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Shreyas, Jinendra to represent India at Valencia
Bengaluru, 5 Sept. 2022: Talented Shreyas Hareesh from Bengaluru dominated the last two rounds to upset the applecart of title-favourite Jinendra Kiran Sangave and was crowned the Indian champion in the FIM MiniGP India series which concluded at Meco Kartopia here on Sunday.
Shreyas and Kolhapur’s Jinendra qualified to represent India in the FIM MiniGP World Series Finals to be held in November in Valencia, Spain. “I am happy and excited that I have won the championship. I had fun and am eagerly looking forward to take part in the next stage of the World Championship at valencia, ” said Shreyas.
Shreyas (220 points) and Jinendra (213) finished first and second respectively in the FIM MiniGP World Series India 2022 which concluded at the Meco Kartopia here on Sunday. In the World Finals, the pair will compete with toppers of respective National series held in 15 countries.
Shreyas Hareesh (with the Indian flag) celebrates with family and friends after winning the MiniGP India Series at Meco Kartopia on Sept. 4, 2022. The five-round, 10-race India series, organised by RMS Motorsport with support from Meco Motorsports, saw Jinendra, 13, dominate initially by winning five races in a row. However, 12-year old Shreyas staged a remarkable comeback by topping four of the next five races, including a double in Round-4 on Saturday to finish on top of the Series points table with 220 points. Jinendra, who barely survived a difficult final weekend, finished with 213 points, well ahead of third-placed Nandanan Mahendran of Chennai (153).
Rookie Nithila Das, topped among the girls. Bengaluru-based Nithila Das kept the ‘Women in Motorsports’ flag flying by winning the top honours among the girls and also finished a creditable fifth overall in the standings with 106 points among 15 riders while Rakshitha Dave from Chennai was seventh (94). The other two girls, both from Bengaluru, Aleena Mansur Sheikh and Anastya Pol, participated only in Round-1.
Nithila, a Karnataka State cycling champion in her class, took to racing only this year but displayed enough skills and talent to beat many experienced riders. She finished first among the girls in eight of the 10 races.
The results (all 15 laps):
Round-4: Race-1: 1. Shreyas Hareesh (Bengaluru) (16mins, 08.090secs); 2. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (Kolhapur) (16:40.592); 3. Rakshith S Dave (Chennai) (16:46.509). Race-2: Shreyas Hareesh (16:05.533); Jinendra Sangave (16:06.095); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (Chennai) (16:37.833).
Qualifying (Top 3, best lap): 1. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (01:04.014); 2. Shreyas Hareesh (01:04.148); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (01:04.251).
Round-5: Race-1: Jinendra Kiran Sangave (16:07.381); 2. Shreyas Hareesh (16:07.958); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (16:20.406). Race-2: 1. Shreyas Hareesh (16:14.237); 2. Nandanan Mahendran (16:25.629); 3. Rakshith Dave (Chennai) (16:41.085).
Qualifying (Top 3, best lap): Shreyas Hareesh (01:03.061); 2. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (01:03.244); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (01:04.208).
FINAL SERIES STANDINGS (TOP 3): 1. Shreyas Hareesh (220 points); 2. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (213); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (153).
About FIM MiniGP World Series India Series
The FIM MiniGP World Series India, comprising a total of 10 races spread over five rounds, is part of the global programme run across 15 countries, and initiated by the FIM, the World governing body for two-wheeler racing, in conjunction with Dorna Sports, promoters of the FIM MotoGP.
The FIM launched the MiniGP Series in 2021, as part of the Road To MotoGP programme, aiming to create an equal platform for young riders around the World to begin their motorcycle racing careers. All riders compete on equal Ohvale GP-0 160 machinery (Mini bikes), manufactured in Italy, while Pirelli is the official single tyre supplier for all the FIM MiniGP World Series.
The top two riders based on points at the conclusion of the India series will represent the country in the FIM MiniGP World Series finals to be held in Valencia, Spain, in November.
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Dutch GP: Verstappen wins; Safety car periods ruins Hamilton’s day
Zandvoort, 4 Sept. 2022: Max Verstappen took his 10th win of the season at the end of a strategically complicated Dutch Grand Prix defined by two safety car periods, one Virtual and one physical. George Russell finished second for Mercedes ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
Verstappen led from pole in early stages of the race but the result was thrown into question when it became clear that Mercedes might spring a surprise by targeting a one-stop strategy.
As Verstappen stuck to a two-stop plan, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton seized the lead ahead of team-mate George Russell. However, two safety car periods swung the pendulum back towards Verstappen and when Hamilton elected to stay out on medium tyres and the Dutchman moved to soft tyres under the final SC, Verstappen roared past the Briton at the restart to take the lead and victory.
At the start of the race Verstappen made a good getaway and he took the lead ahead of Leclerc and the second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz.
Behind the top three, Sergio Pérez tried to attack Hamilton on the run to the first corner, but the Mercedes driver defended well. Hamilton then tried to go down the inside of Sainz but the pair made slight contact. Hamilton was then slow through the banked Turn 3 but managed to again hold off Pérez to keep fourth place.
Verstappen then began to pull a gap to Leclerc and after seven laps he was 1.5s ahead of the Ferrari driver. Meanwhile, behind the top five, Geroge Russell in the other Mercedes was sixth ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris, while Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll was eighth ahead of Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and the 10th-placed Haas of Mick Schumacher.
Pérez pitted at the end of lap 14 and jumped Sainz as Ferrari bungled the Spaniard’s pit stop. Leclerc then pitted from second at the end of lap 17 and Verstappen made his first stop on following lap. The Red Bull driver moved to medium tyres and rejoined in P3 as Hamilton moved into the lead ahead of team-mate Russell.
With new tyres on board, Verstappen began to chase down the leading Mercedes cars and on lap 23 the Dutchman was 2.6s behind Russell. On lap 28, aided by DRS, the World Champion breezed past the Mercedes around the outside on the approach to Turn 1.
He quickly began to close on the race leader, with the result that Hamilton pitted. He took on hard tyres. Russell then pitted at the end of lap 31 for hard tyres and he came out in fifth place. Verstappen now led the race, eight seconds clear of Leclerc, with Pérez in third place. The top three were all on a two-stop strategy. Hamilton and Russell sat in fourth and fifth places respectively, with both Mercedes drivers on a one-stop race. Sainz now held sixth place ahead of Norris, Stroll and the Alpine cars of Fernando Alonso and Ocon.
Hamilton then passed Pérez as he set about narrowing the gap to Verstappen who still needed another stop. However, on lap 44, the complexion of the race changed when AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda hit trouble., and after a confusion about the issue, the Japanese driver was eventually told to stop. He pulled over at the side of the track and the VSC was deployed.
Verstappen pitted at the end of lap 48 taking on hard tyres and took on hard tyres and rejoined in the lead. Mercedes switched Hamilton and Russell to medium tyres. Hamilton came out in P2 with Russell third ahead of Leclerc.
The race changed again on lap 55. Valtteri Bottas’ Alfa Romeo ground to a halt at the end of the pit straight and the yellow flags were flown and a lap later the safety car was deployed.
Verstappen pitted and took on soft tyres. Mercedes then pitted Russell who took on softs. Behind the SC, Hamilton, on mediums, now led ahead of Max on softs, with Russell third ahead Leclerc and Checo, who was on mediums.
The SC left the track on lap 60 and Verstappen on quicker soft tyres, powered past the Mercedes on the pit straight to take the lead and 12 laps later the win. Hamilton was passed in the closing staged by Russell and Leclerc but the Briton managed to hang on to fourth place ahead of Pérez who inherited fifth when Sainz was handed a late five-second penalty for an unsafe release. Alpine’s Fernando Alonso took sixth ahead of Norris and Sainz finished eighth ahead of Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
2022 FIA Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix – Race
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull 72 1:36’42.773
2 George Russell Mercedes 72 1:36’46.844 4.071
3 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 72 1:36’53.702 10.929
4 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 72 1:36’55.789 13.016
5 Sergio Pérez Red Bull 72 1:37’00.941 18.168
6 Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 72 1:37’01.527 18.754
7 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 72 1:37’02.079 19.306
8 Carlos Sainz Jr. Ferrari 72 1:37’03.689 20.916
9 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 72 1:37’03.890 21.117
10 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 72 1:37’05.232 22.459
11 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Red Bull 72 1:37’09.782 27.009
12 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 72 1:37’13.163 30.390
13 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 72 1:37’15.768 32.995
14 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin/Mercedes 72 1:37’18.780 36.007
15 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 72 1:37’19.642 36.869
16 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 72 1:37’20.093 37.320
17 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 72 1:37’20.537 37.764
18 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 71 1:37’24.851 1 lap /42.078
Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 53 1:10’40.476 Retirement
Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Red Bull 43 58’27.741 Retirement -
Dutch GP: Verstappen beats Leclerc by 0.021s to take home pole
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen edges out Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc by 0.021s to take F1 Dutch GP pole with Carlos Sainz third.
Q1:
The first part of F1 qualifying in Dutch GP at Zandvoort saw Red Bull’s Max Verstappen lead the pack with a 1m11.317s lap with a safe distance to Ferrari pair where Mercedes’ George Russell and Lewis Hamilton got in to be second and third initially.
But Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc put in another quick lap to be second and close to Verstappen, with Russell retaining third. But late rumble saw the Dutchman still remain on top as Hamilton improved to second from AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda.
The late improvements put Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in danger in 14th, as Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu was the first to be knocked out in 16th with 1m11.961s lap as Haas’ Kevin Magnussen (1m12.041s) was 17th after a moment on his quick lap.
McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo (1m12.081s) also lost in the final sector to be only 18th as Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel (1m12.391s) was sadly 19th after his wide moment on what looked like a fast lap. Williams’ Nicholas Latifi (1m13.353s) ended up 20th.
Q2:
The second part in F1 qualifying at Dutch GP saw red flag to start it off after a fan threw a flare on track. He was removed by the organisers as the session resumed post that. The initial run had Verstappen on top with a 1m10.927s lap.
He headed Hamilton and Red Bull’ Sergio Perez in third, with the Ferrari pair far off in the second half of the Top 10. In the end, Sainz was fastest with a 1m10.814s lap after a late improvement with Russell slotting in second from Verstappen.
It was heavy knockout zone in Q2 with both Alpines out where Esteban Ocon (1m11.605s) led teammate Fernando Alonso (1m11.613s) in 12th and 13th, who had a moment on his final lap and complained of traffic but it didn’t look like one.
They slotted behind AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly (1m11.512s). Alfa Romeo’s Guanyu (1m11.704s) pitted eventually to be 14th while Williams’ Alexander Albon (1m11.802s) also did not venture out for a final lap to be 15th.
Q3:
The final part in F1 qualifying at Dutch GP saw Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc show some pace on his first quick lap of 1m10.456s which was 0.059s faster than Verstappen to take provisional pole, as Hamilton slotted in third from Sainz and Perez.
There was another flare moment but was quickly taken off as the final lap saw a big fight between Verstappen (1m10.342s) and Leclerc (1m10.363s) where the Dutchman took F1 Dutch GP pole by 0.021s, as Sainz (1m10.434s) rounded out the Top 3 positions.
Hamilton (1m10.648s) was fourth from Perez (1m11.077s), who spun off at the final corner bringing out the yellow flags. Russell (1m11.147s) was sixth from McLaren’s Lando Norris (1m11.174s), Haas’ Mick Schumacher (1m11.442s), Tsunoda (1m12.556s) as Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll did not take the track due to a mechanical issue.
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MotoGP: Miller takes San Marino GP pole from Bagnaia
Ducati’s Jack Miller took MotoGP pole in San Marino GP from teammate Francesco Bagnaia and Gresini’s Enea Bastianini in mixed weather conditions.
For the first time since the 2018 Argentina GP, Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team) will start a MotoGP race from pole position after coming out on top of a rain effected Q2 at the Gran Premio Gryfyn di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini. The Australian’s 1:31.899 was enough to beat teammate Francesco Bagnaia by 0.015s as the Italian faces a three-second grid penalty on Sunday, with Enea Bastianini (Gresini Racing MotoGP) making it a Ducati 1-2-3 in qualifying after finishing third.
Q1:
Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) set the initial benchmark in the opening 15 minutes of qualifying before Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) set a 1:31.961 to go top. Having been threatening all afternoon, spots of rain started to fall with eight minutes to go, with Bezzecchi and Martin sitting inside the all-important top two.
With three and a half minutes to go, Luca Marini jumped ahead of Martin to make it a Mooney VR46 Racing Team 1-2 – and the Italian couldn’t have timed it any better. The rain had started to fall heavier as the riders all had to pull out of their final flying laps, meaning Bezzecchi and Marini were heading into Q2, seeing Martin miss out by 0.011s.
Q2:
Tensions were high ahead of the 15-minute pole position fight, with most of the riders starting the session on wet Michelin tyres – all but Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing). And straight away the Portuguese rider was three seconds quicker than Bagnaia with the Italian on wet tyres, it was now clear the slick tyres were the correct choice.
Bagnaia, Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™) and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) – the top three in the World Championship – were some of the last to venture out on slicks. Meanwhile, Bezzecchi had gone fastest by half a second before Miller moved the goalposts, the Australian briefly sat 0.7s quicker than anyone before Oliveira cut the gap to 0.2s.
As expected, the times were tumbling lap by lap. Bezzecchi blitzed his way to provisional pole before Bastianini found a 1:33.812 to go quickest. Miller then split the Italians to slot into P2, 0.021s off Bastianini’s time, as red sector times littered to timing screens. Miller and Bastianini exchanged P1 again before Bagnaia took over top spot with a 1:32.413, as Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing) decided it was his turn to lead the session. Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) gate-crashed the Ducati party to go second, 0.090s off Zarco, as Championship leader Quartararo found himself P7 with just over a minute to go.
That became P5 heading onto his final lap, but the Frenchman was half a second away from provisional pole. A 1:31.899 from Miller was the new time to beat but teammate Bagnaia was 0.083s under his time at the third split. Was it enough? Not quite. Pecco went into P2 with Bezzecchi going third, Marini made a late charge into the top six before Viñales jumped up to P5, but no one was able to better Miller on Saturday in Misano.
After finishing second, Bagnaia will launch from P5 for the San Marino GP after his mistake in FP1. That means Bastianini will start from the middle of the front row in P2, and fourth place Bezzecchi moves up a row to line up third. Viñales is the final rider to benefit from Pecco’s penalty, the Spaniard will be eying at least a podium from P4 with Bagnaia – crucially – starting ahead of his main title rivals in fifth. Zarco joins Viñales and Bagnaia on the second row in sixth.
Marini leads the third row ahead of the top two in the World Championship: Quartararo and Aleix Espargaro. It wasn’t the Q2 they would have been looking for, but it will make for very interesting viewing to see how the Yamaha and Aprilia stars progress on Sunday afternoon. Oliveira, Franco Morbidelli and Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) complete the top 12.
[Note: The story is as per press release]
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Dutch GP: Leclerc remains on top in FP3 from Russell, Verstappen
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc kept himself on top in FP3 of F1 Dutch GP as Mercedes’ George Russell got himself in second from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
It was fairly stable FP3 session in F1 Dutch GP at Zandvoort, as Ferrari maintained its top position where Leclerc was quickest with a 1m11.632s lap. Red Bull started off well early in the session, but both Ferrari and Mercedes upped their pace by the end.
In fact, George Russell sneaked to second pushing Max Verstappen to third as Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was fourth from Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez with the Top 3 F1 teams not far off from each other.
Perez was involved in a moment with the Ferrari pair late in the session, as Alpine’s Fernando Alonso in seventh from Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel. It was a good show from the Haas pair too with Mick Schumacher in ninth.
Teammate Kevin Magnussen was just outside in 11th behind McLaren’s Lando Norris. The other Aston Martin of Lance Stroll was 12th from Williams’ Alexander Albon with AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly in 14th after a heavy moment on the grass.
He smashed the DRS box in the process but was unharmed. Teammate Yuki Tsunoda was 16th from McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo, with the Australian also having an off moment. The Alfa Romeo pair ended up 18th and 19th in a lowly show.
It was Valtteri Bottas ahead of Zhou Guanyu, while Williams’ Nicholas Latifi rounded out the 20 runners.
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Dutch GP: Leclerc tops FP2 from Sainz by 0.004s after another red flag
Ferrari pair led the way in FP2 of F1 Dutch GP with Charles Leclerc ahead of Carlos Sainz, with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton in third.
It was a much more sedate FP2 session in F1 Dutch GP but there a red flag stoppage after AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda beached himself with about 10 minutes to go. It already started late after double red flag during the F2 qualifying which delayed the session.
The Ferrari pair led the way with Charles Leclerc (1m12.345s) ahead of Carlos Sainz (1m12.349s) by 0.004s, with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton (1m12.417s doing well in third with McLaren’s Lando Norris (1m12.448s) also doing well in fourth from the other Mercedes of George Russell (1m12.655s)
In another good show, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll (1m12.746s) was sixth from Alpine’s Fernando Alonso (1m12.848s), with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (1m13.048s) only eighth after he got some track time in FP2, having lost most of it in FP1 due to gearbox issue.
The other Alpine of Esteban Ocon (1m13.305s) was ninth from McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo (1m13.362s), whose session ended early due to oil leak. He led AlphaTauri’s Tsunoda in 11th, with Red Bull’s Sergio Perez struggling a bit in 12th after not getting a clean lap.
Haas’ Mick Schumacher slotted in 13th from Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel, with the lead Alfa Romeo of Zhou Guanyu in 15th. AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly did not have a great lap to be 16th with Williams’ Alexander Albon in 17th.
The Thai got a decent time in FP1 but couldn’t repeat that in FP2, as Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas and Haas’ Kevin Magnussen struggled in 18th and 19th from Williams’ Nicholas Latifi.
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Dutch GP: Russell fastest from Hamilton in FP1 as Verstappen causes RF
The Mercedes pair ended up 1-2 in FP1 of F1 Dutch GP with George Russell fastest from Lewis Hamilton, as Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz third.
The FP1 of F1 Dutch GP at Zandvoort wasn’t the cleanest of runs for all of the drivers involved, where several did have moments of running in, into each other. There were multiple off moments too, especially for Red Bull’s Sergio Perez.
Even AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly and Haas’ Mick Schumacher were involved too, with the German also getting investigated for leaving the pitlane under red flag. He was cleared since the light switched to red, the moment he crossed the line.
The red flag was for Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who had a gearbox issue which the team seemingly worked on since Thursday. At the front, it was a Mercedes 1-2 after a late quick laps from both George Russell (1m12.455s) and Lewis Hamilton (1m12.695s).
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz (1m12.845s) slotted in third from the McLaren pair, who were pretty quick in the first session with Lando Norris (1m12.929s) ahead of Daniel Ricciardo (1m13.077s). The Brit had a moment with Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel where he termed him ‘silly’.
The Ferrari of Charles Leclerc (1m13.127s) was sixth from Perez (1m13.416s) – who took his second ES – with the Alpine pair next where Fernando Alonso (1m13.633s) was eighth, Esteban Ocon (1m13.963s) ninth as Williams’ Alexander Albon (1m14.063s) rounded out the Top 10.
Despite his moments, Schumacher did well in 11th with Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll in 12th on the medium tyres. Haas’ Kevin Magnussen was 13th from first AlphaTauri of Gasly with Vettel rounding the Top 15, where the German also set his fast lap on the medium tyre.
The lead Alfa Romeo was of Zhou Guanyu in 16th where the Chinese joined quite late in the session, with teammate Valtteri Bottas 18th behind AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda. Despite the lack of running and on the hard tyre, Verstappen was 19th from Williams’ Nicholas Latifi.
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Shreyas wins last race; After a triple victory, Jinendra crashes in Race 4
Bengaluru, 28 August 2022: Kolhapur’s Jinendra Kiran Sangave won three of the four races while local lad Shreyas Hareesh topped the other in the two-day FIM MiniGP World Series India 2022 rounds which concluded at the Meco Kartopia circuit here on Sunday.
Hyderabad as venue for Rounds 2 and 3, was shifted to Bengaluru due to rains. Rounds 4 and 5 will also be held at Meco Kartopia on September 3 and 4. Each round comprises two races. The series is restricted to riders in the age-group of 10-14 years on single-make Ohvale mini bikes.
Jinendra, 13, who had won a double in Round-1 here last month, repeated the feat in Round-2 winning both the races on Saturday with Shreyas Hareesh and Chennai’s Nandanan Mahendran finishing second and third, respectively. The riders finished in the same order in the first race of Round-3 held on Sunday, but in the next outing later in the day, Jinendra crashed in the very first lap, but managed to rejoin to finish third behind Shreyas and Nandanan.
Nithila Das, topped among the girls, finishing in the top-5.
After three rounds, Jinendra leads the series with 141 points, ahead of Shreyas (125), Nandanan (94) and Kochi’s Muhammed Zain Correya (64).
The results (all 15 laps):
The dominant trio – Jinendra Sangave (centre, winner of three races), flanked by Shreyas Hareesh (left, who won one race) and Nandanan Mahendran, who finished on podium in all four races, in Rounds 2 and 3 of the FIM MiniGP World Series India 2022 held at Meco Kartopia in Bengaluru on August 27 and 28 respectively. Round-2: Race-1: 1. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (Kolhapur) (16mins, 09.931secs); 2. Shreyas Hareesh (Bengaluru) (16:13.057); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (Chennai) (16:28.164). Race-2: 1. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (16mins, 07.864); 2. Shreyas Hareesh (16:07.949); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (16:32.601).
Qualifying (top 4): 1. Jinendra Sangave (01:04.572); 2. Shreyas Hareesh (01:04.646); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (01:05.503); 4. Rakshith S Dave (Chennai) (01:06.868).
Round-3: Race-1: 1. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (16:30.852); 2. Shreyas Hareesh (16:31.104); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (16:35.155). Race-2: Shreyas Hareesh (16:07.031); 2. Nandanan Mahendran (16:15.289); 3. Jinendra Kiran Sangave (16:17.996).
Qualifying (top 4): 1. Jinendra Sangave (01:03.585); 2. Shreyas Hareesh (01:03.705); 3. Nandanan Mahendran (01:04.239); 4. Rakshith S Dave (Chennai) (01:05.853).
About FIM MiniGP World Series India Series
The FIM MiniGP World Series India, comprising a total of 10 races spread over five rounds, is part of the global programme run across 15 countries, and initiated by the FIM, the World governing body for two-wheeler racing, in conjunction with Dorna Sports, promoters of the FIM MotoGP.
The FIM launched the MiniGP Series in 2021, as part of the Road To MotoGP programme, aiming to create an equal platform for young riders around the World to begin their motorcycle racing careers. All riders compete on equal Ohvale GP-0 160 machinery (Mini bikes), manufactured in Italy, while Pirelli is the official single tyre supplier for all the FIM MiniGP World Series.
The top two riders based on points at the conclusion of the India series will represent the country in the FIM MiniGP World Series finals to be held in Valencia, Spain, in November.
Main Sponsors: Vidiem, Ohvale India and RMS Motorsport. Helmets: MT
Support partners: Tech & Tantra (organiser); AJ Customs (design & graphic); Garage77 (technical support).
Series Sponsors: Pirelli, Motul, Dell’Orto. Series supported by: FIM, Fmsci, DornaSports, Road to MotoGP
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Belgian GP: Verstappen eases to win from 14th in Red Bull 1-2 finish
Max Verstappen dominated F1 Belgian GP from 14th on the grid with Sergio Perez ending up second from Carlos Sainz.
It was clear weather to start the F1 Belgian GP at Spa-Francorchamps as Carlos Sainz made a great start from pole in his Ferrari to lead the race from Alpine’s Fernando Alonso, who also had a good start to be second but only until the Kemmel Straight.
Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton tried a move on the outside into the right hander but his wheels touched which sent the Brit flying. He eventually retired from damage but Alonso continued in fourth behind Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and Mercedes’ George Russell.
In fact, it was recovery from Perez who dropped behind Russell after a slow start but the Mexican made his way up to second from the Brit and the Spaniard. Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel had a good start to be fifth from McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo.
He passed Williams’ Alexander Albon at the start, as the Top 10 was rounded by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc before the safety car period. Both the Dutchman and the Monegasque made a lot of ground.
While Hamilton stopped in the final part of the circuit, Williams’ Nicholas Latifi had a moment on the exit of Kemmel Straight while fighting against Alpine’s Esteban Ocon. The Canadian spun around and caught out Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas.
While the Williams driver continued after pitting, Bottas was forced to retire. Not only this, but also the incident between Hamilton and Alonso was cleared by the stewards. Under the safety car, Leclerc was forced to pit early due to puncture.
It dropped him at the back as post the safety car re-start, Verstappen gained fix places to get himself behind his teammate in third. The Dutchman called for team orders but he managed to pass him on the Kemmel Straight to gain track position.
Just behind them, Albon retook the place he lost to Ricciardo at the start as Leclerc and even McLaren’s Lando Norris started to climb up the order around the Top 10. At the front, the pit stop situation started with Sainz coming in from the lead.
Verstappen pitted four laps later but managed to catch him and eventually pass him to lead the F1 Belgian GP. The Dutchman extended a good lead as Sainz came under pressure from Perez then. After laps of waiting, the Mexican passed him for second.
Perez also had an aggressive defence against Leclerc at Kemmel Straight, where the Monegasque complained that the Mexican did not leave him space. But there was no call from the stewards then. That moment allowed Russell to get on his tail too.
The Brit passe him for fourth, with Alonso in sixth from Vettel and Ocon who passed Albon to be seventh and eighth, while Ricciardo rounded out the Top 10. Ferrari kicked-off the second round of pit stops in a double-stack situation.
Sainz got onto the hard tyres, while Leclerc did so for soft. Few laps later, Perez pitted and changed to hard compound as well. Things settled down in the first half of the Top 5, as Alonso was sixth from AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly, Vettel and Ocon.
But Gasly couldn’t hang on for long as the trio went three wide at Kemmel Straight and Ocon took two places at one go with an outside move to be seventh. Vettel got past Gasly for eighth, as Albon rounded out the Top 10 leading a gaggle of cars.
He had Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll just behind him, with McLaren’s Lando Norris and Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu right on his tail as Ricciardo dropped further back after his pit stop. It was a straightforward grand prix in the end especially at the front.
Verstappen eased in to win the F1 Belgian GP by 17.841s over teammate Perez as he slid himself over the chequered flag. Sainz was third in the end with Russel fourth from Leclerc, who went for the fastest lap but it was too close with Alonso in the end.
The Spaniard did get past him on Kemmel Straight which Leclerc got it back on the final lap, but didn’t get the fastest lap which went to Verstappen. The bad run for the Monegasque didn’t end as he was handed a 5s penalty for speeding in the pitlane.
This eventually dropped him behind Alonso in sixth, as Ocon was seventh from Vettel, Gasly and Albon in the Top 10 where the Frenchman made it in the points from pitlane, while the Thai racer held off four cars behind him.
It was Stroll, Norris, Tsunoda and Zhou, with Ricciardo bit far in 15th from Haas’ Kevin Magnussen, Mick Schumacher and Latifi where the latter trio finished a lap down. Post-race, Hamilton got a warning for refusing to go to the medical center.
DNF: Bottas, Hamilton
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Belgian GP: Verstappen has pole but Sainz will start first from Perez
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen took F1 Belgian GP pole but second-placed Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz will start from there, as Sergio Perez was third.
Q1:
The start of first part of F1 Belgian GP qualifying was delayed due to repair work at Spa-Francorchamps after a crash in Porsche Cup race. Once things got going, Williams’ Nicholas Latifi did a sighting lap on the medium tyres as he readily pitted then.
The Red Bull pair did well in the first part with Max Verstappen leading the way after setting a 1m44.581s lap where teammate Sergio Perez was third behind Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz. The big fight was on between the drivers in the lower half to make it into Q2.
The knockout zone saw a big leap from Williams’ Alexander Albon who jumped to sixth which eventually knocked out Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel (1m46.344s), who missed Q2 by 0.002s. He was 16th from Williams’ Nicholas Latifi (1m46.401s).
Haas’ Kevin Magnussen (1m46.557s) was only 18th whereas teammate Mick Schumacher with the penalty made it in Q2, as AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda (1m46.692s) was 19th after a last lap lock-up which ruined his qualifying. Alfa Romoe’s Valtteri Bottas (1m47.866s) was 20th as he pitted and backed out of his final quick lap.
Q2:
The second part in F1 Belgian GP qualifying saw Red Bull set early pace and were separated by just the 0.071s margin with Verstappen ahead after setting a 1m4.723s lap from Perez, while Ferrari’s Sainz slotted in third where his teammate Charles Leclerc struggled.
The Monegasque complained of the car jumping strangely at slow corners. Also, McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo did not get a lap time in after everyone’s first run. The Australian had a wide moment over the kerb in Q1 when his quick lap was deleted.
The second run saw towing game at Alpine and McLaren where Fernando Alonso and Ricciardo were getting help from Esteban Ocon and Norris, respectively. By the end, Leclerc popped to the top with a 1m44.551s lap to lead from Verstappen and Perez.
Both the Alpine made it through and it was almost same for McLaren but for the 0.092s gap which knocked out Ricciardo (1m45.767s) in 11th as Albon made it in. AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly (1m45.827s) was 12th from Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu (1m46.085s).
Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll (1m46.611s) slotted in 14th as Haas’ Schumacher (1m47.718s) rounded the 15 runners, where the German did not have a great final lap which left him slowest in the second part.
Q3:
The third part of F1 Belgian GP qualifying saw early two game at Ferrari and Alpine, where Leclerc was helping Sainz and Alonso aiding Ocon on their first run. It was Red Bull’s Verstappen with the provisional pole after setting a time of 1m43.665s lap.
He led Sainz and Perez, with Leclerc eventually going for a lap and ending up fourth after his first run. Post the first lap, Verstappen ended his day early with the penalty he had. Ferrari, meanwhile, did use the Monegasque to help the Spaniard.
But Sainz (1m44.297s) had a moment with Alonso on the out lap. It was a scrappy run from the Ferrari driver and despite a two from Leclerc, he did not improve to end up second behind F1 Belgian GP pole-sitter Verstappen, who will start from the back.
Perez (1m44.462s) remained third with Leclerc (1m44.553s) staying fourth as well, as Alpine’s Ocon (1m45.180s) was fifth from Alonso (1m45.368s) where the Frenchman will go to the back. The Mercedes pair slotted in seventh and eighth.
Hamilton (1m45.503s) ended up ahead of Russell (1m45.776s). Williams’ Albon (1m45.837s) ended up ninth eventually with McLaren’s Norris (1m46.178s) rounding the Top 10, who will also start from the back.
