INDIA in F1

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  • Portimao to host WorldSBK until 2022

    Portimao to host WorldSBK until 2022

    Contract extension ensures Autodromo Internacional do Algarve remains on the calendar for further three years

    Officials pose after signing the contract. A WorldSBK image

    Portimao, 23 August 2019: Parkalgar (Autodrómo Internacional do Algarve) and Dorna WSBK Organization are delighted to announce that the Portuguese racetrack will remain on the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship calendar until 2022.

    Ahead of the 2019 official WorldSBK test at Portimao, CEO of Autodromo Internacional do Algarve Paulo Pinheiro, Isilda Gomes mayor of the city together with João Fernandes President of Algarve Tourism Board and Gregorio Lavilla (WorldSBK Executive Director of Sporting and Organization) have announced the signing of the contract extension that will see WorldSBK continuing to race in Portugal for a further three years (2020-21-22).

    The Portuguese Round has been held in Portimao since 2008 with the only exception of 2016. Moreover, the famous racetrack has been the stage of the Official WorldSBK Test in 2015 and since 2017, becoming a particularly important venue for all riders and teams making their final arrangements for the most crucial part of the season.

    Also participating at the event at Portimao Town Hall, Friday 23rd August 2019, reigning WorldSBK World Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) and Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven) all gave positive comments regarding the extension.

    Paulo Pinheiro, CEO of Autodromo Internacional do Algarve: “I am happy and proud that we will continue to have WorldSBK for another three years. It was our first event back in 2008, and it remains our main event and Portugal’s biggest motorcycle event. The championship has grown in the last years, and the next three will be even more exciting. WorldSBK for us, it’s almost like a family. Together we have raced in this paddock for seven years reaching amazing results. We have great memories, and for us, it’s amazing to be able to continue to be part of the championship. For our city, region and country, this is the biggest motorsports asset with global media exposure and more than 40.000 spectators attending over the weekend. During the year, with several tests and events, we reach more than 90 days of bike trackdays, and this shows how important WorldSBK is, as it confirms its economic impact.
    We are looking forward to the next three years, but now we are fully focused on making the 2019 event bigger and better than ever before with the help of DORNA, teams, riders and all the fans.”

    Isilda Gomes, Mayor of Portimao: “It is fantastic news that Portugal biggest motorsports event will continue to take place in Portimao for further three years, and it is particularly good to hear it in the year that Portimao has been named the European City of Sports. The news doesn’t only make us proud, but it is a commitment to continue to be active partners of Autodromo Internacional do Algarve and recognize the strong impact of this event on our local economy”.

    João Fernandes, President of Algarve Tourism Board: “The Superbike World Championship is the biggest international motorcycling competition occurring in Portugal, and we all know that it attracts not only riders and their teams but also thousands of enthusiasts and media from all over the world. The announcement of the continuity of this event for three more years in the Algarve is, therefore, welcome news. The Algarve has long been regarded as a favourite seaside destination for German, UK, Dutch and Spanish tourists. It is now time for this region to claim the title of best sports destination thanks to its warm climate, good infrastructures and friendly hospitality. Sports tourism has been increasing over the last 20 years, and it is my wish that it can also bloom in the Algarve at motorsports speed (the Superbike World Championship will definitely help us with this task).”

    Gregorio Lavilla, WorldSBK Executive Director of Sporting and Organization: “The renewal of the contract with Autodromo Internacional do Algarve is fantastic news for WorldSBK. Portimao Circuit stands out as being a very unique layout that makes it one of the riders’ favourite destinations in the championship calendar. Every year the Portuguese Round becomes the stage of spectacular racing and fans flock to Portugal not only to enjoy the WorldSBK battles but also for discovering the beauties of the landscapes and enjoying the amazing Algarve beaches. Autodromo do Algarve has modern facilities that constantly improve every year to host our paddock. The fact that Portimao has secured WorldSBK until 2022 shows the deep bond between the two parties, and we can’t wait to see the incredible races that Portimao will give us over the next three years”.

  • `Everything is very fast’: riders prepare to take on Silverstone: MotoGP

    `Everything is very fast’: riders prepare to take on Silverstone: MotoGP

    The pre-event Press Conference and the Day of Champions kick off the GoPro British Grand Prix

    Top photo L-R: Crutchlow, Quartararo, Dovizioso, Marquez, Rossi, Miller, Lorenzo. A MotoGP image

    Silverstone, 22 August 2019: Before go-time for the GoPro British Grand Prix, we had a full house of seven riders in the pre-event Press Conference, with reigning Champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) joined by Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team), Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT), Jack Miller (Pramac Racing), Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) and the returning Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team). The new surface, the competitive field and what to expect in the weekend ahead meant there was plenty to talk about.

    Marquez spoke first. “Yeah, of course, looking forward to the Silverstone GP and this weekend because as you know I have some good luck, and I was unlucky some years. Anyway, we’ve had great races, it’s a circuit I like, one of our weak points on this race track was the bumps but looks like they’ve resurfaced in a good way, it looks nice from a bicycle! But tomorrow we will check on the bike and yeah apart from that try to concentrate, stay focused and try to fight on Sunday for the best position.”

    And is the number 93 expecting tough competition? Most definitely. “Especially here, we saw last year in practice Viñales was fast, all the Yamaha riders were fast, but we weren’t far away. I think this year with the new surface it will be different, we need to understand the tyres, the grip, the level of our bike…we have a better engine this year and here it will be a small help. Of course, Dovi will be there, he’s second in the Championship and will try to push, but our target is to finish on the podium and get points for the championship. The forecast looks nice so we’ll keep going!”

    Dovizioso was next on the mic, with the Italian actually the most recent winner at Silverstone given his victory in 2017. And he’s the most recent winner overall after that stunner in Spielberg.

    “Yes for sure the last race was amazing, a really nice battle from the first lap to the end with Marc, so we are so happy about that, we needed that victory. I’m happy to be here, I think it’s one of the best races in the Championship, the track is really nice. Hopefully, without bumps, it will be even nicer so I’m excited to try the new asphalt.”

    So is it the British weather that Dovizioso has had on his side in the UK? His first premier class win came at Donington and since he’s had a fair few successes…

    “I don’t like the weather so much! But I have always had good luck in this country, I’ve been pretty fast in England most of the time, I don’t know why. Donington was a special track and a special first victory but in Silverstone I’ve always felt good, it’s a really difficult track but I enjoy riding here.”

    Rossi is another of the long list of previous winners at Silverstone. Incidentally, he also took his first premier class win in the UK at Donington as well, and after a tougher run of things in 2019, the ‘Doctor’ seems to be back on track.

    “Yeah for us in the last two races from Brno we start in a better way. After we did another step, we worked well and we were quite competitive in the race. Considering Austria on paper is one of the worst tracks for us, it was quite good. We arrive here, hope to continue in that way because anyway Austria was not so bad, but I wasn’t fast enough to find the podium so we need to continue to work. Silverstone is a fantastic track. It’s a great track, it’s a big track, everything is very fast and technical. Everybody is waiting for the asphalt tomorrow. If they’ve done a good job with fewer bumps and good grip, it will be very fun to ride here. And also we wait for the weather because in 2017 it was a fantastic weekend, a great weekend. Last year, unfortunately, it was a lot more difficult. We hope it’s similar to 2017!

    “In the past, I had good races and arrived on the podium, so this is the target. About the top speed we know we’re not fantastic but on paper, in Austria, it’s more important than here. The important thing is to find a good feeling with the bike, a good balance, and be ready for Sunday.”

    Rookie Fabio Quartararo, meanwhile, also showed there’s more to Austria than just being the fastest in a straight line. After his podium there, the vibes are good on the way into Silverstone.

    “I’m really happy about arriving here at a track that I really like. As Valentino said, I think everybody is waiting for the new tarmac, I think it should be a good track for us. Suits us better than Austria so I can’t wait for tomorrow.

    “The goal is to be top Rookie, we’re leading but the Championship isn’t over. Now we’re improving every race, we’re learning, so that’s still the main goal for this year. But in Austria the goal was to be in front but we didn’t expect to be on the podium, so if we have the opportunity to be on the podium we’ll fight for it.”

    Quartararo is top rookie and he’s also leading the Independent Team rider standings at the moment, ahead of the next man to talk: Jack Miller. The Australian spoke about the weekend ahead, and how it feels to arrive with a new contract in his pocket.

    “I’m definitely coming into this weekend with a different mindset that’s for sure. This Thursday has been easier, let’s just say that. It’s been nice you know, the Day of Champions has been really nice to see all the fans but no it’s good to be back, like you say I had a chance to make it back to back podiums last weekend, I had really strong pace all weekend but threw it away a bit too early. Had a good feeling this weekend last year, hopefully, this year is a lot better and as the boys said the asphalt should be amazing, we’ve heard some decent reviews about the asphalt so I’m looking forward to getting out there tomorrow and I think it’s shaping up to be a great weekend.”

    It has sometimes been a more difficult track for the Australian, however, including a high-profile crash with then-teammate Cal Crutchlow a few years ago. But this year Miller is positive ahead of the weekend.

    “As long as I don’t have any British road blocks in my way I should be alright! It’s not the best track for me to be honest, I always hated it until last year, with the new asphalt it was like a different track and I loved it. And I’m looking forward to it now with the reviews it’s had, I can’t wait to get out there. Should be a good weekend.”

    Home hero Crutchlow was the next man on the mic, and the weekend is a fitting landmark: it’ll be his 150th Grand Prix start on Sunday.

    “I only got told at the last race that it would be my 150th Grand Prix start – I didn’t think I’d done 150 Grands Prix and I definitely haven’t finished 150! I’m looking forward to it, Silverstone is a good race for me, I’ll give my all for the 20-lap race.”

    Crutchlow was also asked about the visit he paid to Chelsea F.C. on Wednesday and dabbled a bit in the beautiful game before.

    “It was was good! I’ve been to a few football stadiums in my time so to go back when I wasn’t playing or watching a game…it was nice to go round Stamford Bridge and get taken around by Kepa…he’s a big MotoGP fan, obviously, he supports the Spaniards but it was a really good day.”

    Finally, it was time to welcome back Jorge Lorenzo. After a long period of recovery after his crash in which he cracked vertebrae and got sidelined, he’s ready to race.

    “I’m happy to be back. Finally, after a long time. A very long time, no? I’ve never spent so long out of racing competition for about the 17 years I’ve been here. I’m back. What was very difficult at the beginning, the first two weeks were very difficult, I wasn’t recovering fast, it was slow. Luckily after three weeks, the recovery has been faster, I have been able to do some physical training again. With some pain after the work during the night, every time the pain was less and less. I think this is the right moment to come back to the bike because you can lose a lot of speed, a lot of pace if you stay so much time out of the competition.

    “Honestly with my injury theoretically you need three months to recover completely, I’m about two months on now from the crash and obviously I still have some pain, but I feel ready to ride again and to try. I’m not here to fight for the win or podium or top five, but as soon as I go on the bike I want to start getting the pace I need to get good performances again like I started to show before the crash.”

    That he did, and it’s a good venue for the number 99 to return to. He’s got three wins at Silverstone and was on pole last season, and although it’s about getting back up to speed, the venue is certainly one the five-time World Champion knows his way around.

    Lorenzo rejoins the field on track from Friday morning, with the race on Sunday at 13:00 (IST 5.30pm)

  • How the FIA and F1 will break the rules: The next steps

    Wind tunnel testing of car models for 2021 has proved encouraging so far, with the results suggesting the next generation of F1 cars should be able to follow each other more closely. Now attention is turning to refining the rules – and more specifically breaking the rules…

    A large part of the focus of the FIA and Formula 1 up to now has been on trying to reduce the effects the wake generated by a leading car has on a chasing car’s ability to follow, in order to provide closer racing and improved overtaking opportunities. This, of course, runs counter to the aims of a Formula 1 team, where there only desire is to beat their rivals. And if part of the victory is obtained by disrupting the stability of a competitor then that’s a target to be chased.

    It’s why FIA Head of Single Seater Technical Matters Nikolas Tombazis, Formula 1 Chief Technical Officer Pat Symonds and their respective teams have started trying to break their own rules.

    “We are trying to see where the rules we have written are robust and where they might be a little weaker,” says Symonds. “I’m sure ultimately the wake characteristics of a fully developed 2021 car are not going to be quite as good as we have got running at the moment, but I think they will still be very good, and it will be massively better than a 2019 or a 2020 car. I’m absolutely certain of that.

    “There are certain areas we know already where you can add performance but in doing so you damage the wake, so we have been quite prescriptive in those areas, because we’ve been trying to break the rules. There are other areas where we feel the design is robust so we’ve been less prescriptive in those areas.

    “We’re trying to look for the loopholes, look for the unintended consequences. That’s actually a difficult thing to do when you have written the rules. That was my experience when we were working on the 2009 cars. Because I had been involved in writing the rules, I found it difficult to think of the loopholes as I knew what was intended. That was a lesson learned, we have taken it on-board.

    “We’re trying to forget what the intention was and looking at what we have actually written down and see if we can put our team hats on.”

    Tombazis adds: “We are trying to find things that make the car go faster. If a team makes their car faster but the wake doesn’t get any worse, we don’t have any problem with that. But if a team makes the car faster and also hurts the wake, then clearly they will do it if the rule permits it. We can’t ask them to be benevolent. But we want to know about it so we can see if there are any fundamental weaknesses in the rules, any loopholes.

    The process also aims to identify areas where the FIA and Formula 1 see scope for performance gain by teams, ‘playgrounds’ where innovative thinking by teams can provide a competitive advantage without impacting on the goals set by the governing body and F1’s promoter for improved racing.

    “We want to safeguard the wake performance but we don’t want all cars to look the same or to be exactly the same,” says Tombazis. “There are some areas of the car where performance can be found and not worsen the key parameters of the following car and we want to encourage those areas to be a bit freer.”tion, as seen in the wind tunnel video, is very close to what we can expect the 2021 cars to look like, there will still be changes, particularly concerning the front wing.

    “There’s a lot of work going on the front wing at the moment to improve some of its characteristics and also to make it look a bit less square,” says Tombazis.

    As part of their attempts to break the rules, there will be two further wind tunnel sessions. The first will take place in October with a further test planned for December following the publication of the regulations, a timeline Tombazis says provides for adjustments to be made in line with the governance of the sport.

    “As with any set of regulations it is a constantly evolving process,” says Tombazis. “In October we will publish a full set of technical and sporting regulations which will come into force in 2021 and will not fundamentally be changed. If we do find an area where we feel some updates are necessary to maintain our goals for better raceability, then this is something that we will be able to do working with the teams within certain time constraints.”

    Finally, Symonds adds that beyond the tests aimed at the drafting of the 2021 regulations work will continue in order to monitor the exploitation of the ruleset.

    “It’s not our intention to just stop at that point [December]. We will continue to investigate, continue to develop, continue to try and exploit the regulations, in the same way, the teams will and from time to time next year, we’ll go back in the wind tunnel to check out results.”

  • Rajendra will miss Round 4 of INRC for two-wheelers on Sunday

    Rajendra will miss Round 4 of INRC for two-wheelers on Sunday

    File photo of Suhail Ahmed from Round 1. Suhail will be gunning for top honours in the C6 550cc class. Photo: Facebook @MotoPortSeena

    Coimbatore, 22 August 2019: TVS Racing star Rajendra RE, who made a clean sweep of all the three rounds thus far in Pro-Expert Group A, will be missing the Round 4 of the MRF MoGrip fmsci Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) for two-wheelers here on Sunday.

    Teammates Tanweer and defending champion R Nataraj too failed to submit the required documents during the scrutiny and the Group A event is expected to be cancelled. All the riders will be hoping for dry weather after the wet and slushy Round 3 in Pune and locals and other stars like Venu Ramesh Kumar and Suhail Ahmed will be gunning for overall honours.

    The 2W Rally of Coimbatore, promoted by Godspeed Racing of Pune and organised by Coimbatore Auto Sports Club (CASC), will be run on a mix of dirt and gravel Special Stages. The event has attracted 70 riders in nine classes.

    The total distance of the route including the transport section is 109.27 km. The two Special Stages, Black Thunder (14.35 km) and the Thunder World (14.10 km) will be run twice in the same direction taking the Special Stage rallying distance to 56.90 km.

    The nine classes that form the National championship are Super Bike (Pro Expert, Group A), Super Bike (Expert Group A), Super Sport 130 Group B, Super Sport 165 Group B, Super Sport 260 Group B, Super Sport 400 Group B, Super Sport 550 Group B and Scooter 210 Group B and Ladies Class Group B.

    A dozen local riders have entered for the Star of Tamil Nadu category which is run exclusively for riders from Tamil Nadu.

    Edited with inputs from TVS team

  • CS Santosh launches Recky, an app to connect world’s motorcyclists

    CS Santosh launches Recky, an app to connect world’s motorcyclists

    Santosh launches Recky app on Thursday.

    Bengaluru, 22 August 2019: India’s No.1 off-road motorcyclist CS Santosh launched on Thursday, Recky, a mobile application pegged to be the world’s most user-friendly activity recording App that connects world’s motorcyclists.

    Ideated and tested by CS Santosh, first Indian to complete the deadly Dakar Rally, Recky is a feature-rich App focused on simplifying the experience and making it affordable and accessible for developing countries.

    Recky allows you to take pictures in-app along your ride and automatically drops markers for where you’ve taken these pictures. These pictures show up once your ride is complete. The App provides the user vital information along with dark, light, topography and satellite map-views for free. “The whole idea was to provide the fast-growing biker community a platform to connect and explore various adventure biking routes in the world,” stated CS Santosh.

    Key features like record your ride, experience the ride, explore rides, get directions and user profile makes Recky fun and engaging. Apart from getting pin-point directions, the App displays elevation, top speed and distance.

    Privacy being paramount in today’s era, the creators of the App will ensure the data is not shared and the app does not track the rider until the user opts to record the activity.

    Once the ride is complete, the user can save it as ‘Private’ or opt ‘Followers’ (for your followers to see) or choose ‘Everyone’ option (for the general public which appears on explore rides). Others using Recky can then play the ride again to see directions, pictures and stats. The user can search for other riders, follow them, have them follow you to build a community and see their preferred ride.

    “Our Ride Explorer, displays all public rides and rides from your followers in one map-view, at all times. No need to click and find or search, it’s all map-based zooming and panning. Pan across to any country and find rides there instantly as riders populate them,” explained CS Santosh.

    While the directions to a ride are currently a list, it will soon be turn-by-turn navigation. “We’ll soon provide the users the option to create a ride-summary like no other in the world – this will be the most entertaining element for the user and for the user’s social media followers,” he added.

    About CS Santosh: CS Santosh is an Indian off-road and enduro motorcycle racer. Having spent more than a decade in racing motorbikes across challenging terrains in different countries, he is a multiple National Supercross and Motocross champion. In 2008, he became the first Indian in the Asian Motocross championship, to have qualified with the fastest time in Moto II in Iran, where he finished fourth, the highest ever by an Indian rider on the international circuit. He also became the MRF Supercross Challenge champion and won the Gulf Dirt Track championship for the second time. In 2012, he participated in the Raid-de-Himalaya which is the only Indian motorsport event listed on the off-road rallies calendar of FIM (Federation Internationale Motorcyclisme), Geneva, Switzerland. He won it in his maiden attempt in record time. It ranks among the top ten toughest motorsport rallies of the world and was a milestone in his racing career. He also finished 2nd in the Cavalry Supercross the same year. The following year, he became the first Indian to debut at the World Cross Country Rally Championship in 2013 but an unfortunate fire accident injured him badly during the 3rd Stage. He was running in the top 10 in his class. With third degree burns, he had a long recovery period that lasted till the end of the year.

    The Dakar Rally being the world’s toughest off-road motorsport event, is very selective about their participants. One has to earn an invite to get an opportunity to take the challenge. CS Santosh became the first Indian to compete in the history of this magnanimous motorsport event. He finished the Dakar at 36th position, the two weeks at the Dakar were the hardest two weeks of his life physically, mentally and emotionally. Last year, Santosh finished the 2018 Dakar Rally to become the first Indian to complete the rally raid thrice. His 34th position in the bike category was his best-ever finish at the Dakar.

     

  • Popular global major, motorsport.com closes India edition with immediate effect

    Popular global major, motorsport.com closes India edition with immediate effect

    Home page of the Indian Edition a few days back.

    Bengaluru, 21 August 2019: One of the top motorsports websites in the world, with multiple editions dedicated to different countries, Motorsport.com, has closed its Indian edition abruptly as of Wednesday after more than four years of its popular presence in the country.

    Motorsport.com which has an international network launched the Indian online platform on 14th July 2015  The premier source worldwide for online motorsports content, provided the Indian fan and the whole motorsports fraternity in the country with a wide range of content, covering every event and the many national championships with dedicated regularity, maximizing its coverage of news content in the country. Motorsport.com’s operations in India included editorial, marketing, and business development with staff based out of India. Among some other countries who became a casualty to this decision included popular editions like Indonesia and Ukraine.

    The entry into India at that time supported the Company’s strategic business decision and global growth strategy campaign aimed at winning new markets in providing more targeted motorsports coverage of major racing series, including Formula 1, World Endurance Championship, MotoGP, World Rally Championship, and FIA Formula E and of course all the Indian events like Indian National Rally Championship, National Racing Championships and about top Indians taking part in international events including Jehan Dharuvala.

    The Indian edition icon with the map and the `India’ button on the top horizontal navigation bar are missing from Wednesday 21st August 2019.

    The Global major which reaches its content to 18 countries and 10 native languages appointed Darshan Chokhani as Editor in Chief in 2015 and later Vivek Phadnis has taken over for a short period. Currently, India reporter Rachit Thukral and Global Photo Director Nikolaz Godet are shouldering the responsibility of the site in India.

    Rachit Thukral in an email communication said: “Since its launch in July 2015, Motorsport.com India has quickly grown to become the leading source of racing news and analysis in the country. We’ve closely covered all major domestic races, rallies and off-road events, while also narrating the stories of Indian racers competing abroad.”
    “Motorsport Network had major plans to expand its presence in both motor racing and automotive spheres in India. However, it has been forced to abort these plans due to business circumstances, following a review by the senior management,” he concluded.

    About Motorsport.com

    Formed in 1994, Motorsport.com is a technologically advanced international network of online motorsports content featuring world-class digital distribution, video and interactive multimedia worldwide with news bureaus in 18 countries in 10 different languages, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

    Note: Edited and added a comment on 23rd August 2019 at 10.30am

     

  • 10-car pile-up stops MRF F1600 races; Double for Arjun Balu, Rithvik Thomas

    10-car pile-up stops MRF F1600 races; Double for Arjun Balu, Rithvik Thomas

    Arjun Balu (centre), winner of Race-3 in ITC category, flanked by second-placed Aditya Patel (left) and Dhruv Shivaji Mohite. Photos by Anand Philar

    Chennai, 18 August 2019: On a day which began in heavy showers and ended in bright sunshine, Coimbatore veteran Arjun Balu (Race Concepts) completed a grand double in the Indian Touring Cars class to head the leaderboard as the fourth round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Car Racing Championship concluded at the MMRT, here today. Also achieving a double was Bengaluru’s Rithvik Thomas (Race Concepts) in the Super Stock category.

    Overshadowing the day’s proceedings was the 10-car pile-up in the MRF F1600 race that started in heavy showers and lasted barely 300 metres. as pole-sitter Yash Aradhya spun when he put wheels into a puddle, thus losing grip. The cars behind him, with nowhere to go, crashed into one another resulting in the abandonment of the race. None of the drivers suffered injuries barring cuts and bruises, but with 10 cars badly damaged, it was decided to cancel today’s scheduled three races and run them in the next round in September.


    Hyderabad’s Jeet Jhabakh (No.5) in action while winning Race-2 in VW Ameo Class.

    “The next round in September, will thus have seven races in MRF F1600 category. It was an unfortunate incident with Yash running into a puddle and spinning. With so many cars badly damaged, we decided to put off today’s three races and have them in the next round,” said Chairman of the Meet Vicky Chandhok.

    In Race-1 of the ITC category, that was declared “wet”, Balu and Patel were locked in a thrilling fight at the head of the field. Starting from pole, Balu maintained his position with Patel in close attendance. Three laps from the finish, Patel moved past Balu, but slipped back to second in the next lap when he ran wide at the last corner. Balu moved to the front and went on to win.

    In Race-2, run in fair weather and reverse grid, the three VW Ventos of Patel, Dhruv Shivaji Mohite and Ishaan Dodhiwala, switched to slicks, while Balu, starting eighth, remained on wet tyres. It was not long before the four moved to the front with Mohite pulling off a fine win ahead of Patel and Balu. The third race in this category, was a virtual procession with Balu, starting from pole, winning comfortably and unchallenged, followed by Patel and Dodhiwala. His two wins this weekend, took Balu’s tally to 148, way ahead of Mohite (119).


    Arjun Balu (No.39), who won a double in action .

    Spearheading a podium sweep for Race Concepts team, Sudanand Daniel, an airline pilot based in Singapore, won a dramatic wet first race in the Super Stock category for his maiden success of the season, with Rithvik Thomas and R Rajashekar in tow. RP Rajaran (Performance Racing) took the honours in Race-2 ahead of Rithvik Thomas and Daniel. In the next outing, Thomas survived a close fight with Daniel for his second win of the weekend. Rajarajan completed the podium.

    Jeet Jhabakh (Hyderabad) and Pune’s Prateek Sonawane won a race apiece in the Volkswagen Ameo Class category. After eight races over three rounds this season, Mumbai’s Saurav Bandyopadhyay (305 points), winner of the first race yesterday, leads the championship in this category followed by Sidharth Mehdiratta (298) from Lucknow and Sonawane (294).

    The results (Provisional):

    Indian Touring Cars (Race-1, 6 laps): 1. Arjun Balu (Race Concepts) (12mins, 49.794secs); 2. Aditya Patel (Rayo Racing) (12:50.491); 3. Dhruv Shivaji Mohite (Rayo Racing) (12:58.907).

    Race-2 (10 laps): 1. Dhruv Shivaji Mohite (Rayo Racing) (21:19.565); 2. Aditya Patel (Rayo Racing) (21:20.682); 3. Arjun Balu (Race Concepts) (21:28.378).

    Race-3 (8 laps): 1. Arjun Balu (15:11.978); 2. Aditya Patel (15:17.508); 3. Ishaan Dodhiwala (Team Rayo Racing) (15:28.324).

    Super Stock (Race-1, 6 laps): 1. Sudanand Daniel (Race Concepts) (14:15.475); 2. Rithvik Thomas (Race Concepts) (14:15.787); 3. R Rajashekar (Race Concepts) (14:45.952).

    Race 2 (10 laps): 1. RP Rajarajan (Performance Racing) (22:15.115); 2. Rithvik Thomas (Race Concepts) (22:27.432); 3. Sudanand Daniel (Race Concepts) (22:28.759).

    Race 3 (8 laps): 1. Rithvik Thomas (16:15.162); 2. Sudanand Daniel (16:15.951); 3. RP Rajarajan (16:40.747).

    Volkswagen Ameo Class (Race-2, 8 laps): 1. Jeet Jhabakh (Hyderabad) (20:09.577); 2. Aiman Sadat (Bangladesh) (20:12.811); 3. Siddharth Mehdiratta (Lucknow) (20:13.363).

    Race-3 (8 laps): 1. Prateek Sonawane (Pune) (16:00.024); 2. Sidharth Mehdiratta (Lucknow) (16:01.383); 3. Shobhomoy Ball (Bengaluru) (16:06.481).

  • Sohil Shah takes MRF F1600 championship lead with a facile win

    Sohil Shah takes MRF F1600 championship lead with a facile win

    Chennai, 17 August 2019: Bengaluru teenager Sohil Shah made the best of the pole-position start to notch a fine win in the premier MRF F1600 category and head the leaderboard in the Round 4 of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Car Racing Championship at the MMRT here today, that had a delayed start owing to the rains in the morning.

    Due to the late start, only two of the four races scheduled for the day could be completed. The remaining races would be added to the six slated for tomorrow which will have an early start 8.15 am. It was a difficult day with changing weather conditions leading to several changes in the schedule.

    In the day’s other action, Mumbai’s Saurav Bandyopadhyay took the honours in the Ameo Class race while Coimbatore ace Arjun Balu of Race Concepts (01:51.474) and team-mate Bengaluru’s Rithvik Thomas (01:59.425) grabbed pole positions in the Indian Touring Cars and the Super Stock categories, respectively.

    Sohil Shah photos by Anand Philar

    The lights-to-flag win today was Sohil’s third success in a row, having won the last two races in the previous round last month. With three more races are scheduled for this category tomorrow, Sohil heads the championship with 81 points, well clear of Mumbai’’s Nayan Chatterjee (63).

    The finish to the six-lap race (reduced from eight laps), which Sohil dominated while enjoying a commanding lead, was under the Safety Car which came out following an incident on Lap 5. As the Safety Car came in on the last lap, Sohil, rolled his car over the finish line ahead of Chennai’s Sandeep Kumar and Manav Sharma (Faridabad).

    “I enjoyed a good lead through the race until the Safety Car period. We all bunched up behind the Safety Car, and I played it safe before crossing the finish line,” said Sohil who has taken a “gap year” after completing 12th standard.

    Further down the grid, Nayan Chatterjee (Mumbai) who was leading the championship coming into this round, and Vishnu Prasad (Chennai) received 30-second penalties for overtaking under yellow flag, denying them any points.

    The results (Provisional):

    MRF F1600 (Race-1, 6 laps): 1. Sohil Shah (Bengaluru) 1 (11mins, 26.939secs); 2. Sandeep Kumar (Chennai) (11:28.164); 3. Manav Sharma (Faridabad) (11:28.569).

    Volkswagen Ameo Class (Race-1, 6 laps): 1. Saurav Bandyopadhyay (Mumbai) (11:38.169); 2. Shubhomoy Ball (Bengaluru) (11:42.374); 3. Pratik Sonawane (Pune) (11:43.025).

  • Ott Tanak on hattrick for Rallye Deutschland, the 10th round of the WRC

    Bostalsee (Germany), 17 August 2019: Round 10 of the 2019 FIA World Rally Championship takes the crews back onto tarmac for Rallye Deutschland (22-25 August), an event known for its demanding roads and often changeable weather conditions. 

    First run in 1982, it was part of the FIA European Rally Championship before becoming Germany’s round of the WRC in 2002. Although the rally base moved from Trier to Bostalsee two years ago, it has remained faithful to a popular formula combining twisty vineyard roads above the Mosel river, the varied and sometimes broken surfaces of the Baumholder military ground, and fast country lanes of the Saarland region.

    Winner of the last two editions, Ott Tänak could target a hat trick to further increase his championship lead, which grew to 22 points after the triumph of the Toyota driver on the last round in Finland. His rivals Sébastien Ogier (Citroën) and Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) – who are separated by just three points – are also both former winners of the event, opening up the prospect of a thrilling, flat-out battle between the trio.

    With Elfyn Evans continuing to recover from a back injury, Gus Greensmith gets another top-level start with M-Sport. After skipping Finland, Rally Sardinia’s winner Dani Sordo returns to the Hyundai line-up alongside Neuville and Andreas Mikkelsen. Meanwhile, Toyota offers its Japanese protégé Takamoto Katsuta his first WRC outing in a Yaris – entered by Tommi Mäkinen Racing – after several impressive demonstrations in FIA WRC 2.

    FIA WRC 2 Pro leader Kalle Rovanperä has four consecutive class wins under his belt but the Finn will face stiff competition in Germany, from his Škoda team-mate and asphalt expert Jan Kopecký, as well as Citroën’s Mads Østberg and Eric Camilli, competing in M-Sport’s latest Ford Fiesta R5.

    Fresh from his maiden win in Finland, Russia’s Nikolay Gryazin heads a strong 15-car entry in the FIA WRC 2, which includes the French trio Adrien Fourmaux, Nicolas Ciamin and Stéphane Lefebvre, and the German pair Marijan Griebel and Fabian Kreim.

    Tidemand returns with Fiesta WRC

    Pontus Tidemand will return to the wheel ofthe EcoBoost-powered Ford Fiesta WRC to contest the 11th round of the FIA World Rally Championship at the next month Rally Turkey. Partnered by Norwegian codriver Ola Foene, the pairing were in action at Rallye Monte Carlo as well as Rally Sweden earlier this year, and are now keen to show what they can do with the top-spec Fiesta on gravel.

    THE 2019 ROUTE

    This year’s Rallye Deutschland begins with a new twist, as the 5.2 kilometre “St. Wendeler Land” Shakedown is then run again on Thursday evening as the first competitive stage. Friday’s loop consists of a pair of vineyard stages, plus the Wadern-Weikirchen circuit test, with all three run twice. Saturday’s format offers two Saarland country lane stages to be run twice in the morning, ahead of two loops around Baumholder in the afternoon. On Sunday, the rally returns to the vineyards for another pair of repeated stages to conclude the event.
    RALLY DATA

    Total distance: 1’228.23 km
    Stage distance: 344.04 km (28%)
    Number of stages: 19
  • Aditya Patel to race against Arjun Balu in ITC class: Indian National Racing Championship

    Aditya Patel to race against Arjun Balu in ITC class: Indian National Racing Championship

    Chennai, 16 August 2019: Popular international driver Aditya Patel will replace Karthik Tharani Singh for the Volkswagen Works team in the ITC class and he will be racing against his mentor and former coach Arjun Balu, as the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Car Racing Championship 2019 flows into a critical phase with the fourth and penultimate round scheduled to start at the MMRT on Saturday.

    Karthik Tharani escaped with a one-race ban after a grave violation in the third round. Though he is serving only one-race suspension, Volkswagen Motorsport, who promised `clean racing’ as they made their debut in the National Championship this year at Coimbatore, decided to keep him out for the entire round and Tharani will miss three races. Incidentally, Aditya is set to make his saloon car debut in the championship and will be racing at this track after a lapse of 11 years.

    With the front-runners in the championship stakes tightly bunched in all the categories that will be on view this week-end. The expectations of close racing are high in all the classes including premier MRF Formula 1600, Indian Touring Cars and Volkswagen Ameo Class.

    Aditya Patel is set race against his mentor and former coach Arjun Balu, left, in the ITC races on Saturday for Volkswagen team. Photo: Anand Philar

    In the previous rounds, winner-picking was a hazardous guess and it would be much the same this weekend with a clutch of India’s top racing drivers, ranging from bubbling teenagers to battle-hardened veterans, lining up on the grid, each seeking precious championship points.

    The MRF F1600, with four races scheduled over two days, and a maximum of 100 points on offer, has four drivers – Nayan Chatterjee (Mumbai, 63 points), Chennai’s Vishnu Prasad (58), teenager from Bengaluru Sohil Shah (56) with two wins from four starts and A Bala Prasath from Coimbatore (43) – heading the leaderboard, but wary of others who have them in their sights.

    The popular Indian Touring Cars category, a triple-header for this round, has developed into a bitter fight involving veteran racer from Coimbatore Arjun Balu (80 points), driving a Race Concepts-prepared Honda Vtec car, and championship leader Chennai’s Karthik Tharani (86) in a factory-supported Volkswagen Vento.  Tharani, winner in two of the five outings, failed to take a drive-through penalty and ignored the black-flag in the previous round to attract the suspension.

    Tharani is replaced by Aditya Patel, the 2007 Formula Rolon champion, who has been a participant in various international touring cars series abroad (VW, Audi, GT Asia) in the past decade.

    “Obviously, I am quite excited to be racing at the MMRT, virtually my home circuit, after over a decade (his last outing was in 2008, a one-off race). Interestingly, my Formula Rolon car in 2007 when I won the championship for NK Racing, was prepared by Arjun Balu and his brother Sanjay. So, it’s quite extraordinary that this weekend, I am racing against Arjun!” said Aditya.

    The Super Stock category, to be run on a combined grid with the ITC class, presents a similar picture with Bengaluru’s Rithvik Thomas (Race Concepts) leading RP Raja Rajan (Performance Racing) from Chennai by eight points. The pair has won three races apiece and with three more to be run this weekend, a thrilling battle between the two is on the cards.

    The VW Ameo Class, which was upgraded to National Championship status, and boasting of 18-car grid, has three drivers, Pratik Sonawane (Pune), Jeet Jhabakh (Hyderabad) and Saurav Bandyopadhyay (Mumbai), in that order separated by eight points with Delhi’s Anmol Singh Sahil in fourth, a further nine points behind.