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Valtteri Bottas fastest in FP1
Spa-Francorchamps, 27 August 2021: After its traditional summer break Formula 1 returned to action at Spa-Francorchamps this morning, with Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas quickest in the opening practice session for the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix. The Finn set beat title hopeful Max Verstappen by just under two tenths of a second as championship leader Lewis Hamilton finished in 18th place.
The one-hour session got off to a slow start as rain the hours preceding the start of running meant that the track was still damp and teams opted to wait out the opening minutes as the track began to dry.
A number of drivers took the track on intermediates, but after 10 minutes it became clear that dry weather tyres were necessary. McLaren’s Lando Norris led the way on me3dium tyres but the Briton was soon eclipsed by Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel and then by Daniel Riccardo in the second McLaren, Pierre Gasly of AlphaTauri and then by Hungary race winner Esteban Ocon who put his Alpine in P1.
Verstappen then emerged in hard tyres and promptly bounced the French driver out of top sport with a lap of 1:46.879s. Over the course of a long run he then whittled the benchmark down to 1:45.905 before teams began to make a switch to soft tyres.
As the session entered its final quarter Bottas jumped P1 with a softy-tyre lap of 1:45.199s. Hamilton though was struggling with a larger wing than his team-mate and the Briton complained that he had poor straightline speed.
However, despite his difficulties, Hamilton looked set to edge past his team-mate on soft tyres but unfortunately he was slowed when he came across Williams’ Nicholas Latifi at the Bus Stop chicane and his run was compromised.
Verstappen then also moved to soft tyres in the final phase of the session but he failed to dislodge Bottas and had to settle for second place, 0.164 behind the Mercedes man.
Drizzle was now beginning to fall and that meant little hope of late improvement. Hamilton therefore was left languishing in P18 on the timesheet.
AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly took third place at the flag ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. The Monegasque driver’s team-mate Carlos Sainz finished fifth, while Red Bull’s Sergio Perez was sixth ahead of Vettel and Norris, with Ocon and his Alpine team-mate Fernando Alonso rounding out the top 10.
2021 FIA Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix – Free Practice 1
1 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:45.199 18 239.682
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 1:45.363 0.164 14 239.309
3 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 1:45.699 0.500 20 238.549
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:45.818 0.619 19 238.280
5 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:45.935 0.736 20 238.017
6 Sergio Pérez Red Bull/Honda 1:46.127 0.928 17 237.587
7 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:46.177 0.978 19 237.475
8 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1:46.336 1.137 17 237.120
9 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 1:46.497 1.298 16 236.761
10 Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 1:46.612 1.413 16 236.506
11 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:46.649 1.450 19 236.424
12 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 1:46.683 1.484 20 236.348
13 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:46.755 1.556 17 236.189
14 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 1:46.772 1.573 19 236.151
15 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Honda 1:46.928 1.729 19 235.807
16 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 1:47.101 1.902 20 235.426
17 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:48.125 2.926 15 233.196
18 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:48.224 3.025 17 232.983
19 Nikita Mazepin Haas/Ferrari 1:48.705 3.506 16 231.952
20 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 1:49.059 3.860 15 231.199 -
Silverstone beckons MotoGP riders: Round 12
The pre-event Press Conference and a key Triumph announcement kick off the Monster Energy British Grand Prix
Silverstone, 26 August 2021: Is everybody ready for the British GP? The MotoGP grid certainly is, with the pre-event Press Conference seeing Championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) joined by closest challengers Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), reigning World Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar), Austrian GP winner Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and rookie superstar Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing), as well as home heroes Cal Crutchlow (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and MotoGP debutant Jake Dixon (Petronas Yamaha SRT) ahead of track action on Friday.
Here are some key quotes!
Fabio Quartararo: “I was super happy about the second race in Austria because the first one I finished quite far from Jorge, close to 10 seconds from victory, in the second one I improved my pace a lot and I think I had a chance to fight for victory. I think it was one of the most fun races from this year, I enjoyed it a lot and I was feeling great. We know Austria is the most tricky track for us and we were there fighting for victories and podiums. Of course it’s not the result we wanted but I was more happy with the second one than the first one.
“Two years ago was one corner on Sunday here, but this is one of my favourite tracks on the MotoGP bike, the Yamaha suits the track really well and it’s just a matter of going out tomorrow morning, enjoying it straight away, having a good time. I hope we get good weather and let’s see!”
Advice for Jake Dixon:
“To be calm. Because already when I started in Valencia, it’s a short track but the first day I was totally lost. It was a day of testing. I’ve already told him it’s totally different. He will already feel the power and the brakes, don’t look at the lap times so much and yeah, take it easy!”Francesco Bagnaia: “For sure I’m happy. I recovered more points like this than in fully dry conditions because Fabio was in trouble with rain tyres. I was close to fighting for a win but in any case I am happy because I did my best race in MotoGP I think. I was setting my pace and feeling comfortable. It was better the second race, the first one we had a bit of bad luck with the restart but the second one we managed to be fast enough to stay in front.
“I’m really confident to ride this track, it’s one of my favourites. I really like the layout and our bike maybe suits good, maybe not like a Yamaha but we will try to be fast enough to stay with Fabio because we really need to recover more points. Still we’re at 47 and if Fabio wants to enjoy the Championship more maybe we can fight until the finish, it’s better!”
Joan Mir: “The last race was a little bit crazy. I would say that in Austria the feelings were nice at both weekends, the race in the second GP was unexpectedly difficult but finally we could be really close to the podium which was our goal. Now we come to this track which as you say Alex was strong here in 2019, he was able to win, Suzuki got two victories in the modern era and this is for a reason. The bike can fit well with this track, it will be important to be fighting with the top guys. I will give my best. It will be difficult because it’s the first time coming here after a long time, and it will be important to be strong straight away in FP1 and FP2, to get the correct feeling, the correct lines and I will give my best.
“I’m not nervous. I think that the important thing is once you get the feeling, is to put the feeling here. Not the track. I haven’t ridden a bike here since ’18 and for sure this will be a bit difficult in the first laps. But if you have a great feeling and you know, we did a lot of races this year and I think I’m in good form, but I think I will be able to adapt quickly on this track. The track is quite long, wide, difficult to find the line, but yeah. It’s important to find it as quickly as possible.”
Brad Binder: “Now I’ve had a bit of time to go back and watch it all over it again, I’m really glad there wasn’t one more lap. It was cool. It was a big risk to stay out, and yeah, the last lap was super sketchy. I’m glad I made it home safe but sometimes you have to take a chance and this time it worked so really happy about that, happy to come out of the two Austria races with two good results and hopefully looking at keeping that momentum going.
“I mean we’ve all been to Silverstone a few times. It’s always a bit of a challenge I find at a new track on the MotoGP bike, no matter how many times you look through the data, I always find it completely different to how I remember. The big goal for me is to be comfortable straight away and not start too far down the order like I have done many times when I come to a circuit for the first time on a GP bike. It’s a special track, last time I was here I really really enjoyed it and I’m looking forward to riding the big bike around here for sure.”
Jorge Martin: “I would be so confident if the race was in Austria again but we come to a new track and I need to be focused and start from zero. I don’t know how it will be, so just try to find a good feeling with the bike. I will give my 100% as always, it won’t be easy but I’ll try my best.
“From my side it will be the same as always, because I’ve come to the track with MotoGP so I’m not nervous, I’m ready and raring to go.”
Cal Crutchlow: “It’s great, it’s great to come to Silverstone. I never thought I’d be racing a Silverstone GP again after I retired so to come back, already we missed last year with was disappointing, but to come back this weekend with Monster Energy Yamaha is a privilege. It’s a privilege to ride Silverstone anyway, and then now with a full crowd it’s going to be entertaining for everybody. I’m looking forward to it. Riding in Austria was not easy after being so long off the bike, but to come this weekend here, maybe in a little bit better of a situation after the last two races, I look forward to seeing what we can do.
“I think Austria wasn’t too bad. On paper its always going to look bad, but we expected nothing, and we got nothing. We got information for Yamaha and I did my job, and I enjoyed it which was the main thing. After so long off the bike to ride again is always enjoyable. Speed wise we weren’t too bad, I qualified half a tenth slower than what I did last year on the Honda. After 5 months off it wasn’t too bad, I enjoyed it, I felt good and in the end hopefully I’ll feel a little bit more comfortable with not such a big a gap off. Silverstone is a good circuit for that, I know a few tricks of the trade around here and in Austria I really really don’t. So let’s see what we can do at the Monster Energy GP here.”
Jake Dixon: “It’s obviously fantastic and obviously thanks to Petronas for giving me the opportunity to ride the MotoGP bike. To do it at home is pretty special, if anyone could do their debut I think they would do it at home so yeah, I can’t wait. We’re going to have a full house in front of the full crowd, Silverstone seems to suit the Yamaha in the past. I can’t wait, it’s definitely going to be a massive learning curve, but I’m ready to take it on and see what we can do.
“I was just saying to Mir that I’ve had a few sleepless nights yeah. It’s definitely excitement, so much excitement but also nervous times. I’m not expecting anything from myself it’s just a massive learning curve. I can’t be expected to do anything, I’ve never ridden a MotoGP bike, everything is so different. I’ll just try to do the best job I can do at the weekend, take it on and see if I enjoy it!”
That’s a wrap on the Press Conference at Silverstone! Free Practice begins on Friday, before MotoGP™ heads out for another battle of Britain on Sunday at 13:00 (GMT +1).
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Yes, they are not F1 drivers, they are MotoGP riders
One of Formula 1’s most successful-ever teams welcomes MotoGP defending champ Mir and Suzuki teammate Rins for a tour ahead of the British GP
Silverstone, 26 August 2021: Ahead of action stations at Silverstone for the Monster Energy British Grand Prix, Team Suzuki Ecstar riders Joan Mir and Alex Rins enjoyed a different kind of motorsport experience: a tour of Williams Racing. One of the most decorated teams in the history of Formula 1, Williams Racing were founded by motorsport legend Sir Frank Williams in 1977 and have won nine constructors’ titles, seven drivers’ titles and 114 Grands Prix so far. All in all, a perfect taste of British heritage and speed ahead of Mir and Rins taking on Silverstone on two wheels, with the riders getting to see some of the most emblematic Williams cars before trying their hand at some sim racing too.
The tour started with a look at the FW43B, which is the 2021 Williams Racing car driven by George Russell and Nicholas Latifi. An overview of the aerodynamics concept, fuel, engine and rear impact structure gave Mir and Rins a deeper delve into what makes these machines tick (and stick), before it was next stop: Experience Centre.
There the riders got to know the FW40, raced in 2017 by Felipe Massa. They also got a closer look at the steering wheel and the incredible array of different functions and buttons drivers have at their disposal before a look through the different tyre compounds used throughout an F1 weekend – two things where a shared experience of speed diverges for MotoGP™ riders and F1 drivers.
Mir and Rins then headed for the museum to see a little more of Williams’ incredible history, back to the start in the 1970s and even the very first winner: the FW07, driven by Clay Regazzoni to the team’s first Grand Prix victory in 1979 at the one and only Silverstone Circuit. From there the focus turned back towards the engineering side with the FW14B, the car that Nigel Mansell drove to the World Championship crown in 1992. The car was a gamechanger with its active ride suspension, again making for an interesting contrast between two and four wheels.
Next up Mir and Rins were shown the FW16, the car driven by legendary three-time F1 World Champion Ayrton Senna in 1994, before they then got to sit in the FW16B from the same season. The FW16B was driven by Damon Hill, who would go on to claim the crown with Williams in 1996.
After a trip to the Heritage Workshop to see how this incredible history is maintained and serviced, it was then time for Mir and Rins to get back to what they know best: racing. In the Williams E-Sports lounge, the two riders tried their hand at sim racing in an F1 car. Taking on Williams F1 Esport driver Alvaro Carreton and Team Suzuki Ecstar’s MotoGP™ eSport rider Cristian Montenegro, the virtual venue was – where else? – Silverstone. To round out the event they then put in a few laps on their GSX-RRs on the MotoGP™21 videogame to compare two and four wheels.
That’s a wrap on an incredible experience for the reigning MotoGP™ team Champions. Make sure to tune in as Mir and Rins take on the behemoth that is Silverstone this weekend, with lights out for MotoGP™ set for 13:00 (GMT +1) on Sunday 29th August!
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Nikhilesh Raju bags Round 2 honours in Cadet class
Bengaluru, 26 August 2021: Nikhilesh Raju, a 6th class student from Bengaluru, won three of the four races to emerge champion of Round 2 at the Meco fmsci National Karting Championship X30 class at the 1.21 Meco Kartopia here on Thursday.
The 11-year Vibgyor High School karter impressed with his driving skills and won three races and finished fourth in Race 2 to bag 35 points out of a possible 40 in Round 2 on Thursday. Arafath Sheikh of Pune took Race 2 and came second all the three other races. Though he set the fastest laps in three of the four races, he could only get 31 points and is second in the Championship table. Another school girl from Bengaluru, Zaarah Misra took the third place thrice and is third in the points table.
The four third round races will be held on Saturday and Sunday.
Round 2 (At 1.2km Meco Kartopia, Bengaluru)
Cadet Class
Race 1 (10 laps): 1. #4 Nikhilesh Raju (Bengaluru) (10:56.783); 2. #5 Arafath Sheikh (Pune) (11:02.144); 3. #1 Zaarah Misra (Bengaluru) (11:11.585); 4. #8 Shrili Manish Mistry (Gujarat) (11:18.667); 5. #3 Hrydan Patel (Gujarat) (11:30.206); Fastest lap: Arafath Sheikh 1:04.340; DNF after 5 laps #6 Ateev Khandelval (Gujarat). Grid 5 karters.
Race 2 (10 laps): 1. #5 Arafath Sheikh (Pune) (11:06.221); 2. #8 Shrili Manish Mistry (Gujarat) (11:18.288); 3. #1 Zaarah Misra (Bengaluru) (11:24.746); 4. #3 Hrydan Patel (Gujarat) (9 laps 11:21.108); 5. . #4 Nikhilesh Raju (Bengaluru) (10-laps 11:06.334) 4 position penalty for Art. #18 ‘edge into’; Fastest Lap: 1:04.415 by Nikhilesh Raju. Grid 6 karters.
Race 3 (10 Laps): 1. #4 Nikhilesh Raju (Bengaluru) (10:44.573); 2. #5 Arafath Sheikh (Pune) (10:46.400); 3. #1 Zaarah Misra (Bengaluru) (11:16.815; 3-sec penalty for false start); 4. #6 Ateev Khandelval (Gujarat) (11:17.512; 10-sec penalty for avoidable collision); 5. #3 Hrydan Patel (Gujarat) (9 laps – 11:47.522); 6. #8 Shrili Manish Mistry (Gujarat) (11:19.602; 2-positon penalty added for avoidable collision); Fastest lap: Fastest lap: Arafath Sheikh 1:03.498; Grid: 6.
Race 4 (10 laps): 1. #4 Nikhilesh Raju (Bengaluru) (10:43.483); 2. #5 Arafath Sheikh (Pune) (10:44.433); 3. #6 Ateev Khandelval (Gujarat) (11:02.264); 4. #1 Zaarah Misra (Bengaluru) (11:03.516); 5. #8 Shrili Manish Mistry (Gujarat) (11:19.936); 6. #3 Hrydan Patel (Gujarat) (9 laps – 11:06.125); Fastest lap: Arafath Sheikh 1:03.560; Grid: 6 karters.
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Czech point for Team MRF Tyre development
Zlin (Czech Republic) 26 August 2021: The 2021 FIA European Rally Championship heads to the famous tarmac of the 50th Barum Czech Rally Zlin this weekend. It marks the halfway point of the 2021 season and Jari Huttunen joins Team MRF Tyres.
The 50th Barum Czech Rally Zlín, is a tarmac rally held in Zlín, Czech Republic. It is currently part of the European Rally Championship and previously has been part of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. Founded in 1971, it is part of the ERC schedule since the championship’s streamlining in 2004. Barum Czech Rally Zlín is based in the South Moravian university city, 300 kilometres south of the Czech capital Prague. It is a Tarmac test like no other due to the bumpy and sometimes broken nature of the road surface. To add to the challenge, several stages feature high-speed blasts through forests and intermittent showers are always possible. While the weather might be hard to predict, huge numbers of fans follow the action, especially on the opening night-time Zlín superspecial stage. The long-term ERC rally turns 50 in 2021.
Huttunen with codriver, Mikko Lukka are joining Team MRF Tyres as the team’s tyre development strategy evolves.
Through the driver pool that Hyundai Motorsport Customer Racing has developed, MRF Tyres can take advantage of the feedback from a variety of drivers, starting with Huttunen and Lukka who are joining the team for the Barum Czech Rally Zlin.
Coming into its 50th edition, the Barum Czech Rally Zlin will offer a tarmac rallying feast for drivers and fans alike.
The crews face 15 special stages and 210.92km of competitive action. Friday sees the qualifying stage, with an early start for the crews. From 7:30 am local time (11:00 am in India), Huttunen and Lukka will have the opportunity for shakedown before qualifying starts at 9:30 am (1:00 pm in India).
The 4.07km stage will set the starting order for the rally that gets underway with a street stage through Zlin on Friday evening.
Saturday is a monster day with eight stages and 127.18km of action.
After a late finish on Friday, there is no chance to catch up on sleep with the first of the day’s stages getting underway at 9:31 am local time (1:01 pm in India).
The day sees two stages Březová (12.73km) and Hošťálková (18.86km) before morning service.
After service, a loop of four stages awaits the crews, with Komárov (8.46km) and Pindula (18.95km) before a repeat of Březová and Hošťálková. With almost 60km in the loop, a measure of speed and patience will be important.
The day then ends with a repeat run through Komárov and Pindula with the last stage due to start after sunset.
It is another early start on Sunday with the day’s six stages getting underway at 8:03 am local time (11:33 in India).
Sunday sees two loops of three stages with repeated runs through Halenkovice (8.85km), Biskupice (7.59km) and Májová (25.43km).
With the longest stage of the rally making up the final stage of the loop and of the rally, there will be no chance for the drivers to relax throughout the event.
With a huge field of world-class competitors, the 50th edition of the Barum Czech Rally Zlin is one not to be missed.
You can follow the action at home with every stage live on radio (www.fiaerc.com/ive-radio) or with SS5 and SS7 streamed live on Facebook or Youtube on Saturday and SS12 and SS15 streamed live on Sunday.
You can follow Team MRF Tyres throughout the rally on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Quotes
Jari Huttunen, driver, Hyundai i20 R5
“It is nice to be part of Team MRF Tyres here at Barum Czech Rally Zlin. I am looking forward to getting into the rally on the tyres. It will be my first rally on MRF Tyres. So far in testing, I am impressed.”“We have come to Zlin to help develop the tyres. Our main aim is to gain data for the development of the tyres. I am looking forward to the opportunity to contribute to the team.”
“I have rallied here before in 2017. Rally Zlin is a difficult rally and the weather will also play a part. I will try to drive without any mistakes as gaining data here on this unique rally is very important for me and for Team MRF Tyres.”
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Motul announced as Event Main Sponsor for the French Round
The French lubricant company strengthen its relationship with WorldSBK securing naming rights for their home round in Magny-Cours
Motul is set to be the Event Main Sponsor for the French Round held from the 3rd to the 5th of September at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours. The French circuit has hosted many exciting and dramatic Rounds in WorldSBK history, including some title-deciding races, and promises to be an exciting event with a special atmosphere as the battle for the Championship continues.
Founded in 1853, Motul produces high-performance motor oil and industrial lubricants, with the French company reaching out worldwide with a presence in over 160 countries. The company is always in a quest for development and innovation, values which are also shared by the WorldSBK Championship. The lubricants company has a long history in motorsport and has been the Championship Title Sponsor since 2016. Proximity and accessibility are the key words that define its philosophy in the Championship and this Event Main Sponsor agreement enhances the strong bond between the world’s fastest production-based Championship and the French company.
The company will be sharing their experience at the Motul Action Box in the paddock, ensuring a stunning and unforgettable race weekend to WorldSBK fans attending the French Round.
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Yuva, Suhail, Sarath Mohan hog limelight: Sprint Nationals
By David Bodapati
Bengaluru, 22 August 2021: Celebrated bike racer Yuvakumar of Hero Motosports and privateers Suhail Ahmed and rookie Sarath Mohan hogged limelight with three gold each in the week-end Sprint Rally Nationals here. While the `Hero star’ pipped the other two bagging the `fastest rider’ tag, clocking superfast sprint times in both the opening rounds of the Motorsport Inc FMSCI Indian National Rally Sprint Championship at the Moto Farm in Kanakapura, about 70 km from here, on Saturday and Sunday, another veteran Vishwas SD sparkled with a 15-year old bike winning the first race of the year, the Group A upto 600cc class which has foreign bikes.
The 2021 Round 1 brief report is here. For those who want to comapare with last year, 2020 Round 1 and 2 report is here. 2020 Champions’ List.
Promoted by Motorsport Inc, with Jaidas Menon, a former National Rally champion at the helm, the Sprint Nationals became the fourth Motorsport FMSCI National, to begin action in a tight bio-bubble following all COVID protocols after Meco Karting and MMSC Bike and Drag Nationals. The Sprint Nationals are supported by Reach Home Safe, a safety app, Chandan Motors (Bengaluru), Hero Motosports, Red Bull and of course, the Motofarm at Kanakapura, who offered their lovely dirt track which was well-maintained. Sprint is a T20 version of the 2w stage rally with the bikes taking a short 7.5km stretch once each in Round 1 and 2 on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. From this year, a select few from South Zone round will join the finalists from other zones in the Championship finals, which decides the National Championship titles in 9 different classes.
Hero Motosports’ #37 Yuvakumar teases a wheelie as privateer and former Hero rider Vishwas SD (#18 in Blue) has none of it in the non-competitive section. Privateers proved a point beating better bikes in the first two rounds of the Motorsport Inc fmsci Sprint Nationials in Bengaluru. Sarath Mohan, in action, on Saturday at Kanakapura, Bengaluru. All Photos by Moto Farm Competing against foreign bikes, the 34-year Yuvakumar, left behind a disappointing 2020 and began the 2021 campaign for another National title in right earnest. Yuva, as he is popularly known, overcame a disqualification in Race 1 on Saturday and went on to claim three more top finishes for gold. The three-time Desert Storm winner and five time National champion in Dirt Track and 2w rallies said: “I was keen on winning both the races today. The track is slippery and very tricky (after the rain) but my bike `Hero Xpulse200′ was up to it and helped me take the challenge with ease. Going into the season with these victories, I am confident of good performance and looking to better show this year.”
Winners All: Sprint riders of the 11 different categories pose with Promoter Jaidas Menon (4th from left, sitting) at Moto Farm on Sunday. Rider Representative to the Federation Venu Ramesh Kumar is sitting third from right. Triple gold Suhail Ahmed is kneeling in the front. Yuvakumar’s loss on Saturday in the Group D upto 260cc class in the Stock class, saw that three privateers zoom to the podium. It was a success story for debutant Samuel ‘Pablo’ Abraham, who stole the gold with a fairy-tale victory. Nicknamed `Pablo’, in his home state, the Ernakulam rider beat the field despite a crash where he hit a tree and lost over 10 seconds, about 1 km before the chequered flag but brought home his bike with a gold. Piloting a Unni PK (Kawasaki garage, Bengaluru) prepared XPulse 200, the 27-year old B.Com student went flat out sprinting to the finish in style clocking 09min, 08seconds to win the Stock Group D upto to 260cc class followed by another Bengaluru rider Sanjay Somasekhar, who is dubbed as the `fastest privateer’ by his friends. Sanjay, who took the silver behind Samuel, and won a golden double in the non-championship class, the Star of Karnataka, which is now renamed as South Zone Star. Sneha, also had a double delight winning both the rounds in the depleted Ladies class, the other support race, to encourage women in motorsports. “I would like to thank Veekshak KY and Vishnu Prasad Jahagirdar from Speed Lab Aautomotive Solutions, for the well-prepared bikes and also my sponsors Project83x and Radical & Co,” said Sanjay.
Another Bengaluru war horse, Naresh VS of Venus Racing, got only a bronze in this class but had two gold in the Group B upto 165cc Class and also a silver in the second round in the Open upto 600cc class on Sunday. Two gold, three silver and two bronze in different classes in the two rounds makes him the highest decorated medallist in the week-end. The former Hero and TVS rider, who has six National Championship titles under his belt in both Supercross (2012, 2013) and Dirt Track Nationals (4 titles in 4 different classes in 2010, his debut year as rookie), had to be content with the bronze in this class. The 2014 K1000 INRC winner, also missed the Group B 130cc National Sprint title by a point last year, as he had issues with the bike but promised to come back with better show this year.
The third rider who was the cynosure of all eyes on the week-end is defending Bullet class champion Suhail Ahmed, another former champion, who won eight national titles over the years. The Garden City rider, who turns 34 in another few days on August 28, began his title defence with a double gold in the Bullet class, winning both the rounds on Saturday and Sunday. He also added one more gold winning the Group B up to 400cc Class on Sunday, pushing aside the challenge from reigning champion in this class, Sudeep Kottary, who took the gold on the first round on Saturday. “It was like an enduro type of track and very challenging. And I have to appreciate the tough competitors that we have this year. I had issues with the engine but I am glad to qualify for the next round in Goa,” quipped Kottary from Mangalore.
“I am very elated with the double win in bullet class on both the days and the win on Duke 390 in Round 2. I lost out in the first round because of electrical issues. However, I am so glad to qualify for both the classes for the final round. The terrain was tricky with short corners with a few jumps and overall, I enjoyed the stage,” said Suhail Ahmed who rode XPulse in Group B upto 400cc and Himalayan in Bullet class.
Samuel `Pablo’ Abraham (centre) of Group D stock 260 Class Round 1 on Saturday. From left: Rakesh Kumar V (5th), Sanjay Somasekhar (2nd both rounds), Samuel (Ro1 winner), Vinay Prasad (4th) and Naresh VS (3rd both rounds). To encourage riders, the Promoters have given trophies to the first four runners-up as seen here. Photo courtesy Insta @isirfans The class also saw evergreen biker, who rides out of passion, Venu Ramesh Kumar, a garment exporter more famous for his exploits in the Indian National Rally Championship, both for bikes and cars. Astride a KTM Duke 390, the 51-year biker is the ‘Big Daddy’ of them all and is rightly appointed the Rider Representative from this year. Maturing like old wine, as do rally drivers world over, he is still beating much younger riders and getting podiums regularly like the silver he got in the Group B upto 400cc bikes in Round 1. “It is a pleasure to see huge response from the bikers for the past few years as the number of entries in all 2w-rallies increased consistently. But the life of privateers had not changed much and it is time to provide them support and sponsors. Factory teams have to come forward at least by providing spares and service at nominal price and also by way of sponsoring part expenses for talented and young riders. It will be much helpful for them to grow faster and we are also working with FMSCI trying to rope in factory teams. Let us hope for the best,” said the passionate motorsport lover from Coimbatore.
Unable to kick off the motorsport bug, the 42-year Bengalurean, Vishwas SD, still rides for fun and frolic and has not left his 2006 model Yamaha WR250F, a 250cc liquid-cooled single-cylinder four-stroke DOHC engine. Despite the fancy words, the bike with less than 40 per cent power than the present-day monsters, was a beauty in the hands of Vishwas, as he tamed it to take the gold over the 7.5-km dirt tract at the Moto Farm with some beautiful jumps in the feature event, the Group A upto 600cc Class in Round 1 on Saturday, the first race that began the Sprint National 2021. “Riding on such terrain needs rhythm. I managed to do it despite some suspension issues,” said the respected IT professional, who along with his team designed a Professional and affordable CCTV app which uses Artificial Intelligence (AI).
From Left #84 Pavan BK, #23 Sanjay Somashekar and (behind) #46 Karan M, on a free run! However, the Malayali trio took over Group A upto 600cc Class on Sunday winning all the podium places with Sarath Mohan taking the gold followed by Samuel Abraham from Ernakulam and Sinan Francis, the defending Overall champion of 2020 (last year it was Group A upto 800cc). Amidst all these racing stories there is another bit which showcases the Biker-spirit, the true old culture that seems to continue with the two-wheeler riders. The Ernakulam IT professional, Sinan, was kind enough to lend his bike to Samuel, to enter the biker folklore as Samuel, under Bethania Racing banner, riding such a powerful bike for the first time went on to not only beat him (Francis) to silver by 0.05 seconds but also made his mentor proud winning the stock class upto 260cc despite a crash beating another privateer Sanjay Somasekhar. “I am extremely thankful to my technical team Unni TK,N1 Concept, Bike Point and Sinan Francis from 72 Racing but for whom I would not have won,” confessed Samuel.
But it was 25-year youngster, Sarath Mohan who was another star of the weekend bagging three gold. The rider from Ponnani in Malappuram district racing a Ramdev-tuned Suzuki RMX 450 won both the Open Class upto 600cc races but also won the Group A upto 600cc Class on Sunday. “I could not push a lot. But I enjoyed the stage as the terrain was dry yesterday and I was trying to flow through the corners and made up speed in the long stretches,” said the 25-year-old who made his debut in the Sprint nationals. Last year, he took part in the INRC 2w rally and finished second in the championship in his class.
Sarath Mohan, who got three victories in two classes, astride a Suzuki RMX450. The Scooter class was won by Elango G, a privateer from Erode on Saturday, while Subramanya T, who came second in Round 1 turned the tables and won the second round on Sunday with Karthik N from Bengaluru, who finished third on Day 1, taking the second on Sunday. Elango recovered to a bronze in Round 2 as he faced some mechanical issues.
The 32-year Rakesh Kumar, astride a Yamaha YBX, won a double gold in the Group B upto 130cc Class as he defeated defending champion Sudeep Kottary on both the days. Ajin Abraham from Kottayam took the third place in Round 1 on Saturday while V Patteeswaran came third on Sunday. Popular as Rocky among his friends, Rakesh said: “I feel good to get a double victory. Winning both the rounds is a very satisfying feeling and want to improve and get more wins.”
Sprint Nationals 2021 Final (provisional) results: (Round 1 on Saturday and Round 2 on Sunday; Bike number given after podium place):
1. Group A Upto 600cc Class (Foreign bikes only): 1. #18 Vishwas SD (Yamaha WR250F) (Bengaluru) (09min, 03sec); 2. #1 Badal Subash Doshi (KTM450EXC-F 6days) (Pune) (09:06); 3. #4 Sarath Mohan (Suzuki RMX450z) (Malappuram) (09:11).
Round 2: 1. Sarath Mohan (Suzuki RMX450z) (Malappuram) (00hrs, 08min, 10.000sec); 2. Samual Abraham (KTM450EXC) (Ernakulam) (00:08:19.460); 3. Sinan Francis (KTM450EXC) (Ernakulam) (00:08:19.510).
2. Group B upto 165cc Class: 1. #32 Naresh VS (Hero Impulse) (Bengaluru) (08:55); 2. #29 Pavan BK (Hero Impulse) (Bengaluru) (09.10); 3. #55 Subramanya T (Bengaluru) (09:14).
Round 2: 1. Naresh VS (Hero Impulse) (Bengaluru) (08:30.280); 2. Pavan BK (Hero Impulse) (Bengaluru) (08:30.650); 3. Subramanya T (Bengaluru) (08:32.000).
3. Scooter Class: 1. #59 Elango G (Erode) (09:50); 2. #65 Subramanya T (09:56); 3. #97 Karthik Naidu (TVS N-Torq) (Bengaluru) (10:00).
Round 2: 1. Subramanya T (09:08); 2. Karthik N (Bengaluru) (09:18); 3. Elango G (Erode) (09:47);
4. Group B Upto 130cc Class: 1. #63 Rakesh Kumar V, (Yamaha YBX) (Bengaluru) (09:35); 2. #8 Sudeep Kottary (Honda Stunner) (Mangaluru) (09:41); 3. #58 Ajin Abraham (Kottayam) (09:48).
Round 2: 1. Rakesh Kumar V (Yamaha YBX) (Bengaluru) (09:12); 2. Sudeep Kottary (Honda Stunner) (Mangaluru) (09:13); 3. V Patteeswaran (09:37).
5. Open Class upto 600cc: 1. #12 Sarath Mohan (Suzuki RMX450) (Malappuram) (08:38); 2. #19 Badal Subhash Doshi (Pune) (09:01); 3. #72 Sinan Francis (KTM450EXC) (Ernakulam) (09:06).
Round 2: 1. Sarath Mohan (Suzuki RMX450z) (Malappuram) (08:06); 2. Naresh VS (Bengaluru) (08:24); 3. Sinan Francis (KTM450EXC) (Ernakulam) (08:27).
6. Bullet Class: 1. #14 Suhail Ahmed (Himalayan) (Bengaluru) (09:17); 2. #22 Naresh VS (Himalayan) (Bengaluru) (09:18); 3. #51 Sarath Kumar S (Himalayan) (Bengaluru) (09:20).
Round 2: 1. #14 Suhail Ahmed (Bengaluru) (08:37); 2. Naresh VS (Bengaluru) (08:38); 3. Sarath Kumar S (Himalayan) (08:51).
7. Group D upto 260cc Class: 1. #40 Samuel Abraham (Hero XPulse) (09:08); 2. #23 Sanjay Somasekhar (Bengaluru) (09:09); 3. #50 Naresh VS (09:11)
Round 2: 1. #100 Yuvakumar (XPulse 200) (Bengaluru) (08:24); 2. #23 Sanjay Somashekar (Bengaluru) (08:39); 3. #50 Naresh VS (Bengaluru) (08:42).
8. Group B upto 260cc Class: 1. #37 Yuvakumar (XPulse 200) (Bengaluru) (08:36); 2. #84 Pavan BK (Hero XPulse 200) (Bengaluru) (08:48); 3. #06 Suhail Ahmed (XPulse 200) (Bengaluru) (8:49).
Round 2: 1. #37 Yuvakumar (Bengaluru) (08:04); 2. Sanjay Somashekar (Bengaluru) (08:12); 3. (Hero XPulse) Pavan BK (Bengaluru) (08:15).
9. Group B upto 400cc Class: 1. #02 Sudeep Kottary (KTM Duke 390) (Mangalore) (09.26); 2. #09 V Venu Ramesh Kumar (KTM Duke 390) (Coimbatore) KTM Duke 390 (10:12); 3. #16 Sajeesh Reghunathan (Mangaluru) (10:15).
Round 2: 1. #5 Suhail Ahmed (KTM Duke 390) (Bengaluru) (08:35); 2. #02 Sudeep Kottary (KTM Duke 390) (Mangalore) (09.04); 3. #16 Sajeesh Reghunathan (Kerala) (09:26).
Non-Championship classes: Ladies Class: 1. #27 Sneha (09:56). Round 2: 1. Sneha (10:46).
South Zonal Star (formerly Star of Karnataka): 1. #66 Sanjay Somashekar (Bengaluru) (09:12); 2. Karan M (10:34).
Round 2: 1. #66 Sanjay Somashekar (Bengaluru) (08:27); 2. Anoop Manjappa (09:46); 3. Nikhil S Shrivatsa (10:19).
(Note: Timing given till the nearest second, except for a tie)
Riders can contact INDIAinF1 at 98455 69496
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Arjun Maini delivers at Nurburgring to get 8 points: DTM
Nurburgring (Germany), 22 August 2021: Mercedes-AMG driver Arjun Maini finally got his DTM Championship going finishing both the races in points here on Saturday and Sunday. Starting on P12, Maini finished Race 1 in 10th to bag two points while he got 6 points in Race 2 after starting on P14 and finishing 13th.
Race 2 was won by Alex Albon of Alphatauri AF Corse while Kelvin van der Linde, the Championship leader at the half-way stage won Race 1.
Arjun Maini who clocked 1:27.996 in FP 1 after a very useful 27 laps was less than half a second off the pace of the fastest man Vincent Abri who clocked 1:27.480. In FP2, Maini did another 27 laps to better understand the circuit and the car and was again upto pace posting his best time of 1:27.620 which is just off 0.419 off the top car. He clocked 1:28.224 in Race 1 and was +52.788 after one pit stop in Race 2 (1:28.472).
A delighted Maini said: “I’m ecstatic with how the weekend went and it is nice to be back in points and I hope to steer clear and look forward to the second-half of the season.” After four rounds, Arjun Maini is in 15th place in the overall standings with 8 points ahead of Timo Glock of Rowe Racing.
The Bengaluru racing ace marked yet another milestone to become the first Indian to score points in the DTM Championship. Maini showed tremendous maturity by finishing 10th and a career-best seventh at the two races held at the legendary race circuit. After enduring a series of unfortunate incidents, the Mercedes-AMG star finally had a race weekend devoid of any on-track misfortune and he delivered a steady and measured drive to get valuable points.
Arjun Maini at Nurburgring on Sunday. Racing for the GetSpeed team, Maini struggled to put an Ideal lap manage P12 for Race 1 grid. The Indian made a tremendous getaway, making a few places, as the cars made their way around the first lap. However, an incident involving fellow Mercedes star Max Bukh brought out the Safety Car, which meant that the Indian had it to do all again. The restart saw Maini make up yet more positions with the Indian establishing himself in the top 10.
Unfortunately, tyre wear issues hampered Maini’s progress and he was forced to nurse his car home to a 10th place race finish.
A wet Qualifying 2 session saw Maini take P14 as he was piloting his GT3 racecar for the first time in wet-weather conditions. Despite his best efforts, Maini failed to qualify inside the top 10 and had a mountain to climb during the second race but managed to get into points again..
The race ultimately proved to be a chaotic as it saw nine cars retire. it was a shrewd call from Maini’s GetSpeed racing team that proved to make the difference as an early and well-executed pit-stop saw Maini make up a host of positions over the duration of the race and eventually claim his best result in the gruelling German race series.
“It’s been a long timing coming and I’m happy to have finally scored my first points in DTM. Obviously, a lot of credit has to go to the team at GetSpeed, I think our pit-stop was the second-fastest of the weekend and if it wasn’t for their tireless effort, this result would not have been possible,” said Maini who is backed by Omega Seiki Mobility and JK.Tyre.
“In fact, I think sixth was a definite possibility. There was the incident with Mike Rockenfeller, that cost us a lot of time and by the end of the race, I was gaining on Lucas Auer who finished only a second ahead of me.
“Nonetheless I look forward to the next round at the Red Bull Ring and I hope this weekend proves to be an inflection point for the rest of the season.”
Arjun Maini, who shifted focus to endurance racing told this writer earlier that his love and passion for this long-format has been increasing by the day and he is really caught the endurance bug. “F1 is not my target anymore. I enjoy taking part in Endurance races and look forward to making it to the Le Mans.”
He started his DTM career with the first round in Monza where he finished 13th in Race 1 and 18th in Race 2. In Round 2 at lausitzring, he finished 14th after a good qualifying stint which put him on P6 but he suffered mechanical issues. In Race 2, he finished 12th starting from P9. The third at Circuit Zolder saw Arjun Maini suffer misfortune which was not in his hands as he had his first DNC after P15 in qualification and the car was so badly damaged and could not be readied for Race 2. And it took Round 4 in Nurburgring here to bring him back to racing and he delivered with points.
The next 2 races will be September 4 to 5 at the Red Bull Ring in Austria.
Race 2 report:
Arjun Maini finished Race 2 in 13th after a penalty. Earlier, Alex Albon scored his maiden victory in DTM at the Nürburgring, the second win for Ferrari in history of the series. In an action-packed race, the Thai driver, who had started from pole position, stayed away from all the incidents and won in dominant fashion. Red Bull’s replacement Formula 1 driver is the sixth winner from eight DTM races held so far this season. In dry, good weather conditions, Spaniard Daniel Juncadella with the Mercedes-AMG of the GruppeM team and two-time DTM champion Marco Wittmann with the Walkenhorst Motorsport BMW rounded out the podium.
After eight of 16 races, Kelvin van der Linde of the ABT Sportsline Audi team is the unofficial ‘half-time champion’ of the 2021 DTM, although, on Sunday, the South African failed to score points for the first time this year after a collision with Liam Lawson and Mike Rockenfeller in the chicane. With 129 points, Kelvin van der Linde is starting the second half of the season as the leader in the drivers’ standings. His margin over Maximilian Götz (96) decreased to 33 points. Third in the standings is now Wittmann (94), Albon (82) has moved up to fourth place.
Porsche, meanwhile, had bad luck during its DTM début. Like on Saturday, Michael Ammermüller didn’t make it to the finish with the 911 run by SSR Performance, but had clearly shown the potential with fourth place on the starting grid. 19-year-old Belgian Esteban Muth scored the best result of the season for Lamborghini so far with fifth place. Ex-Formula 1 driver Timo Glock finally scored his first championship points of the season with the ROWE Racing BMW.
“Today, that was a really good day for my team and for myself,” Albon said after becoming the first DTM race winner from Thailand. “The team has been working hard overnight and that paid off. Today, we have made a step forward, we want to carry over this momentum.” The Red Bull Ferrari combination by AF Corse is the first team to have won races with both its drivers, Albon and Lawson, this year.
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Razgatlioglu battles for Race 2 Navarra victory as the Championship levels up
The top three in the Championship battled it out for Race 2 honours at the Circuito de Navarra with Toprak Razgatlioglu coming out on top
Navarra, 22 August 2021: The final race of the inaugural Pirelli Navarra Round 7 for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship was a tense and dramatic affair as the top three of the Championship battled it out for honours at the Circuito de Navarra. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) came out on top as he claimed a stunning Race 2 victory and left the round top of the Championship heading into the French Round.
Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) and teammate Toprak Razgatlioglu got lightning starts from the 22-lap encounter, the race shortened by one lap following a delayed start after the Warm-Up lap had been completed due to an issue with Kohta Nozane (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) on the grid. Locatelli swept around the outside of Razgatlioglu and Rea at the start while Rea dropped back behind his teammate, Alex Lowes.
Locatelli and Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) ran wide in the early stages of the race which forced the pair down the order, allowing Lowes to move up ahead of both of them before Locatelli fought back to run in fourth place; a position he has become very accustomed to over the last couple of rounds.
All three of Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and Razgatlioglu exchanged positions in the opening laps of the race before it settled down slightly with Razgatlioglu leading the race ahead of Rea and Redding as the lead three in the Championship trio looking to take points out of each other in the Championship battle.
On Lap 17, Rea saved a front-end slide heading into Turn 15 which allowed Redding to close the gap to Rea throughout Lap 18, before the pair went side-by-side into the fast right-hander of Turn 1 on Lap 19. Redding was on the inside, but Rea cut back to keep the position. On the same lap of the race, Redding pulled off an incredible move around the outside of Turn 14 to move into second place after Rea ran wide at Turn 13. It meant Razgatlioglu claimed victory ahead of Redding and Rea with the Turkish star now level with Rea in the Championship on 311 points. Razgatlioglu has 17 podiums in the 2021 campaign which ties him for the record of podiums for a Yamaha rider, level with Ben Spies in 2009.P1 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK)
“First I say thanks to my team because they did an incredible job this weekend. The second race for me was very important and we tried a different set-up and we came home in a very good position, again winning. I am very happy because, for me, this weekend was not easy but every race I’m on the podium.”
P2 Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
“It was a good weekend. Happy with that. Two firsts, a pole, a second, that’s how a weekend should be if you want to be a contender in the Championship so I’m happy. I just didn’t have the feeling that I had yesterday, I couldn’t use the bike to its full potential. I was riding a little bit like those guys so I couldn’t maximise the strong point of our bike so then I couldn’t really get past and then I was getting a hot front tyre, sliding a lot. I thought ‘be patient, maybe they’ll come to me a little bit’ and Jonathan made a couple of small mistakes. I felt my rhythm coming. I had a little dig at Toprak at the end, but I was weighing up the risk for reward. That’s a lot to catch in two laps. We settled for second, took the points and look forward to Magny-Cours.”
P3 Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK)
“I just didn’t have it in that race. The other guys had a lot better rhythm, especially at the end. I was in trouble for the last ten laps. I could feel with Toprak I was just being there. I was much faster in turns four, five, six and seven, this sector, but he was just better everywhere else. Huge kudos to him and Scott, they had a really good race today. Work to do for us, hopefully we can bounce back in Magny-Cours.”WorldSBK Circuito de Navarra – Race 2
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK)
2. Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +1.105s
3. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +3.715s
4. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) +10.758s
5. Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +14.437s
6. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +15.151s -
Double delight for Rajini Krishnan, Jagan Kumar
Chennai, 22 August 2021: Chennai veterans Rajini Krishnan and Jagan Kumar stamped their class with a double each in the two premium categories as did young Alwin Sundar in the Novice class while Ryhana Bee staged a winning comeback in the Girls section as the first round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship concluded at the MMRT, here on Sunday.
Rajini, 41, who made his National Championship debut back in 2003 and also forayed abroad for stints in Superbike racing, rolled back the years with two stunning performances while winning both the races in the Pro-Stock 301-400cc category for his team RACR Castrol Power Racing astride a Yamaha R3.
In both races, Rajini was in a league of his own. This morning, in Race-1, despite a poor start when he dropped from P2 to P7 in the first lap, he carved through the field in quick time and eventually won comfortably ahead of Hyderabad’s Rahil Shetty (Gusto Racing) and Bengaluru-based Anish Damodara Shetty (Race Concepts). In the next outing, Rajini was even more dominating while winning easily from last year’s champion KY Ahamed (TVS Racing) and Anish Shetty.
Similarly, Jagan, 31, winner of cumulative nine National titles, was outstanding in repeating his Saturday’s victory in the Pro-Stock 165cc class by taking the top honours in Race-2 today, though he had to work hard for it. Fellow-international, Rajiv Sethu (Idemitsu Honda SK69 Racing) chased Jagan all through the eight laps in a futile bid to overtake and the two crossed the line in that order, followed by TVS Racing’s Deepak Ravikumar.
Jagan Kumar (3) and Rajiv Sethu (80) locked in a tight battle in the Pro-Stock 165cc Race-2 on Sunday in the Motorcycle Racing Nationals at MMRT on Sunday. Photo by Anand Philar In between, Chennai collegian Alwin Sundar (AS Motorsports) also completed a double in the Novice (Stock 165cc) category with yet another dominating ride in a race that was marred by multiple crashes. Finishing behind the 18-year old were Anfal A (Rockstar Racing) from Thrissur and Jinendra Kiran Sangave, a private entrant from Kolhapur, the youngest competitor at just 12 years.
Ryhana Bee, wins the Girls race with Baddam Deepika Reddy, left, taking 2nd and Jagruti Kiran, 3rd on Sunday. Photo by Anand Philar. Earlier, another Chennai rider, Ryhana Bee (RACR Castrol Power Racing), returning to racing after a year’s gap following injury, topped the Girls race (Stock 165cc). The victory in the five-lapper was hers for the taking after defending champion Ann Jennifer (Sparks Racing) and Lani Zena Fernandez (Speed Up Racing) got tangled and crashed in the third lap. Thereafter, it was a fairly easy run for Ryhana who won from Baddam Deepika Reddy (Gusto Racing, Hyderabad) and Jagruthi Kiran (Sparks Racing, Mumbai).
Kavin Quintal (NSF 250R), Rakshith S Dave (CBR 150) and Kevin Kannan (Hornet 2.0), all from Chennai, finished with a double apiece in the Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup One-Make Championship while Kolhapur’s Jinendra Kiran Sangave, also won both the races in the Rookie category of the TVS One-Make Championship.
The results (Provisional – all 6 laps unless mentioned):
National Championship – Pro-Stock 301-400cc (Race-1): 1. Rajini Krishnan (RACR Castrol Power Racing, Chennai) (11mins, 28.636secs); 2. Rahil Shetty (Gusto Racing, Hyderabad) (11:30.050); 3. Anish Damodara Shetty (Race Concepts, Hubballi) (11:30.267). Race-2 (8 laps): 1. Rajini Krishnan (15:15.580); 2. KY Ahamed (TVS Racing, Chennai) (15:17.169); 3. Anish Damodara Shetty (15:17.977).
Pro-Stock 165cc Open (Race-2, 8 laps): 1. Jagan Kumar (TVS Racing, Chennai) (15:48.429); 2. Rajiv Sethu (Idemitsu Honda SK69 Racing, Chennai) (15:48.476); 3. Deepak Ravikumar (TVS Racing, Chennai) (15:54.822).
Novice (Stock, 165cc Race-2): 1. Alwin Sundar (AS Motorsports, Chennai) (13:04.324); 2. Anfal A (Rockstar Racing, Thrissur) (13:05.899); 3. JInendra Kiran Sangave (Pvt, Kolhapur).
Girls (Stock 165cc, 5 laps): 1. Ryhana Bee (RACR, Chennai) (10:59.842); 2. Baddam Deepika Reddy (Gusto Racing, Hyderabad) (11:21.426); 3. Jagruthi Kiran (Sparks Racing, Mumbai) (11:21.647).
One-Make Championships:
Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup – NSF 250 Open (Race-2, 8 laps): 1. Kavin Quintal (Chennai) (14:51.472); 2. Sartak Chavan (Pune) (15:01.335); 3. Samuel Martin (Bengaluru) (15:09.450).
Honda CBR 150 (Race-2): 1. Rakshith S Dave (Chennai) (13:20.170); 2. Prakash Kamath (Bokaro Steel City) (13:26.483); 3. Shyam Babu (Chennai) (13:55.118).
Honda Hornet 2.0 (Race-2): 1. Kevin Kannan (Chennai) (13:28.307); 2. Sudheer Sudhakar (New Delhi) (13:28.317); 3. Alwin Sundar (Chennai) (13:28.696).
TVS Apache RR 310 Open (Race-2): 1. Yashas RL (Bengaluru) (11:54.802); 2. Manoj Yesudiyan (Chennai) (11:57.307); 3. Amarnath Menon (Calicut) (11:57.376).
TVS Rookie (RTR 200, Race-2): 1. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (Kolhapur) (12:58.183); 2. Jagathishree (Chennai) (13:09.244); 3. Zenas Bailey (Auroville) (13:09.286).
TVS Media (RTR 200, 5 laps): 1. Soham Thakur (Mumbai) (11:56.577); 2. Ajinkya Lad (Mumbai) (12:26.279); 3. Vishal Joshi (Pune) (12:28.684).
