INDIA in F1

Category: Non-F1

  • Third round motorcycle Nationals postponed

    Chennai, 7 Aug 2018: As a mark of respect for former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Kalaignar Karunanidhi who passed away here today, the Madras Motor Sports Club has postponed the third round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship scheduled for August 10-12.

    Fresh dates will be announced shortly.

    The Madras Motor Sports Club has condoled the passing away of the stalwart Dravidian leader Karunanidhi.

  • Gaurav Gill-Musa Sherif notch up a comfortable win

    Coimbatore, 5 August 2018: Indian speed king Gaurav Gill, along with his trusted co-driver Musa Sherif, romped home to a thumping victory in the Rally of Coimbatore, the second round of the Indian national Rally Championship (INRC) as he swept all the special stages winning with ease at the Kethanur windmill farms here on Sunday. He clocked 1:14:30.1 to complete the five Special Stages and won with a clean margin of 1 min 1.1 second.

    His teammate Amittrajit (with co-driver Ashwin Naik) has to be content with the second place all through the rally as he appeared to be no match to the leader, but managed to keep his second position. He was off the pace with Gill trailing by 10 to 15 seconds all along and was no threat to Gill at any stage.

    The President of the Federation, Akbar Ebrahim claimed the third position in the INRC 1 category, reminding fans and drivers that he has not lost his touch even after nearly 25 years of active rallying.

    The 2016 INRC champion, Karna Kadur and co-driver Nikhil V Pai, had to settle for the overall third position as all his efforts to upstage the leaders proved to futile. He managed to claim the INRC 2 category though, making it a 1-2 for Team Arka Motorsports.

    His teammate Rahul Kanthraj along with co-driver Vivek Y Bhatt took the second place while Phalghuna Urs and Srikanth Gowda of Snap Racing claimed the third place.

    The INRC 3 category too didn’t see any change on the leaderboard with Aroor Vikram Rao and co-driver Anand Somayya of Falkon Motorsports taking a facile win.

    Suhem Kabeer and co-driver Jeevarathinam of Team Champions finished second relegating Chetan Shivram and co-driver Rupesh Kholay to the third position on the podium.

    Results:

    INRC: 1. Gaurav Gill/Musa Sherif (Team Mahindra Adventure; 01:14:30.1); 2. Amittrajit Ghosh/Ashwin Naik (Team Mahindra Adventure; 01:15:31.2); 3. Karna Kadur/Nikhil V Pai (Arka Motorsports; 01:16:24.8).

    INRC 2: 1. Karna Kadur/Nikhil V Pai; 2. Rahul Kanthraj/Vivek Y Bhatt (Arka Motorsports; 01:17:36.9); 3. Phalghuna Urs/Srikanth Gowda; Snap Racing; 01:17:40.7).

    INRC 3: 1. Aroor Vikram Rao/Anand Somayya (Falkon Motorsports; 01:17:11.8); 2. Suhem Kabeer/Jeevarathinam (Team Champions; 01:17:48.8); 3. Chetan Shivram/Rupesh Kholay (01:17:58.4)

    FMSCI 2WD: 1. Adith KC/Suraj K; 2. Suraj Thomas/Sob George; 3. Lokesh Gowda V | Venu Ramesh Kumar.

    eom/david

  • Rajiv Sethu finishes 13th; Anish Shetty crashes out in AP 250cc outing

      • Aussie ace Anthony West triumphs in SuperSport 600cc race

    Chennai, August 08: Veteran Australian Anthony West plotted his way to a brilliant victory, his third in the premier SuperSport 600cc this season to consolidate his top position on FIM Asia Road Racing Championship leaderboard at the MMRT, here on Saturday.

    The 37-year old with a decade’s experience in the World Championship behind him, rode a waiting race over 16 laps on his Yamaha, content to lie in third position after dropping two spots from his pole position start. West, who earlier in the day set a record for fastest qualifying lap of 01:40.585 for pole position, made his move with about two laps from the finish to take the flag ahead of Malaysian Md Zaqhwan Zaidi and 19-year old rising Japanese star Taiga Hada who was representing the Idemitsu Honda Racing India team.

    The Idemitsu Honda Racing India team had another reason to cheer as their rider in the Asia Production 250cc class, Rajiv Sethu, 20, finished 13th in a grid of 24 for his first points this season. However, compatriot and team-mate Anish Shetty, 20, crashed in the eighth of the 12-lap race that Indonesia’s Rheza Danica Ahrens won for his fifth consecutive success in this category.

    In a thrilling finish in the Underbone 150cc race, Ahmed Fazli Sham led a 1-2 for Malaysia as he snatched a dramatic, last-gasp win over Md Helmi Azman with Thailand’s Peerapong Luiboonpeng completing the podium.

    The spotlight no doubt was on the SuperSport 600cc race that boasted of a quality grid with a mix of World championship riders and young guns, but ultimately, it was West’s craftiness and cool that won the day in tricky conditions due to light showers in some sections of the track

    “It was a very difficult race. It took me a few laps to get used to the conditions due to the drizzle before we started. But as the race progressed, I was able to generate more power and then took my opportunities to pass the riders in front,” said West after the victory on his first visit to MMRT.

    Earlier, in the Asia Production 250cc race, Shetty crashed in the eighth lap when he high-sided. “There was an issue regarding the suspension and also my being too aggressive on the throttle which led to the crash. I damaged the left toe which is swollen, but I should be fine for tomorrow’s second race,” said Shetty who is in his maiden ARRC season.

    Sethu said: “I had a bad start, but I gave my best, but other riders too were aggressive and better. However, today, I clocked my best ever time (01:50.555) on this track. Hopefully, I will perform better tomorrow.”

    The other two races scheduled for the day – the Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup (CBR 250) organised by MMSC and TVS One-Make Championship (Apache RR310) – could not be run today following a heavy downpour soon after the 600cc race.

    The results (Provisional):

    SuperSport 600 (Race-1, 16 laps): 1. Anthony West (Australia, Webike Ikazuchi, Yamaha) (27mins, 35.304secs); 2. Md Zaqhwan Zaidi (Malaysia, Musashi Boon Siew Honda) (27:35.629); 3. Taiga Hada (Japan, Idemitsu Honda Racing India) (27:36.885).

    Asia Production 250 (Race-1, 12 laps): 1. Rheza Danica Ahrens (Indonesia, Astra Honda) (21:53.4); 2. Mario Suryo Aji (Indonesia, Astra Honda) (21:53.5); 3. Reynaldo Chrisantho (Indonesia, ONEXOX TKK Yamaha) (22:01.9).

    Underbone 150 (Race-1, 10 laps): 1. Ahmed Fazli Sham (Onexox TKKR Racing Team, Malaysia) (19:02.205); 2. Md. Helmi Azman (SCK Rapido Hi Rev Honda Racing team, Malaysia) (19:02.460); 3. Peerapong Luiboonpeng (Team One For All, Thailand) (19:02.502).

  • Zaqhwan Zaidi quickest rider on Friday: ARRC Practice

    Zaqhwan Zaidi quickest rider on Friday: ARRC Practice

    Md Zaqhwan Zaidi (Malaysia), quickest in the SuperSport 600cc class on Friday.

    Chennai, 3 Aug 2018: A long stint racing astride the 1000cc machine has obviously not affected Malaysian rider Mohd Zaqhwan Zaidi’s ability to finesse the 600cc bike. Fresh from a stint in the prestigious Suzuka 8-Hour Endurance Race, the Musashi Boon Siew Honda Racing rider charged on to Chennai, India, where the Madras Motor Race Track played host to Round 4 of the 2018 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship here on Friday.

    After the first day of free practices, Zaqhwan led a mixed bag of competitors by posting the fastest time of 1’41.306s. Just off Zaqhwan’s pace, championship leader Anthony West clocked second fastest with 1’41.388s in his first official run on the 3.74km race track.

    The most impressive rider of the day was team Musashi Boon Siew Honda Racing rookie Azroy Hakeem Anuar. Azroy, who has been recording increasingly impressive performances in each successive round of the ARRC, stands third fastest with 1’41.677s. Yamaha Thailand Racing Team rider Ratthapong Wilairot and Taiga Hada representing home team Idemitsu Honda Racing India by T.Pro Ten10, rounded up the top five. Defending champion Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman continues to struggle with balance issues and just managed to clock within the top 10.

    FREE PRACTICE: TOP 5 OVERALL

    1. Zaqhwan Zaidi MAS Honda 1’41.306s;
    2. Anthony West AUS Yamaha 1’41.388s;
    3. Azroy Hakeem Anuar MAS Honda 1’41.677s;
    4. Ratthapong Wilairot THA Yamaha 1’41.828s;
    5. Taiga Hada JPN Honda 1’41.838s;

    ASIA PRODUCTION 250cc: DOUBLE 4-HR CHAMP ANUPAB OUT TO END RHEZA’S DOMINATION

    Anupab Sarmoon’s recent success at the 41st Suzuka 4 Hour Endurance Road Race has given the Yamaha Thailand Racing Team rider the additional impetus he needed to try to bring an end to Rheza Danica Ahren’s domination in the Asia Production 250cc class.

    Just a week ago, Anupab successfully defended his Suzuka 4 Hour title with the help of his team mate, Peerapong Boonlert. As the AP250 riders went out on track for the first day of practice in Round 4, Anupab has been able to equal speedy Rheza’s pace at the top of the timesheets. Although the Astra Honda Racing Team rider emerged as the fastest rider of the day with 1’48.030s, Anupab was able to lap within the same parameters, coming home second fastest with 1’48.252s.

    With the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship now entering the second half of its 2018 season, Anupab, currently third overall in the AP250 standings, is under pressure to bring home more podium finishes and race wins. As Rheza took the win in round after round, Anupab’s last victory was taken in Round 1, and he has only managed two podium finishes so far.

    As always, Anupab will be facing a field of top Indonesian aces in the AP250 class. The Astra Honda Racing Team’s latest wonderkid, Mario Suryo Aji, posted third fastest with 1’48.775. Rey Ratukore, ONEXOX TKKR Racing Team’s latest recruit, was fourth fastest with 1’48.853s. Andy Muhammad Fadly from Manual Tech KYT Kawasaki Racing, ended the free practices fifth fastest with 1’49.510s

    FREE PRACTICE: TOP 5 OVERALL

    1. Rheza Danica Ahrens INA Honda 1’48.030s
    2. Anupab Sarmoon THA Yamaha 1’48.252s
    3. Mario Suryo Aji INA Honda 1’48.775s
    4. Rey Ratukore INA Yamaha 1’48.853s
    5. Andy Md Fadly INA Kawasaki 1’49.510s

    UNDERBONE 150cc: RECORD BREAKING DAY IN THE UNDERBONE CLASS

    The Underbone 150cc riders kicked off a record-breaking day as Round 4 of the 2018 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship officially got underway at the Madras Motor Race Track in Chennai, India. With most of the

    Underbone riders having had some experience at the challenging South Indian race track, the class is now competing on a whole different level.

    At the end of Free Practice 2, the top seven riders in the class have managed to break the 2017 1’53.944s lap record held by Mohd Akid Aziz. As of Practice 2, SCK Rapido Hi Rev Honda Racing Team duo Mohd Helmi Azman and Fakhrusy Syakirin Rostam have emerged as the provisional leaders of the class, clocking 1’53.169s and 1’53.178s respectively.

    Defending champion Mohd Akid Aziz was third fastest with 1’53.225s followed by Mohd Adib Rosley from the YY Pang camp. Filipino wonderkid, McKinley Kyle Paz, again riding wildcard for the UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor Asia Team was impressive on his first run out on the Madras Motor Race Track. He posted fifth in the class with 1’54.252s.

    However, Akid came out with guns blazing in the 30-minute qualifying session. The UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor Asia Team rider beat his own fastest time by two whole seconds and clocked the fastest time in the class with 1’51.970s. Half a second off Akid’s pace, SCK Rapido Hi Rev Honda Racing Team duo Mohd Helmi Azman and Fakhrusy Syakirin Rostam logged the second and third fastest times with 1’52.524 and 1’53.325s respectively.

    QUALIFYING: TOP 5 OVERALL

    1. Mohd Akid Aziz MAS Yamaha 1’51.970s
    2. Mohd Helmi Azman MAS Honda 1’52.524s
    3. Fakhrusy Syakirin MAS Honda 1’53.325s
    4. Mohd Affendi Rosli MAS Yamaha 1’53.387s
    5. Mohd Adib Rosley MAS Yamaha 1’53.795s

    eom/db

  • Indians Rajiv Sethu, Anish Shetty aim to finish in top-10: ARRC

    Indians Rajiv Sethu, Anish Shetty aim to finish in top-10: ARRC

    Anish Shetty in action in the AP250cc Practice I at the MMRT on Friday. Photos by Anand Philar

    Chennai, 3 Aug 2018: Home riders, Chennai’s Rajiv Sethu and Bengaluru-based Anish Damodara Shetty, enjoyed a fairly satisfactory outings during the three practice sessions but with plenty of scope for improvement as the fourth round of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship got underway at the MMRT, here on Friday.

    Competing in the Asia Production 250cc class, the Idemitsu Honda Racing India team-mates Sethu, 20, and Shetty,23, though off the pace by about three seconds, did generate hopes of strong results over the next two days when they go through the qualifying session followed by two races.

    Shetty, in his debut season in the championship, was quicker than Sethu in two of the three sessions with a best of 01:51.2, while the Chennai youngster finished the day clocking 01:51.5.

    Sethu, who is still seeking his first points this season, said: “The three practice sessions went quite ok, though I still need to pull out better timings tomorrow for the qualifying. I had a good second session and my immediate goal for this weekend is to try and finish in top 10.”

    Rajiv Sethu in action in the AP250cc practice session in the Asian Road Racing Cham;ionship that began at MMRT on Friday.

    For Shetty, it has been a case of hitting the ground running and still managed to earn two points in the second round in Australia. “It has been a steep learning curve for me. There has been so much to learn in such a short time! I have never ridden such a powerful bike which is much more powerful than the Honda CBR 250 which I ride in the National championship. The AP 250s are twin cylinder machines and much quicker than the CBR250,” said the techie from Bengaluru.

    On his practice sessions today, Shetty said: “I had some issues with the suspension early on, but after some changes, I had a good second session when I posted my best timing for today of 1:51 (one minute, 51.2 seconds). We made some changes ahead of the third session and I had to get used to them. For tomorrow, I hope I can go quicker.

    The quickest rider in the AP 250cc class was championship leader Rheza Danica Ahrens (Indonesia), winner of four the six races over three rounds so far and whose best over three sessions was a 01:48.03.

    Meanwhile, the premier SuperSport 600cc class dished out exciting action with promise of more to come over the next two days. Twice champion (2014 and 2016) Md Zaqhwan Zaidi, the 23-year old Malaysian, posted the quickest timing of the day with a blistering 01:41.306 on his Honda, ahead of championship leader Anthony West (Australia), riding the Yamaha at the MMRT for the first time, who posted his best lap of 01:41.388.

    In the other practice sessions, Aravind Balasubramaniam topped the time sheets in the Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup organised by MMSC (CBR250), clocking 02:02.205, while Yashas RL was the quickest in the TVS RR310 One-Make Championship with 02:02.4.

    Malaysian Md Akid Aziz on a Yamaha took the top spot in the Underbone 150 qualifying with a 01:51.970.

    eom/db

  • World-class action in store as Asia Road Racing Championship returns to MMRT

    World-class action in store as Asia Road Racing Championship returns to MMRT

    File photo of super sport 600cc race of 2017 at MMRT. Photo by Anand Philar

    Chennai, 1 August 2018: A refurbished Madras Motor Race Track is all set for some top-drawer action as it hosts the fourth round of FIM Asia Road Racing Championship commencing Friday, showcasing the cream of two-wheeler racing talent in the region and who are expected to set the circuit alight as in the past with riding skills and dare-devilry worth going miles to watch.

    A bunch of seasoned campaigners who are no strangers to the MMRT besides a clutch of teenagers will be parading their talent over the weekend in SuperSport 600cc, Asia Production 250cc and the Underbone 150cc categories, alongside two support events, the Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup (CBR 250, Open) organised by MMSC and the TVS One-Make Championship (Open, Apache R310).

    MMSC president Ajit Thomas said: “It has been barely 11 months since we last hosted an ARRC round, but during this period, the MMRT has undergone a sea change. A new paddock, with 20 spacious garages, a viewing terrace, VIP hospitality suites to accommodate nearly 400 people, a second paddock on the western side with its own circuit and a drag strip have all sprung up at a cost of about Rs 20 Crore. It is an edifice we all are proud of. Yet, these are just baby steps in our long-term plans to transform MMRT into a truly World-class facility. I am sure, the ARRC family will have a far more comfortable stay at the MMRT this weekend than at any time in the past!”

    Ron Hogg, Director, Two Wheels Motor Racing, the promoters of ARRC, said he was amazed at the new infrastructure made available for this weekend’s races and the progress made by the MMSC. He said he would be happy to see two rounds in India in the future since he felt most comfortable with the professional approach of the MMSC.

    On the track, the spotlight will be on the premier SuperSport 600cc category that has the familiar faces of veterans Anthony West (Australia), Decha Kraisart (Thailand), Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman (Malaysia) and Tomoyoshi Koyama (Japan) apart from a clutch of young, hungry bucks who have been keeping the established stars on their toes.

    Current Championship leader West, who competed in the World Championship for over a decade, and last year’s champion Karmaruzaman, a former Moto2 rider, who trails the Aussie star by 12 points, will no doubt start firm favourites, but as the previous three rounds in Thailand, Australia and Japan suggested, nothing is quite as straightforward. Also in the mix are two Japanese riders, 35-year old Koyama and Keisuke Kurihara, 20, and Yuki Ito, 27, who won Race 2 in Australia.

    From India’s perspective, Chennai’s Rajiv Sethu, 20, and Bengaluru-based Anish Damodara Shetty, 24, will be keenly followed in the Asia Production 250cc category that Indonesian Rheza Danica Ahrens has dominated with four consecutive wins in six races.

    The two Indians are part of the Idemitsu Honda India Racing team along with Japan’s Taiga Hada, 19, who is competing in the 600cc class. Shetty, in his debut ARRC season, managed to pick up two points by finishing 15th in both the races in Australia while Sethu is still in quest for his first points in his second season. Hada is 13th in the 600cc class with 24 points.

    Shetty will also be figuring in the two races of the Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup (CBR 250, Open) organised by MMSC which he leads with 86 points from Coimbatore’s Senthil Kumar (63), both having won two races apiece in the previous two rounds.

    The TVS One-Make Championship (Open) has also been very competitive with four races thus far over two rounds throwing up different winners. The top three riders – Chennai duo Deepak Ravikumar (70) and Vivek Pillai (61), and Bengaluru’s Yashas RL (58) – are involved in a three-way battle with Hyderabad’s Peddu Sriharsha (46) and Amarnath K Menon (45) from Kozhikode not far behind.

    Malaysian brave-hearts Md Helmi Azman (94) and Md Izzat Zaidi (93) are locked in a fierce battle in the Underbone 150cc category which attracts the most number of entries and dishes out nail-biting finishes.

    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 endeavour to provide more opportunities for competitors and to this end, it has chalked out a progressive program for 2017. 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.

  • Harith Noah claims INRC 2w victory after a tie: Rally of Coimbatore

    Harith Noah claims INRC 2w victory after a tie: Rally of Coimbatore

    Coimbatore, 30 July 2018: Harith Noah of Team TVS riding a TVS RTR 450 motorcycle, had tie with Abdul Wahid of the same team, clocking 47 minutes and 33 seconds. Applying the tie breaker rule, Harith Noah who had clocked the fastest time in the first stage was declared the overall winner of the MRF Rally of Coimbatore, the fifth round of the MRF MoGrip FMSCI National Rally Championship for two-wheelers, here on Sunday.

    “The route was very challenging and I enjoyed riding the stages,” said Shoranur based winner Harith Noah. “This is one of the best event I haven taken part“, he added.

    He clocked 47 min, 33 seconds to complete the challenging Special Stages set around the wind farms near the Kethanur (Palladam) area.

    The total distance of the route was approximately 111.11 kms, with the total distance of the Special Stages approximately 56 kms. This time around, unlike last year, there were two Special Stages – the Black Thunder Stage (14.85 km) and the Thunder World Stage (14.45 km).

    R. Nataraj, winner of the opening four rounds, came overall third in a time of 49 minutes and 09 seconds.

    Seventy Four riders took part in the in the rally organised by Coimbatore Auto Sports Club, while Local lad K. Sasikumar won the Star of Tamil Nadu category exclusively for riders from Tamil Nadu and was placed overall 14 with a time of 58 minutes and 16 seconds.

    The ceremonial flag off was from Hotel Gokulam Park by R Kanagaraj, MLA, Sulur Constituency on Saturday, 28 July 2018 at 05.00 PM. Ivan Oswald, Regional Sales Manager, MRF Limited was the chief guest for the prize distribution function which was held at the same venue on Sunday, 29 July at 06.30 PM.

    Organisers, CASC would like take this opportunity to thank M/s.MRF Limited and M/s.Godspeed for sponsoring the event as well as the Championship, and look forward to their continued support.

    RESULTS

    OVERALL WINNER

    1st Place Harith Noah (TVS Racing) Shoranur 2nd Place Abdul Wahid (TVS Racing) Mysore 3rd Place R.Nataraj (TVS Racing) Bangalore

    WINNER OF C-1 – Super Bike Pro Expert

    1. Harith Noah (TVS Racing) Shoranur; 2. Abdul Wahid (TVS Racing) Mysore 3. R.Nataraj (TVS Racing) Bangalore

    WINNER OF C-1A – Super Bike Expert

    1. Badal Doshi, Privateer, Mumbai; 2. Jatin Jain Privateer Nagpur 3. Aakash Aital, Privateer, Puttur.

    WINNER OF C-2 – 130 cc

    1. Rakesh Kumar Privateer Bangalore 2. Santhosh Privateer Coimbatore 3. Vignesh Privateer Coimbatore.

    WINNER OF C-3 – 165 cc

    1. J Imran Pasha TVS Racing Mysore 2. V.Thirinesh Privateer Bangalore 3. D. Sachin Privateer Bangalore

    WINNER OF C-4 – 260 cc

    1. R.E. Rajendra TVS Racing Shimoga 2. Samual Jacob Privateer Hosur 3. Jeeva Rathinam Privateer Bangalore

    WINNER OF C-5 – 400 cc

    1. Venu Rameshkumar Privateer Coimbatore

    2. D. Karthikeyan Privateer Coimbatore 3. Prabhu Chandramohan Privateer Trivandram

    WINNER OF C-6 – 550 cc

    1. Sreekanth Komana Privateer Trivandram 2.MR Ranjith Privateer Trissur 3. Abijith Joy Privateer Eranakulam.

    WINNER OF C-7 – Scooter Class

    1. Pinkesh Thakar Aprilla Racing Pune 2. Syed Asif Ali TVS Racing Hosur 3. Syed Zeeshan Privateer Thane

    WINNER OF C-8 – Ladies Class

    1. U Fazeela Privateer Cochin.

    WINNER OF C-9 Star of Tamil Nadu

    1. K Sasikumar Privateer Coimbatore 2. M. Santhosh Privateer Coimbatore 3. Sam Issiah Privateer Coimbatore.

    (Last updated: 21 July 2023)

  • Bengaluru drivers excel at MMRT: National Drag Races

    Chennai, 22 July 2018: Bengaluru drivers enjoyed a successful outing in the first round of the MMSC fmsci Indian National Drag Racing Championship for four-wheelers at the MMRT, here on Sunday with Vivek Ramachandran scoring a double while Chennai’s veteran racer Radha Selvarajan was the quickest in the competition besides topping the Indian Open (altered body) class.

    Vivek Ramachandran topped in the Unrestricted and Indian Open (stock body) classes with fellow-Bengalurean Mithun M in second place in both the categories.

    The results:

    Unrestricted: 1. Vivek Ramachandran (Bengaluru) (13.120secs); 2. Mithun M (Bengaluru) (13.357); 3. Radha Selvarajan (Chennai) (13.528).

    Indian Open (Altered body): 1. Radha Selvarajan (Chennai) (12.693); 2. Jayanth V (Bengaluru) (13.178).

    Indian Open (Stock body): 1. Vivek Ramachandran (Bengaluru) (13.247); 2. Mithun M (Bengaluru) (13.363); 3. Shubhodeep (Bengaluru) (14.621).

    Indian Touring Cars: 1. Kasha Sai (Salem) (16.699).

    Fastest car: Radha Selvarajan (Chennai) (12.693).

  • Sandeep, Arjun score fluent wins; Teenagers Nabil, Sohil top LGB1300

    Sandeep, Arjun score fluent wins; Teenagers Nabil, Sohil top LGB1300

    • Sandeep Kumar, Arjun Narendran score fluent wins
    • Teenagers Nabil Hussain, Sohil Shah top in Formula LGB 1300

    Chennai, July 21: Sandeep Kumar (MRF F1600) and Arjun Narendran (Indian Touring Cars) chalked up impressive victories to grab the spotlight in the third round of MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Racing Championship at the MMRT, here on Saturday.

    Starting from pole position, Sandeep Kumar, 24, from Chennai, won virtually untroubled though he trailed Nirmal Umashankar briefly before moving into the lead midway through the first of the eight-lap race. Nirmal, a 16-year old also from Chennai started second on the grid but was subsequently penalised for a jump-start with a drive-through which he failed to obey leading to a 30-second penalty which placed him 12th and last after a spin at Turn-1. Sandeep barely turned a wheel wrong to emerge a comfortable winner.

    “It was tough at the start as Nirmal got past me when the lights went out. But I took him midway through the first lap itself and after he spun, I had a good lead. The win helped me to earn some big points (25) after my disappointing run in the first round last month when I finished fourth and had two DNFs in the next two races. Tomorrow, we have two more races and I hope to pick up more points,” said Sandeep, a practicing Corporate lawyer.

    Further down the grid, championship leader Ashwin Datta, 19, who had scored a triple in the previous round at Coimbatore, got stuck in the mid-grid bunch and finished a distant seventh in his maiden race at the MMRT while Raghul Rangasamy and Goutham Parekh came in second and third.

    An equally impressive winner was Arjun Narendran (Arka Motorsports), the defending champion in the Indian Touring Cars, as he vanquished seasoned Arjun Balu (Race Concepts) in a battle between two Coimbatore stars. Narendran, after sitting out the earlier two rounds, marked his return with a brilliant drive to beat Balu, who had a double in the previous outing at Coimbatore last month. Finishing behind Narendran and Balu was Bengaluru’s Ashish Ramaswamy (Arka Motorsports) who continues to lead the points table with a tally of 83.

    Bengaluru’s Varun Anekar led a 1-2 finish for Race Concepts team in the Super Stock class with Abhinay Bikkani in tow and K Srinivasa Teja (Performance Racing) completing the podium. Goa’s Chrys D’Souza (Unimek Racing), Vinod Subramaniam from Erode (Team N1) topped the Indian Junior Touring Cars and Esteem Cup category, respectively, and which were run concurrently with the Super Stock class.

    Meanwhile, the Formula LGB 1300 double-header today saw two young guns and MSport team-mates Sohil Shah, 17, a schoolboy from Bengaluru and Chennai collegian Nabil Hussain, 19, winning a race apiece after coming through tight contests. Hussain, thus, consolidated his top position on the leaderboard with 95 points, followed by Shah and Ashwin Datta (Momentum Motorsports), both tied on 83.

    Thane’s Saurav Bandyopadhyay, who started second on the grid, notched his third career win in the Volkswagen Ameo Cup with a measure of comfort after initial fight. Finishing behind him were Anmol Singh Sahil from Ghaziabad and pole-sitter Dhruv Mohite (Kolhapur).

    The results (Provisional – all 8 laps unless mentioned):

    MRF F1600 (Race 1): 1. Sandeep Kumar (Chennai)(13 mins,37.418sec); 2. Raghul Rangasamy (Kancheepuram) (13:40.097); 3. Goutham Parekh (Chennai) (13:40.739).

    Formula LGB 1300 (Race 1): 1. Sohil Shah (MSport) (15:03.149); 2. Ashwin Datta (Momentum Motorsports) (15:06.013);  3. Deepak Ravikumar (DTS Racing) (15:06.469). Race 2 (7 laps): 1. Nabil Hussain (MSport) (13:20.115); 2. Sohil Shah (MSport) (13:20.567); 3. Deepak Ravikumar (DTS Racing) (13:22.308).

    Indian Touring Cars (Race 1): 1. Arjun Narendran (Arka Motorsports) (15:12.873); 2. Arjun Balu (Race Concepts) (15:13.669); 3. Ashish Ramasamy (Arka Motorsports) (15:21.950).

    Indian Junior Touring Cars (Race 1): 1. Chrys D’Souza (Unimek Racing) (17:08.455); 2. Prabhu AS (Arka Motors) (17:42.363).

    Super Stock (Race 1): 1. Varun Anekar (Race Concepts) (15:59.936); 2. Abhinay Bikkani (Race Concepts)(16:06.246); 3. K Srinivas Teja (Performance Racing)(16:20.505).

    Esteem Cup (Race 1): 1. Vinod Subramaniam (Team N1) (16:43.970); 2. Raghul Rangasamy (Performance Racing) (17:03.467); 3. Alisha Abdullah (Infinite Piston) (17:34.220).

    Turbo (Support Race 1): 1. Karthik Tharani (Chennai) (15:26.086); 2. Rayomand Banajee (Mumbai) (15:41.006); 3. Ishaan Dodhiwala (Hyderabad) (15:42.859).

    Volkswagen Ameo Cup (Race 1): 1. Saurav Bandyopadhyay (Thane) (15:49.436); 2. Anmol Singh Sahil (Ghaziabad) (15:54.147): 3. Dhruv Mohite (Kohlapur) (15:54.203).

  • Sandeep Kumar grabs pole in MRF F1600; Arjun Narendran quickest in Indian Touring Cars

    Chennai, 20 July 2018: Local lad Sandeep Kumar, 24, put the hammer down by grabbing pole position in the MRF F1600 class as the third round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Racing Championship commenced at the MMRT, here on Friday.

    Sandeep, a practicing corporate lawyer in Chennai, had finished first runner-up in the MRF F1600 last year, thus missing a ticket to the Mazda Road To Indy shootout, and is determined to go one better this time. “I pushed really hard today, almost to the very limit,” said Sandeep after posting a best lap of one minute, 39.999 seconds around the 3.716 Kms track to set himself up for this weekend’s triple-header.

    Sharing the front row with Sandeep is another Chennai driver, Nirmal Umashanker (01:40.310) ahead of Goa’s Keith D’Souza (01:40.069) while championship leader 19-year old Ashwin Datta who had won all the three races in the previous round in Coimbatore, will start eighth on the grid after posting a best of 01:40.685.

    Meanwhile, defending champion in the premier Indian Touring Cars class, Arjun Narendran (ARKA Motorsports) from Coimbatore, having missed the previous rounds, made an immediate impact on his return to racing by posting pole winning time of 01:52.053, edging veteran Arjun Balu (Race Concepts), also from Coimbatore, who had won both the races in the previous round. Balu, in his first season in five years, clocked 01:52.053 ahead of championship leader Bengaluru’s Ashish Ramaswamy (ARKA Motorsports) who did 01:53.177.

    Pole position winners in other categories were: Nikunj Vagh of Team N1 (Indian Junior Touring Cars) from Mumbai, Varun Anekar of Race Concepts (Super Stock) from Bengaluru and Vinod S of Team N1 (Esteem Cup) from Erode.

    Dhruv Mohite from Kolhapur, leader in the Volkswagen Ameo Cup following his double in Coimbatore round last month, took pole position ahead of Thane’s Saurav Bandyopadhyay and Anmol Singh Sahil from Ghaziabad.

    The results (qualifying):

    MRF F1600: 1. Sandeep Kumar (Chennai) (01min, 39.999secs); 2. Nirmal Umashanker (Chennai) (01:40.045); 3. Keith D’Souza (Goa) (01:40.069).

    Indian Touring Cars: 1. Arjun Narendran (Arka Motorsports) (01:52.053); 2. Arjun Balu (Race Concepts) (01:52.350); 3. Ashish Ramasamy (Arka Motorsports) (01:53.177).

    Indian Junior Touring Cars: 1. Nikunj Vagh (Team N1) (02: 04.493); 2. Chrys D’Souza (Unimek Racing) (02:06.663);3. Prabu AS (Arka Motors) (02:06.684).

    Super Stock: 1. Varun Anekar (Race Concepts) (01:58.143); 2. Abhinay Bikkani (Race Concepts)(01:59.945); 3. K. Srinivasa Teja (Performance Racing) (02:00.026).

    Esteem Cup: 1. S Vinod (Team N1) (02:01.642); 2. Raghul Rangasamy (Performance Racing) (02:02.600); 3. Alisha Abdullah (Infinite Piston) (02:06.878).

    Volkswagen Ameo Cup: 1. Dhruv Mohite (Kohlapur) (01:54.713); 2. Saurav Bandyopadhyay (Thane) (01:55.197); 3. Anmol Singh Sahil (Ghaziabad)(01:55.326).