthy 4 (1:22:15).