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Category: Rally
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Champions Yacht Club, KMSC present Sprint de Bengaluru as a prelude to INRC
Bengaluru, 22 March 2019: Champions Yacht Club, the new promoters of the Indian National Rally Championship, presents the two-day Sprint de Bengaluru 2019, a mouth-watering curtain-raiser to the six-round rally calendar of the year. Organised by Karnataka Motor Sports Club (KMSC), the rally will be held at Champions Green County on the Bengaluru-Hyderabad highway on March 23 and 24.
Over 40 entries have been received from all over the country and some of the top drivers and navigators are expected to compete for top laurels on dirt tracks in the rally approved by Federation of Motor Sports Clubs in India (FMSCI). The rally has a special stage distance of 30 kms and along with a transport distance of 108.63 kms, the total distance will be 138.63 kms. There are two short stages which are run thrice each. The Alpha stage is 4.5-km long while the Beta stage is 5.5 km. The two stages are run once each on Saturday as a night stage and twice each on Sunday. The prize distribution and podium ceremony will be held at 3 pm on Sunday.
Experienced and talented drivers like Chetan Shivaram, Dr Bikku Babu, Vikram Rao Aroor, Dean Mascarenhas, Dhruv Chandrasekhar, Fabid Ahmer and Sanjay Agarwal will be in the fray as the rally is run in the same format and same classes as INRC. There will be a separate ladies class and the Champions Group is supporting 17 teams. The Sprint organised by KMSC, one of the oldest and active motorsports clubs in India, is expected to provide a glimpse of the rally action to be held this year. The Champions Group is the new promoter and the season is expected to start in June after the election process is completed.
“It is a huge responsibility but we are fully geared up to make INRC vibrant and popular and bring back the glory days of rallying. Champions Group wants to support talented drivers, including women, so that new champions can be spotted and nurtured,” said Merla Vamsi, Director, Champions Yacht Club.
“The entry of Champions Group is a boon to the INRC and to many talented drivers. It has created a buzz and we hope to make rallying popular so that more competitors will enter motorsports. All the safety aspects are taken care of and the Sprint will usher in new rally season,” said Shivu Shivappa, president of the KMSC. He is also the vice-president of FMSCI and the Clerk of the Course (CoC) for the event.
The rally will be run in the following classes: INRC (upto 3500cc including turbo factor), INRC 2 (upto 2000cc as per Rally Sport regulations), INRC3 (upto 2000cc as per Group N regulations), FMSCI 4WD (Group N, N4, T1 and T2 cars), FMSCI 2WD (Honda City VTech, Maruti Esteem, Maruti Baleno) and Ladies Class.
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Bengaluru girl Aishwarya Pissay set for Portuguese round of FIM Bajas World Cup
Aishwarya Pissay file photo courtesy TVS Racing Proença-a-Nova (Portugal), 21 March 2019: India’s Aishwarya Pissay will resume her campaign in the FIM Bajas World Cup, here on Friday when the Baja do Pinhal gets underway with a ceremonial start followed by a Prologue run of 9.57 Kms.
Looking ahead to the Portuguese Baja which also doubles up as the second round of the World Cup, Bengaluru-based 23-year old Aishwarya said: “The Portugal rally will be a fantastic learning experience for me as the stages will have more enduro than fast sections. I have been training with BigRock Spain team for the past couple of weeks in similar terrain and have improved my riding technique.
“I am here to learn and develop my skills as a racer and the more rallies I participate in, the better I get. I am thankful to my sponsors TVS Racing, Mountain Dew, BigRock Dirt Park (Bengaluru) and Scott Motorsports India for supporting and believing in me.”
After Friday’s Prologue, the riders head out on Saturday for the 191.27 Kms Special Stage-1. The event concludes on Sunday at the end of the 173.42 Kms Special Stage-2.
Aishwarya picked up full complement of 25 points after completing the course in the first round in Dubai earlier this month astride a 450cc bike and she is hoping to add to her tally here in Portugal.
“I am hoping to perform much better here in Portugal where, unlike in Dubai, navigation is not a major issue. I am focused on securing as many World Cup points as possible by completing the course,” said Aishwarya who is set to compete in only her third international event following her debut in Baja Aragon (Spain) last year and Dubai earlier this month.
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Ali Ajgar, Musthafa complete a hat-trick of wins at JK Tyre Himalayan Drive 7
Ajgar Ali, Md. Mustafa win the JK Tyre Himalayan drive on Sunday for a hat-trick. A JK Tyre Motorsport file photo Siliguri, 10 March 2019: The country’s only multi-nation rally, the JK Tyre Himalayan Drive 7, culminated earlier this month, with the famed duo of Ajgar Ali and Md. Mustafa reigning supreme and retaining their crown.
It was a particularly sweet triumph as the champions completed a rare hat-trick in this gruelling four-day event.
Ali and Mustafa felt the heat on the second and third day but used their vast experience to emerge victorious with a total tally of 1110 penalty points.
The team of Gagan Sethi and Rajkumar Mundra (with 1847 penalty points) and Jogendra Jaiswal and Nagarajan Thangaraj (with 2035 penalty points) secured the second and third positions in what proved to be a thrilling fight to the finish.
In the open category, the team of Govind Dalmia and Anand Agarwal edged past category leader Rohit Agarwal and Kunal Joshi to finish with 9149 penalty points. The Agarwal-Joshi team scored 9691 penalty points. Finishing third in this category were the team of Suyash Raj and Mohammad Sharif with 10796 penalty points.
This year’s battle for the big title saw a nail-biting finish. The team of Jogendra Jaiswal and Nagarajan Thangaraj, who started the final day (Day 4) as championship leaders, will rue their luck as the crown eluded them for missing the penultimate time control. They suffered a 900-penalty points blow for their faux pas which was enough to send them crashing down to the second place.
“We are very happy to score this hattrick. It was a very exciting rally and I can say that the JK Tyre Himalayan Drive is the best TSD rally in the country. The competitive sections were superb and posed a tough challenge to drivers, navigators and our cars,” said Ajgar Ali.
Ajgar, who led the cross-country drive in the first two stages, slipped to the second spot by the end of the third stage.
With the fourth leg getting cancelled due to snowfall in Paro (Bhutan), they had a steep mountain to climb. Some brave driving, mixed with sheer luck, which saw the leaders picking up a huge penalty, saw them return to the top.
This year’s victory takes the total winning tally of Ajgar Ali and Mohammed Musthafa to four titles (2013, 2017, 2018 and 2019) since the Himalayan Drive was first held in 2013. The team of Sudip Ghosh and navigator Arindam Ghosh were the only other team to have won more than one championship title at this event (2014 and 2016). Anubhav De and co-driver Chandan Sen won the title in 2015.
The last leg of the rally was flagged off from the Kalimpong stadium and started with a steep climb on the road from Mungpoo to Jorebungalow that was lined with verdant forests and offered majestic views of snow-capped peaks of the eastern Himalayas for a few kilometres.
This was followed by another competitive section downhill through winding mountain roads of Rohini. The third and last competitive section was a tough drive stretching over nearly 23 kilometers through the bed of the Mechi river that forms the border between India and Nepal.
Ajgar Ali, Mustafa in action on Sunday. A JK Tyre photo “I would really like to congratulate Ali and Musthafa for their achievement. The way the entire drive panned, it only shows how the competition has increased over the years and I am sure it will keep getting better every year. I would also like to congratulate Just Sportz for their hard work and commitment for pulling off one more successful edition of the Himalayan Drive,” Mr. Sanjay Sharma, head of JK Motorsport, said.
The 800-km JK Tyre Himalayan Drive 7, which was organised in association with Experience Bengal (West Bengal Tourism), sawt the competitors drive their mean machines for four days through majestic locations in North Bengal, scenic hills in Darjeeling and various picturesque routes in Bhutan.
The TSD drive which draws inspiration from West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s vision of connecting Bengal to its neighbours and encouraging people to people connectivity in the region, covered a wide variety of terrain, ranging from tarmac, river beds, dirt tracks, forest paths to mountainous roads.
The drivers took-off from Siliguri post the ceremonial flag-off and travelled all the way to Murti, driving past North Bengal’s lush forests, river banks and embankments and idyllic towns.
The second leg saw the drivers start their journey from Murti to Paro, going through tea gardens and forests that are home to a rich variety of flora and fauna, including the Royal Bengal Tiger, the one-horned rhino and the Asiatic elephant before entering Bhutan through Phuentsholing.
From Phuentsholing, the competitors hit the mountain roads filled with hairpin bends and steep gradients that offer spectacular views of the Himalayan heights, before entering the breathtaking Paro Valley.
On the third day, they were supposed to drive back from Paro Valley through Dooars and cross the iconic Coronation Bridge over Teesta river to reach Kalimpong but the leg got cancelled due to snowfall in Bhutan.
The final leg of this rally on Saturday had the competitors drive down from Kalimpong, cross the Teesta bridge, Mungpoo, Jorebunglow and Kurseong before descending into the plains through Rohini.
After reaching the plains, they went through Dudhia and Panighata, the riverbeds of Menjha and Mechi, and touched Naxalbari before taking the Asian Highway 2 and then National Highway 27 to finish at the City Center at Siliguri, where the prize distribution was held at a gala function.
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Aishwarya Pissay tops among women in FIM Bajas World Cup at Dubai
Aishwarya who topped the women’s field in action on Saturday. A TVS Racing image Dubai, 9 March 2019: India’s Aishwarya Pissay completed a highly successful run in the first round of the FIM Bajas World Cup as she topped the women’s category and also picked up useful points in the junior category as the two-day event, covering 400 Kms of Special Stages across sand dunes, concluded here today.
Aishwarya Pissay, 23, from Bengaluru, and supported by TVS Racing, Mountain Dew, Scott Motorsports India and Big Rock Dirt Pack, not only achieved her immediate target of completing the grueling two-day event but also collected useful championship points.
After crossing the finish line on completing the day’s 204 Kms Special Stage, Aishwarya, said: “I am thrilled to have finished the rally as it is a confidence booster. Day 2 was much better for me as I made fewer mistakes and looked to pick up my pace.
“All the training from the past few weeks really made a difference in the dunes. I will definitely be back next year and look to improve my performance.”
Aishwarya, India’s first-ever women’s National Racing champion, finished the World Cup 26th in Overall classification with a much-improved performance on Day 2.
Aishwarya was competing in only her second international event after her debut in Spain last year ended with a heavy cash leading to injuries and lengthy rehabilitation.
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Aishwarya completes Day 1: FIM Bajas World Cup
Aishwarya Pissay survives Day 1 at Bajas World Cup on Friday. Images: TVS Racing Dubai, 8 March 2019: India’s Aishwarya Pissay completed Day 1 of the FIM Bajas World Cup despite a few crashes on the 201.6 Kms stage as she also battled the sand dunes and navigation here on Friday. The event concludes tomorrow with the competitors negotiating another Special Stage of 204.93 Kms.
Aishwarya, the 23-year old from Bengaluru, sponsored by TVS Racing, Mountain Dew, Scott Motorsports India and Big Rock Dirt Park, picked up the pace in the latter half of the day and was placed 31st among 37 starters.
“It was a tough start to the rally. I fell multiple times in the first 60 kms and lost lots of time. Also since the cars started ahead of bikes, the tracks were all quite deep and so I had to set my own track.
“Using the GPS Navigation took some time to get used to, but I was confident by the end of the stage. I am Looking to better my performance on Day 2 and end the rally on a high,” said National women’s rally champion Aishwarya, who holds the unique record of being India’s first women’s National racing champion before switching full-time to rallying.
On Thursday evening, HH Sheikh Mansoor Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum flagged off the competitors at the ceremonial start.
While on Friday, the competitors headed out from Dubai Autodrome into the Al Qudra desert to tackle the 201.6lkm Special Stage, the riders will negotiate the second Special Stage (204.93 Kms) on Sunday before the event returns to the Autodrome at 12.30 pm with the ceremonial finish taking place at 5 pm (local time).
Aishwarya Pissay in action on Friday, 8 March 2019. -
Aishwarya set for FIM Bajas World Cup in Dubai
Aishwarya Pissay at the official press conference in Dubai on Wednesday, Image: TVS Racing Dubai, 6 March 2019: India’s Aishwarya Pissay, having fully recovered from the injury she suffered last year in Spain, is all set for her second international event, the first round of the FIM Bajas World Cup commencing here on Thursday with a ceremonial flag-off.
Bengaluru-based Aishwarya, 23, sponsored by TVS Racing, Mountain Dew, Scott Motorsports India and Big Rock Dirt Park, will be competing in the 450cc, women and junior categories, astride a non-TVS bike. The event has attracted over 100 riders from 25 countries.
Aishwarya, who was injured after a crash in the Spanish Baja last year and was out of action for nearly six months, said: “This is an exciting start to my international racing season. I have been training really hard over the last few weeks in the sand dunes, which has been a tremendous learning experience. I am thankful to my sponsors TVS Racing, Mountain Dew, Scott and Big Rock Dirt Park for believing and supporting my dreams to represent India on the global motorsport stage.”This will be Aishwarya’s second attempt at an international rally. In 2018, she competed in the Baja Aragon. However, her debut on the global stage ended with a crash that required lengthy rehabilitation. In the past couple of months, she has been training at the Big Rock track run by ace cross-country rider CS Santosh, on the outskirts of Bengaluru. She also went in advance to Dubai to train on the sand dunes.
The first rider will leave the start at 06.45hrs on Friday, March 8th for a 50kms liaison section before starting the opening selective section of 201.60km, one hour later. The second timed section of 204.03km takes place on Saturday, March 9th. In a total of 607km, 407km will be timed against the clock.
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19th Chander Memorial TSD Rally 2018 in Coimbatore
Coimbatore, 18 Dec 2018: It is motorsport time once again in Coimbatore. One of the eagerly-awaited events of Coimbatore Auto Sports Club (CASC), the 19th Chander Memorial Rally 2018, for 2-wheelers and 4-wheelers is all set Sunday, the 23rd December. The rally is being held continuously for 18 years without a break, a record in Indian Motorsport. Run in memory of Chander, who lived for motorsports. His family had been the primary sponsors every year to keep his memory alive among motorsport enthusiasts by conducting this event during the month he passed away.
The 19th MK Chander Memorial Rally 2018 organised by Coimbatore Auto Sports Club is sponsored by MK Chander Memorial Trust, SGA Cars and ENI Lubricants. The Club which is organising motorsport events for several decades is rated as one of the best and active clubs in the country.
The event will be flagged-off by Sujit Kumar, IPS, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Coimbatore City from the PSG Institute of Management, Avinashi Road, Peelamedu, Coimbatore on 23rd December 2018, at 8.30 AM.
The Prize Distribution function will be held on the same day evening at 7.00 PM at Coimbatore Cosmopolitan Club, Race Course, Coimbatore – 641 018. The prizes will be given by K Periaiah. IPS, Inspector General of Police, West Zone, Coimbatore.
The late MK Chander (Born 13 Nov, 1965 & Expired 19 Dec, 1999) had an illustrious rallying career spanning over 14 years. He started his rallying career in 1985 as a rider and then switched over to navigation in 1987. He has navigated over 100 rallies both in 2 Wheelers and 4 Wheelers categories and has secured podium places in more than 60 rallies. He has been an inspiration to many youngsters and represented famous teams like TVS SUZUKI, MRF and JK TYRES.
This rally which is run on Time, Speed & Distance (TSD) format is dedicated to his achievements in Motor Sports. This year’s event covers a distance of approximately 120km which will pass through Sulur, Kalangal, Selakarachal, Lakshminaickenpalayam, Akkanaickenpalayam, Periyakuyli, Chettipalayam. Speed is not the criteria for this event, but the accuracy of driving the vehicle maintaining the given speed and to follow the roadmap correctly will determine the winner. The average speed will be varying from 15 Kmph to 45 Kmph based on the safety and road conditions.
There will be secret checkpoints en route to monitor the speeds of the contestants. Every second is liable for penalty whether they are running late or early. This event will be full of fun and enjoyment for the participants. We expect 30 cars and 25 two-wheelers to take part in this event.
This year we have OPEN and NOVICE classes and a separate class for ALL LADIES and will have enhanced and attractive prize money along with 41 trophies in all for the winners in the various categories.
National Champion Drivers and Navigators Karthik Maruti, Sankar Anand and other prominent competitors like Ganesh, Nagaraj, N. Murugan, M.K.Mustafa, Raghu, have confirmed their participation.
The event is organised by J Prithiviraj (Hony. Secretary, CASC & President of FMSCI), K Chandra Sekaran, G Vijayakumar, A Ramaswamy, Sathishkumar, and by MK Chander Memorial Trust.
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Gaurav Gill wins Popular Rally in Kochi to bag his sixth INRC title
The 2018 MRF FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship winners Gaurav Gill, left, with his trusted navigator Musa Sherif, in Kochi Sunday. An INDIAinF1 image Kochi, 16 Dec 2018: Speed maestro Gaurav Gill was at his fast and furious best as he drove a matured race on the broken tarmac in the picturesque plantations of Kerala to conquer his sixth Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) title here on Sunday.
Gill who won his first INRC in 2007 and added more titles in 2009, 2011 when the rallies were professionally organised by late Bharat Raj of KMSC along with Annabelle on the IMG and PSP banner, before winning the 2014 and 2017 titles.
The three-time APRC champion was at his imperious best along with his long-time co-driver Musa Sherif, winning seven stages in the Popular Rally, the fifth and final round of the MRF FMSCI INRC 2018, to win the title.
One would look for a Gill, who goes for an aggressive start and wins all the stages with the impeccable record! The very fact that he let go a couple of stages and allowed his speeding mind to be controlled, is a sign of maturity which he has been displaying for quite some time now. In Chikkamagaluru, the previous round, too, he did not quite get the applause that was usually reserved for him for many years past, in the Super Special Stage. But now he is no more the showman! The Gaurav Gill you see as a pilot in the world Rally Championship is a matured magician! There may not be any pleasing visible drifts or dashing straights in the short Indian stages, but he cleverly knocks off several seconds from his rivals with clean lines and judicious driving. He was the best, but there was nothing much to fly around in the dust anymore! Sheer speeds, best times!
Earlier, many a time, he lost Championships and Titles, within a few metres off the finish. Take for example the two SSS casualties in 2010 which cost him the title. Those Nashik days are beyond him now.
Going into this iconic rally in the scenic backdrop of Kerala on equal terms with teammate Amittrajit Ghosh (official table credits Gill with a one-point lead at 62) Ghosh’s 61), who had never been any match, the Master sealed the issue with a comfortable drive.
Gill began slowly, finishing second in the first two stages before he came into his own. Guided by local boy Musa, he quickly got a feel of the terrain and unleashed his magic to win the next five stages with convincing authority. It was controlled aggression at display.
“It was a difficult year for us, especially towards the end due to mechanical issues which were beyond our control,” Gill was humble in his victory. “Kochi was the most difficult, with narrow roads which were fast and had broken tarmac too. We had to push extra hard to stay ahead of the others,” he added.
Amittrajit Ghosh, who had jumped into the championship lead after Gill had a mechanical failure in Arunachal Pradesh, never really had any chance due to the N-1 rule which allows the competitors to discard one round. Ghosh, along with Ashwin Naik, just couldn’t manage the win that would have mattered.
Here in Kochi, the Kolkata driver was beaten by a couple of other drivers from lower classes. It was, however, good enough to give him the second position in the overall championship.
“It was a great year for us compared to last season. The championship just gets more and more competitive, which is great for the sport,” Amittrajit said. “The beginning of the season was really good but we hit issues from Chikmagalur and were really hit by the lack of pre-event testing and wrong set up choices in Kochi,” he said.
INRC 2 competitor, Arka Motorsports’ Karna Kadur with co-driver Nikhil V Pai finished third to take the third place behind the Mahindra Adventure duo in the championship.
Kadur, however, had the consolation of winning the INRC 2 title which he had wrapped up in the previous round itself along with Nikhil Pai.
POPULAR RALLY RESULTS –
OVERALL – INRC
1 Gaurav Gill | Musa Sherif (Team Mahindra Adventure; 01:29:58.9)
2 Younus Ilyas | Harish KN (Race Concepts Motorsport; 01:30:33.1)
3 Karna Kadur | Nikhil V Pai (Arka Motorsports; 01:30:54.4)
INRC 1
1 Gaurav Gill | Musa Sherif (Team Mahindra Adventure; 01:29:58.9)
2 Sirish Chandran | A A Ragnekar (Privateers; 01:31:17.1)
3 Amittrajit Ghosh | Ashwin Naik (Team Mahindra Adventure; 01:31:51.6)
INRC 2
1 Younus Ilyas | Harish KN (Race Concepts Motorsport; 01:30:33.1)
2 Karna Kadur | Nikhil Vittal Pai (Arka Motorsports; 01:30:54.4)
3 Phalguna Urs | Srikanth GM (Snap Racing; 01:33:00.4)
INRC 3
1 Dean Mascarenhas | Shruptha Padival (Team Champions; 01:33:07.9)
2 Fabid Ahmer | Sanat G (Chettinad Sporting; 01:34:47.4)
3 Darius N Shroff | Shahid Salman (01:35:20.6)
FMSCI 2WD CUP
1 Vikram Gowda | Sudhundra B.G (Privateers; 01:39:08.9)
2 Suraj Thomas | Sob (Privateers; 01:40:57.8)
3 Lanusanen Pongener | Amrith (Privateers; 01:41:33.4)
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Gill begins favourite as INRC returns to Kerala
INRC drivers pose with the trophies after the drivers’ briefing for the Popular Rally which begins on Friday at Kochi. INRC Photo Kochi, 13 Dec 2018: The 2018 MRF FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship is set for an exciting winner-takes-all finish, with Kerala’s iconic Popular Rally, the fifth and final round of the championship, emerging as the stage for the grand showdown at Kuttikanam near Kottayam. The rally moves to the Special Stages in Kuttikanam after the Super Special Stage at Kochi.
Mahindra Adventure’s two-time INRC champion Amittrajit Ghosh comes into the last round with the highest points (79) but will still start behind his teammate and three-time APRC champion Gaurav Gill due to the N-1 rule which allows the drivers to discard one round’s result.
Gill, in fact, will not only begin on pole position but also as the favourite, given his aggressive style of driving. He has 62 points while Ghosh, with 61 points after the N-1 factor, will be right in his tail.
Ghosh, the European Rally Championship driver, will also fancy his chances, especially two very good rounds in the INRC.
Both will, however, be wary of Arka Motorsports’ Karna Kadur, who is not too far behind with 55 points after the N-1 factor. The former INRC champion is competing in the INRC 2 category but has shown the speed and desire to topple his fancied opponents. He can take his second title if he wins the Popular Rally and Gill finishes third or lower.
The rally was flagged off by Shri. K. Padmakumar, IPS, Hon. Transport Commissioner, Govt. of Kerala, from Hotel Le Meridien, Kochi, today. It will unfold in 9 special stages on the smooth tarmac in the Mundakkayam-Kuttikanam sector in Idukki district on Saturday. Two more special stages will follow on Sunday, after which the rally drivers will head to Ernakulam for a Super Special Stage (SSS), at HMT Colony Road, Kalamassery.
The trophy presentation to the winners of the Popular Rally 2018 and the champagne shower will be held at the SSS venue itself. The official podium ceremony will be held at Le Meridien later in the evening, before invited guests.
“We have had a very good championship this year, with intense competition in all the key categories,” the promoter of the championship, RRPM’s Arindam Ghosh, said. “We are set for an exciting finish and I wish all the competitors a grand run,” he added.
“I thank title sponsor MRF Tyres, main associate Mahindra Adventure and associates York & Arka Motorsports,” Arindam said, expressing his gratitude for their three-year association.
Kerala is hosting the INRC for the first time since 2010 which is doubling up as the Popular Rally. It is in its 24th edition, having made a grand comeback last year after running it successfully for 22 years before a brief hiatus.
“Popular Rally is a matter of great pride for us. We have created a great legacy and are determined to take it to greater heights,” John K. Paul, MD of the organisers Popular Vehicles & Services Ltd, said.
Most of the country’s other top drivers, including Dean Mascarenhas, Vikram Rao and Rahul Kanthraj, will line up to get their hands on the silverware in various categories as the curtain comes down on the 2018 MRF FMSCI INRC.
Kerala will be well represented too, led by Dr Bikku Babu, the National Autocross Champion, along with the rising stars and INRC regulars like Younus Ilyas, Jacob K J, Fabid Ahmer, Nibu Sayed and Noufal Sayed.
For the first time in India, a Mobile App on Popular Rally will be launched to provide all rally related news, events, programme schedules etc. Developed by Appzoc, it can be downloaded free from the Google Play Store or the Apple Store and also through QR code scanning.
Standings for the key categories: INRC Overall: Gaurav Gill / Musa Sheriff (Mahindra Adventure) 62 points; Amittrajit Ghosh / Ashwin Naik (Mahindra Adventure) 61 points; Karna Kadur / Nikhil V Pai (Arka Motorsports) 55 points
INRC 1: Gaurav Gill / Musa Sheriff (Mahindra Adventure) 62 points; Amittrajit Ghosh / Ashwin Naik (Mahindra Adventure) 61 points;
INRC 2: Karna Kadur / Nikhil V Pai (Arka Motorsports); Rahul Kanthraj / Vivek Y Bhatt (Arka Motorsports); Jacob K.J / Shrikanth Gowda (Arka Motorsports)
INRC 3: Aroor Vikram Rao / Somayya A.G (Falkon Motorsports); Dean Mascarenhas / Shruptha Padival (Chettinad Racing); Suhem Kabir / Jeevarahinam (Team Champions)
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Hat-trick for Karna Kadur, Nikhil Pai; Scratch times help Amittrajit Ghosh edge out Bopaiah
Odd-man out Amittrajit Ghosh (right) on the podium in Chikkamagaluru on Sunday. Chikkamagaluru, 2 Dec 2018: Karna Kadur and his co-driver Nikhil Vittal Pai of Arka Motorsports scored their third consecutive Coffee Day Rally victory for a hat-trick in Chikkamagaluru as the fourth round of the MRF FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship (INRC), concluded here on Sunday. The duo, in a Volkswagen Polo, nursed their healthy overnight lead with a sensible drive.
While Kadur, who had won this rally in the previous two years, kept it clean through the three Special Stages, all run in the reverse direction, Amittrajit Ghosh (co-driver Ashwin Naik) of Mahindra Adventure took advantage of the scratch times that were allotted to the cancelled Special Stage (SS) 7, to overcome a tough fight from Bopaiah KM (Gagan Karumbaiah) of Team Champions, who drove manfully but fell short by about three seconds. Leading by five seconds overnight, the second-placed duo was defeated off-track by a scratch time of 10-seconds less than what Amittrajit Ghosh was given, that eventually helped the Kolkata driver win the second place behind Karna Kadur. The 10-second parity given by the CoC Ram Kumar, who is an experienced former rally driver himself, appeared odd as Boppaih was faster than Amittrajit Ghosh in all the stages on Day 2, Leg 1. However, it should be noted that the CoC has the privilege to give scratch times, as he deems it fit and it is well within the rules and regulations prescribed in the GP.
Amittrajit Ghosh may have taken these crucial points, thanks to the scratch times, but as he rightly said in the pre-event press conference, his lead in the championship is worth nothing as he has to forego one round and so will lose 18 points while Gill will discard his zero-point North East round of Arunachal Rally.
Behind the trio, hot favourite Gaurav Gill (Musa Sherif), also of Mahindra Adventure, and celebrating his 37th birthday on Dec 2, set a scorching pace to top the timesheets in all the three Stages today and finished fifth Overall behind private entrants Younus Illyas (Harish KN) who are tuned by Team Race Concepts and second in the INRC-1 category. More importantly, he earned 10 championship points, but the official standings page shows as 12 points as on Dec 3.
The results meant that Ghosh continues to lead Overall in the Indian National Rally Championship, promoted by the Ramakrishna Race Performance Management, run by his father Arindam Ghosh, with 79 points as against Kadur’s 67 and Gill’s 62, as officially announced on the inrcindia.com website. Thus, the title will be decided in the fifth and concluding round of the Championship to be held in Kerala next month.
Ghosh and Kadur also topped the INRC-1 and INRC-2 categories, respectively, while Delhi’s Arjun Bani Rao (Milen George) won in the INRC-3 class as the three-day event, organised by the Motor Sports Club of Chikmagalur, concluded here today.
“The result did not surprise us considering the lead that we had overnight. So, there was no need to push today and I was intent on bringing the car back home safely. We backed off a bit, used the advantage we had and finished the three Stages safely. We are very happy that we won for the third time in a row here in Chikmagalur,” said Kadur.
Meanwhile, Ghosh, still to recover fully from an allergy that also hampered his breathing, said he was happy to have finished second which fetched him precious championship points. “Today, we decided to take it easy in the long stage and push in the two shorter stages. In the context of the championship, it is always good to have points in the bag. So, now, whoever among the three of us (Kadur and Gill being the others) wins in Kerala will emerge champion,” said the London-based Ghosh.
For Gill, who was docked six minutes penalty yesterday after failing to complete the last two Stages following a mechanical problem that forced him to pull out, it was a matter of pushing hard and gain positions keeping in mind the championship stakes. A philosophical Gill, winner of the opening two rounds in Chennai and Coimbatore before a retirement in Arunachal Pradesh, said: “We had a good run the past couple of seasons, but things go up and down. It was not the best of weekends here or in Arunachal. So, now, we will go to Kerala next month and hope to win there. Today, I gave it all I had and drove 110 per cent. It is good that the championship has gone down to the wire. It is good for the sport.”
The results (Provisional):
Overall: 1. Karna Kadur / Nikhil Pai (Arka Motorsports) (02hrs,19mins,59.9secs); 2. Amittrajit Ghosh / Ashwin Naik (Mahindra Adventure) (02:22:15.3); 3. Bopaiah KM / Gagan Karumbaiah (Team Champions) (02:22:18.8).
INRC-1: Ghosh / Naik; 2. Gaurav Gill / Musa Sherif (Mahindra Adventure) (02:23:49.2); 3. Michu Ganapathy / Venu Rameshkumar (Team Champions) (02:27:18.1).
INRC-2: 1. Kadur / Pai; 2. Bopaiah / Karumbaiah; 3. Younus Ilyas / Harish KN (Pvt) (02:22:34.7).
INRC-3: 1. Arjun Bani Rao / Milen George (Chettinad Sporting) (02:24:29.4); 2. Fabid Ahmer / Shahid Salman (Chettinad Sporting) (02:26:34.7); 3. Aroor Vikram Rao / Somayya (Team Falkon) (02:27:57.4).
FMSCI 2WD Cup: 1. Vikram Gowda / Sudheendra BG (Team Champions) (02:31:51.6); 2. Prakhyat Shirole / Bharath SM (Pvt) (02:32:53.0); 3. Manoj Mohanan / Sob George (02:35:32.7).
FMSCI 4WD Cup: 1. Sanjay Agarwal / Smitha Prasad (Team Champions) (02:31:20.0); 2. Sachin Murthy / Satyapal (02:35:00.5); 3. Avin Nanjappa / Suraj M (Pvt) (02:39:26.5)
Edited on 4 Dec 2018 at 1.20am
