INDIA in F1

Tag: FMSCI

  • Jamie Chadwick becomes first female driver to win MRF Challenge

    Jamie Chadwick becomes first female driver to win MRF Challenge

    Jamie Chadwick celebrates after winning the MRF Challenge championship in Chennai on Sunday. Photo by Anand Philar

    Chennai, 10 Feb 2019: Jamie Chadwick from Bath, England, scripted history in the MRF Challenge by becoming the first female driver to annex the championship in seven seasons as she finished the third and final round of the international series with a triple crown, including two back-to-back wins, at the MMRT, here on Sunday.

    Chadwick, 20, who had won three of the five races in the previous round in Bahrain, survived a long day and 58 laps, by winning two while Finland’s Patrick Pasma took the honours in the other as the MRF Challenge 2018-19 drew to a close.

    While Chadwick ended the championship with 280 points, including two bonus points for the fastest lap in the last race, Belgium’s Max Defourny who came into the final round here with an 18-point advantage, failed to consolidate and ended up with 243 points. Pasma took the third spot in the championship with 186 points, ahead of German Andreas Estner (181).

    An elated Chadwick said: “It (winning the championship) hasn’t sunk in yet. I would like to thank my team too and am happy that everything came together this weekend. In the last race, I made some mistakes which cost me a bit of the lead, but I quickly composed myself and made sure I won.

    “I came into MRF Challenge for some experience and exposure, and not to win the championship. But after winning three races in Bahrain, I realised I was in with a chance and so went for it this weekend.”

    Earlier, Pasma (Finland) had to work hard for his second win of the weekend in Race-3 which was briefly interrupted by a Safety Car period after Joshua Mason spun and blocked the track in the seventh lap. Pasma, starting from pole position, built up a comfortable, if not commanding lead, over Belgian Michelangelo Amendola before the pack bunched up behind the Safety Car. On re-strart, Pasma was harried all the way by Amendola, but managed to hang on and post his second win of the weekend. Finishing third behind Amendola was Swede Linus Lindqvist, the 2018 British F3 champion.

    However, from the championship title perspective, the focus was on the battle between Chadwick and Defourny with the British youngster managing to finish ahead of the Belgian in fifth position. Defourny came in seventh which helped Chadwick to extend her lead by five points with two races remaining.

    Chadwick expanded her championship lead over Defourny to 18 by winning Race-4 that was stopped and restarted following two incidents in the very first lap leading to retirement of three cars and the race distance reduced to 18 laps from scheduled 20. Chadwick had a fine start from P2 on the grid, moving past pole-sitter Jack Doohan (Australia) and then defended her position to chalk up her second win of the weekend. Defourny registered his best finish of the weekend by coming home fourth behind Chadwick, Amendola and Doohan.

    In the final race of the championship, Chadwick was again off to a superb start, squeezing into the lead from third position, past pole-sitter Pasma and Defourny, even as the pack dived into Turn-1. With each lap, Chadwick increased her lead even as Defourny dropped down the order and eventually finished sixth. In the latter part of the race, Chadwick was closely pursued by Pasma and Amendola, but the British girl hung on to her advantage to chalk up her sixth win in 15 starts.

    In the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Racing Championship that was run concurrently, Chirag Ghorpade (Momentum Motor Sports) topped the Formula LGB 1300 class race while P Raja Rajan (Performance Racing) won in the Saloon car  (Super Stock) category.

    The results:

    MRF Challenge (F2000): Race-3 (20 laps): 1. Patrick Pasma (Finland) (35mins, 35.212secs); 2. Michelangelo Amendola (Belguim) (35:35.569); 3. Linus Lindqvist (Sweden) (35:36.281). Race-4 (18 laps): 1. Jamie Chadwick (UK) (27:39.087); 2. Michaelangelo Amendola (Belgium) (27:40.106); 3. Jack Doohan (Australia) (27:46.896). Race-5 (20 laps): 1. Jamie Chadwick (UK) (30:46.505); 2. Patrick Pasma (Finland) (30:47.574); 3. Michelangelo Amendola (Belgium) (30:48.164).

    MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Racing Championship – Formula LGB 1300 (Race-3, 10 laps): 1. Chirag Ghorpade (Momentum Motor Sports) (15:35.070); 2. Tijil Rao (Momentum Motor Sports) (15:35.528); 3. K Suriya Varathan (M Sport) (15:36.030).

    Saloon Cars (Super Stock – Race 2, 10 laps): 1. P Raja Rajan (Performance Racing) (20:26.602); 2. Rithvik Thomas (Race Concepts) (20:34.767); 3. Joel Joseph (Race Concepts) (20:41.701).

    Support Race – MRF F1600 (Race-2, 10 laps): 1. Lee Deegan (UK) (16:54.757); 2. A Bala Prasath (Coimbatore) (16:55.452); 3. Sohil Shah (Bengaluru) (16:55.654). Race-3 (10 laps): 1. Nayan Chatterjee (Mumbai) (16:40.939); 2. A Bala Prasath (Coimbatore) (16:49.098); 3. Sohil Shah (Bengaluru) (17:00.516).

  • Patrick Pasma grabs pole position in MRF Challenge; P1 for Tijil Rao in Formula LGB 1300

    Patrick Pasma grabs pole position in MRF Challenge; P1 for Tijil Rao in Formula LGB 1300

    Patrick Pasma, takes pole position in MRF Challenge on Friday. Image by Anand Philar

    Chennai, 8 Feb 2019: Patrick Pasma, the 18-year old from Finland, upstaged the MRF Challenge field with a blistering lap of one minute, 30.559 seconds at the MMRT track here today, to grab the pole position ahead of tomorrow’s race.

    Pasma, who is currently fifth in the championship having won just one race in 10 starts in the first round at Dubai in November last year, did well to shrug off two difficult free practice sessions, including a puncture in the first, to take P1 in the 30-minute qualifying run.

    Pasma finished well ahead of championship front runners, Max Defourny from Belgium (01:31.119) and UK’s Jamie Chadwick (01:31.103), who slotted in mid-grid positions.

    Finishing second behind Pasma was Belgian Michaelangelo Amendola (01:30.682) followed by last year’s British Formula 3 champion Linus Lundquist from Sweden (01:30.810) who had earlier topped both the Free Practice sessions, and Aussie teenager Jack Doohan (01:30.928).

    Reflecting on his performance today, Pasma said: “It was alright, though it wasn’t perfect. In the first free practice we had a flat tyre, so it was really tricky. In the second free practice, we made a few changes and it was better. So, the pole position is a good base for tomorrow’s race.

    “The track was really technical for us and you really have to be precise. There is no scope for any errors.”

    Mumbai’s Nayan Chatterjee put in a hot lap of 01:40.346 to top the first of the two free practice sessions in the MRF F1600 category and carried forward the form into the second session which also he topped with a best of 01:39.744.

    Rithvik Thomas of Race Concepts (Bengaluru) was the quickest among the Saloon cars (Super Stock) in the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Racing Championship with a flying lap of two minutes, 02.116 seconds in the second of the two free practice sessions, while team-mate Joel Joseph topped the time sheets in the first, clocking a best of 02:02.396.

    Former FMSCI president Akbar Ebrahim dominated both the free practice sessions in the Indian Touring Cars category, stopping the clock at 01:57.880 and 01:57.077 in the two outings.

    The results:

    MRF Challenge (F2000): Qualifying – 1. Patrick Pasma (Finland) (01min, 30.559secs); 2. Michelangelo Amendola (Belgium) (01:30.682); 3. Linus Lundquist (Sweden) (01:30.810).

    Free Practice-1: 1. Linus Lundqvist (Sweden) (1:31.611); 2. Jamie Chadwick (UK) 1:31.662; 3. Max Defourny (Belgium) (01:31.705). Free Practice-2: 1. Linus Lundqvist (Sweden) (01:31.871); 2. Patrick Pasma (Finland) (01:31.943); 3. Max Defourny (Belgium) (01:31.962).

    MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Racing Championship: MRF F1600 (Free Practice-1): 1. Nayan S Chatterjee (Mumbai) (01:40.346); 2. A. Bala Prasath (Coimbatore) (01:41.176); 3. Arya Singh (Kolkata) (01:41.484). Free Practice-2: 1. Nayan S Chatterjee (Mumbai) (01:39.744); 2. A Bala Prasath (Coimbatore) (01:40.455); 3. Arya Singh (Kolkata) (01:40.631).

    Formula LGB 1300 (Qualifying): 1. Tijil Rao (Bengaluru) (01:53.714); 2. Ashwin Datta (Chennai) (01:54.925); 3. K Suriya Varathan (Coimbatore) (01:54.993).

  • Hyderabad racer Karthik Mateti stamps his authority winning two titles: Profile

    Hyderabad racer Karthik Mateti stamps his authority winning two titles: Profile

    Karthik Mateti freeze by Srinivasa Krishnan in Round 3 at MMRT, Chennai

    The Hyderabad teenager wins the TVS one-make championship with an all-win record early on until he was nudged out in the final race

    Chennai: Karthik Mateti of Hyderabad dominated the TVS One-make Championship in the year 2018 with utmost authority demolishing every opposition to win all the nine races before he was nudged out in the last race but the infringement went unnoticed by the stewards and the culprit went on to win the race. However, that did not in any way affect the prospects of Karthik, who became champion with many rounds to spare in the Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship.

    Karthik clinches Stock 165cc championship: Karthik Mateti of Sparks Racing, a 19-year old Commerce student from Hyderabad, also emerged champion in the Stock 165cc category by scoring his third win in five races to finish the season with 111 points, and 12 wins and is well clear of team-mate Aditya Rao Immaneni (70). Incidentally, the 13-year old schoolboy from Chennai Kavin Samar Quintal (Team RACR), became the youngest rider this season to win championship points as he finished ninth.

    Image by Praharsha Majeti

    Karthik won Novice Race 1 in 13:44.310 and went on to clinch the second race too clocking 11:24.619 in a tight finish with Anand Rajendran of Chennai on Sunday, Dec 16. Anand who was over 4 seconds behind on Saturday, made amends and gave a tough fight but Karthik withstood the challenge and won. Chennai riders Suhail Ahmed and Venkatesan took the third place on Saturday and Sunday respectively.

    “I thank my Team Sparks Racing for providing me the best bike and supporting me throughout the season and to my Tuner Ravi who always strives to bring out champions from raw Talent,” said Karthik, who focuses on fitness in the offseason.

    In the last race of the season on Dec 16, Karthik took part just to complete the formalities as he was in deep pain with an injured finger on the right hand which he suffered in Delhi. In the TVS One-Make Championship Novice class, Karthik Mateti won Race 1, despite an injured right finger, beating Anand R to second place while AS Alexander completed the podium in third in the final round of the MRF MMSC FMSCI Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship as the season concluded at Irungattukottai on Dec 16.

    Karthik Mateti with tuner Ravi. Photo by Praharsha Majeti

    Anand R won the Race 2 while AS Alexander came second. Anish Samson settled for tthe hird position. Karthik Mateti who sealed the Championship much earlier, with two rounds to spare, was nudged out early on, and the final race is the only race he failed to win this season.

    In Round 2, Group D Karthik started on pole but fell back to 13th position and then like man possessed he went on to pass one by one until he caught up with the leading bunch and switched up gears a notch further taking the lead and won by over 3 seconds and in the bargain clocked the fastest lap record of 2.07 sec.

    In Round 4, he crashed in the Qualifying race due to a rider in front of him and started 23rd on the grid and went on to finish 3rd in the race, just a sec behind the leader and won the next race the following day after starting from P3.

     

    Photo by Srinivasa Krishnan

    Honours in Asia Cup Road Race: Earlier in Delhi, he took part in the Asia Cup Road Race (ACRR): The international Asia Cup of Road Race that was run in tandem with the Suzuki Gixxer Cup saw India A’s Karthik Mateti making his mark, winning the race ahead of his Asian counterparts.

    Sri Lanka’s Hansika Abeysinghe claimed the second place while Australia’s Max Stauffer took the third. In the final race, Malsawmdawngliana also turned out victorious in the race two, ahead of top Asian bikers. Australia’s Max Stauffer and Sri Lanka’s Hansika Abeysinghe took the second and third positions.

    The weekend began on a dull note, as Karthik could not practice due to a bike issue and failed to perform up to his potential in the qualifying where he suffered a flat tyre but still gave his best and qualified 13th overall and 3rd in ACRR. However, this did not reduce his confidence one bit as he came up with a position in the race.

    Karthik Mateti with Indian flag after winning the ACRR in New Delhi.

    Karthik started Race 1 from 13th on the grid and was leading the ACRR and 2nd overall in the first lap itself. But a brake issue saw him crash out at C15 and he lost almost 25 positions but recovered and quickly started to gain positions and finished 1st overall in the 8-lap long race. “That was a tough race as I had to manage the rest of the race with only a quarter of my front brake and twisted handle-bar,” recalled Karthik and thanked everyone for the faith they had in him.

    In Race 2, he had the unfortunate incident of a rider in front of him suffer a crash in the Warm-up lap. He could not do anything and it was unavoidable for Karthik, as he hit the bike and crashed too. He hit his bike and had many injuries including a broken finger. He managed to pull himself up with painkillers and with just a minute before the pit lane starts, his bike was made ready. He started from Pole but was not able to ride well as he couldn’t brake with the injuries and was losing positions. He was still in the top 10 but was given a Black flag as the bike did not undergo the re-scrutiny after the crash in warm-up. It was a sad ending but the win in the weekend made him come out shining and with lessons learned.
    Karthik thanked BS Sjuth Kumar, the FIM Asia vice-president and FMSCI 2w Racing Commission chairman for the encouragement and the opportunity to race in the ACRR. He also thanked the efforts of his team @Sparks.racing. Karthik said: “I thank @jktyre_motorsport for the platform and I thank my team. I am very proud to represent India and I gave my best to put India on top,” was his parting shot.
    India got overall 3rd in Championship after the 1st and 2nd rounds in Taiwan.
  • Team TVS Racing’s Jagan Kumar clinches 7th Natioinal title: Super Sport 165cc

    Team TVS Racing’s Jagan Kumar clinches 7th Natioinal title: Super Sport 165cc

    Champions all: Anish Shetty, Sathyanaryana Raju, Jagan Kumar, Karthik Mateti and Ann Jennifer. Photos by Anand Philar

    Chennai, 16 Dec 2018: Nursing severe wrist pain, Jagan Kumar (TVS Racing) managed to finish sixth in the concluding race, but the eight points he scored were sufficient for him to clinch his seventh National title even as Rajiv Sethu led a podium sweep for Honda Ten10 Racing as the curtains came down on the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2018 at the MMRT, here on Sunday.

    Jagan, who had crashed heavily in the first race yesterday after making contact with team-mate Ahamed Arif, was unable to generate his usual pace and was content to pick up the points he required to seal the championship with 158 points. Ahead of him, Sethu was in a race of his own to win comfortably from team-mates Sarath Kumar and Mathana Kumar to finish second in the championship behind Jagan with 145 points. While Jagan ended the season with two wins, Sethu won four races, but two non-finishes in Round 3, cost him precious points. Mathana (130) ended up third in the championship in this category.

    Earlier, Hyderabad’s Sathyanarayana Raju (Gusto Racing) rode a smart race and finish third to take the championship with 159 points in the Pro-Stock 301-400cc category. Another Hyderabad rider, Rahil Pillarishetty (Sparks Racing) won from Prabhu Arnuagiri (Team Alisha Abdullah) who finished second in the championship with 147 points ahead of Amarnath Menon (Gusto Racing, 142).

    Karthik-Mateti-No.-72-from-Hyderabad-winner-of-the-Stock-165cc-race on Sunday.

    Karthik Mateti (Sparks Racing), a 19-year old Commerce student from Hyderabad, emerged champion in the Stock 165cc category by scoring his third win in five races to finish the season with 111 points, well clear of team-mate Aditya Rao Immaneni (70). Incidentally, 13-year old schoolboy from Chennai Kavin Samar Quintal (Team RACR), became the youngest rider this season to win championship points as he finished ninth.

    In one of the closest-finishes of the season, Bengaluru-based Anish Damodara Shetty (Honda Ten10 Racing) pipped TVS Racing’s Kannan Subramaniam by three-thousandth of a second in the Pro-Stock 165cc race as the duo crossed the line locked together.  Shetty had already sealed the championship in this category and ended his season on a successful note.

    The results (Provisional):

    NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP (all 8 laps unless mentioned) – Super Sport 165cc (Race 2): 1. Rajiv Sethu (Honda Ten10 Racing) (15mins, 41.626secs); 2. Sarath Kumar (Honda Ten10 Racing) (15:47.183); 3. Mathana Kumar (Honda Ten10 Racing) (15:47.683). Final rider standings: 1. Jagan Kumar (TVS Racing, 158 points); 2. Rajiv Sethu (145); 3. Mathana Kumar (130). Team championship: TVS Racing. Manufacturer championship: TVS.

    Pro-Stock 301-400cc (Race 2): 1. Rahil Pillarishetty (Sparks Racing) (15:29.004); 2. Prabhu Arunagiri (Team Alisha Abdullah) (15:29.197); 3. Sathyanarayana Raju (Gusto Racing India) (15:32.809). Final rider standings: 1. Sathyanarayana Raju (159 points); 2. Prabhu Arunagiri (147); 3. Amarnath Menon (Gusto Racing, 142). Team championship: Gusto Racing. Manufacturer championship: KTM.

    Pro-Stock 165cc (Race-2): 1. Anish Damodara Shetty (Honda Ten10 Racing) (16:12.523); 2. Kannan Subramaniam (TVS Racing) (16:12.520); 3. Anup Kumar (Team Alisha Abdullah) (16:14.942). Final rider standings: 1. Anish Damodara Shetty (181 points); 2. Kevin Kannan (Rockers Racing, 123); 3. Senthil Kumar (Honda Ten10 Racing, 118 points). Team championship: Honda Ten10 Racing. Manufacturer championship: Honda.

    Stock 165cc (4 laps): Karthik Mateti (Sparks Racing) (08:41.788); 2. Venkatesan I (Pvt) (08:42.661); 3. Anand Rajendran (Pvt) (08:46.975). Final rider standings: 1. Karthik Mateti (111 points); 2. Aditya Rao Immaneni (Sparks Racing, 70); 3. Anand Rajendran (50). Team championship: Sparks Racing. Manufacturer championship: Yamaha.

    ONE-MAKE CHAMPIONSHIP – Honda Talent Cup (CBR 250) Race-2: 1. Anish Damodara Shetty (Bengaluru) (16:36.267); 2. Abhishek Vasudev (Bengaluru) (16:36.474); 3.Aravind Balakrishnan (Chennai) (16:36.567). Final rider standings: 1. Abhishek Vasudev (171); 2. Anish Damodar Shetty (165); 3. Senthil Kumar (Chennai, 140).

    CBR 150 (Race 2, 6 laps): 1. Mohamed Mikail (Chennai) (13:25.633); 2.Anandhu KK (Chennai) (13:27.569); 3. Varoon S (Chennai) (13:47.180). Race-3: 1. Mohamed Mikail (Chennai) (13:10.101); 2. Kritik Vasan Habib (Gadag) (13:14.564); 3. Anandhu KK (13:16.475). Final rider standings: 1. Mohamed Mikail (233 points); 2. Anandhu KK (151); 3. Kritik Vasan Habib (133).

    TVS Girls (Race 2, 5 laps): 1. Ann Jennifer AS (Chennai) (11:57.962); 2. Ryhana Bee (Chennai) (12:02.281); Elakiya Lee (Chennai) (12:13.653). Final rider standings: 1. Ann Jennifer (111 points); 2. Ryhana Bee (104); 3. Elakiya Lee (52).

    TVS Apache RR 310 Open (Race 2): 1. Deepak Ravikumar (Chennai) (15:32.651); 2. Kannan K (Chennai) (15:34.875); 3. Amarnath Menon K (Calicut) (15:34.881). Final rider standings: 1. Deepak Ravikumar (Chennai, 176 points); 2. Vivek Pillai (Chennai, 137); 3. Yashas RL (Bengaluru, 136.

    Support event – Alisha Abdullah Inter-College Star Race (Race-3, 6 laps): 1. Mervin Kirani (Trichy) (12:47.854); R Vijay Shekar (Chennai) (13:12.758); 3. Reuben Rocky (Kochi) (13:33.948).

  • Over 200 entries as MMRT set for grand finale of Indian National bike championship

    Over 200 entries as MMRT set for grand finale of Indian National bike championship

    Chennai, 12 Dec 2018: The 2018 MRF MMSC Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship is set for a thrilling finish with close battles for the titles in various categories as the fifth and final round, boasting of over 200 entries, starts at the Madras Motorsports Race Trust (MMRT) circuit, here on Friday with 21 races, besides qualifying sessions, to be run over three days.

    The final round is organised by Madras Motor Sports Club (MMSC) under the aegis of Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI).

    The card includes One-Make Championships by Honda (Talent Cup – CBR 250 Open and CBR 150 for Novice) and TVS (Apache 310 Open and Apache 200 for Novice), besides a support event, the Alisha Abdullah Inter-College Star Race (Formula LGB 1300) which will have a 11-car grid comprising college students, including 16-year old Deepika from Krishnagiri, and in a first, transgender Apsara Reddy, also a journalist, as a guest driver who will race on Sunday.

    It has been a season of surprises and close races. More notably, MRF Tyres provided a huge boost to the championship by offering slick tyres for the two top categories, the Super Sport 165cc and the Pro-Stock 301-400cc. The slick tyres met with unanimous approval of the riders who were able to put in faster lap times due to the higher grip levels, especially through the corners.

    Also, the initiative of Madras Motor Sports Club to unearth fresh talent has been an unqualified success with ever-increasing number of entries from first-timers competing in the Stock 165cc category. With about 50 Novice riders in the fray, MMSC introduced heats to arrive at the final grid for the point-scoring race. Hyderabad teenager Karthik Mateti of Sparks Racing and team-mate Aditya Rao from Bengaluru, exerted dominance to head the leaderboard with 86 and 70 points, respectively, winning three of the four races between them.

    Similarly, Honda and TVS attracted over 20 entries apiece for in both Open and Novice categories. The TVS race for girls also proved popular with about 15 riders on the grid. Also to be run is the final round of the TVS Media championship.

    While the titles in all the National Championship categories are still up for grabs, much of the attention will be on the premier Super Sport 165cc double-header. With a maximum of 50 points on offer, another bitter fight between TVS Racing and Honda Ten10 riders is on the cards. TVS Racing’s Jagan Kumar (148 points), eyeing his seventh title, enjoys a healthy lead over team-mate KY Ahamed (128). Honda Ten10 rider, Rajiv Sethu, has much work to do as he trails Ahamed by 23 points.

    The two races this weekend in the Pro-Stock 301-400cc category will also be closely watched. As many as four are riders in contention for the title. Leading the pack is Hyderabad’s Satyanarayana Raju (119 points), just ahead of his Gusto Racing team-mate Amarnath Menon (118) from Kozhikode. Behind the duo are Chennai’s Prabhu Arunagiri of Team Alisha Abdullah (114) and Hyderabad’s Peddu Sriharsha (91) of Sparks Racing.

    Likewise, it is a four-pronged battle for the title in the Pro-Stock 165cc category where Bengaluru-based Anish Shetty (131 points) of Honda Ten10 Racing leads, ahead of Chennai’s Kevin Kannan (115, Rockers Racing). Not far behind the two leaders are Coimbatore’s Senthil Kumar (106, Honda Ten10 Racing) and Hyderabad’s Rahil Pilarishetty (94, Sparks Racing).

    The National Championship for girls has been dominated by Chennai riders Ann Jennifer (Sparks Racing) who won three of the four races for a tally of 75 points, Shruthi Nagarajan (Apex Racing Academy) with 63, and Ryhana Bee (Sparks Racing) with 55.

    About Madras Motor Sports Club

    The Madras Motor Sports Club has been the pioneer in developing and promoting motorsport in India since 1953, and we look to further improve in the years to come. It is the club’s endeavor to provide more opportunities for competitors, and to this end, it has chalked out various progressive programmes. From the days of Sholavaram , MMSC built its own racetrack which was inaugurated in 1979 and secured its FIA Grade-2 international certification in 2014, making it the only club which owns such a facility that has been further upgraded with international-standard Paddock, complete with VIP hospitality suites, 20 spacious garages and a separate Paddock on the western side with its own circuit. The club has organised the Porsche Super Cup, Formula Campos, Formula Asia, Asian touring car championships, Formula 3, Tata Prima Truck racing championship, the FIM Asia Road Racing Championships (2-wheelers) besides a host of other motorsport events over the years. The club also has active participation for its events from vehicle manufacturers who also use the Madras Motor Race Track (MMRT) extensively for testing their products.

     

  • Ebrahim steps down, Prithviraj elected president again: FMSCI

    Ebrahim steps down, Prithviraj elected president again: FMSCI

    J Prithviraj of CASC, who is elected as the new President of FMSCI. File photo

    Chennai, 21 Nov 2018: Another era comes to an end in the administration of the Motorsports in India as Akbar Ebrahim stepped down as the President of the Federation of Motorsports Clubs of India (FMSCI) here at its Annual General Meeting on Tuesday, the 20th of November.

    J Prithiviraj representing Coimbatore Auto Sports Club was unanimously elected as President while Shivu Shivappa of Karnataka Motor Sports Club, was elected as Vice-President for a term of one year. Prithviraj was earlier the president of the governing body of motorsports in India in 2014.

    The following governing council members were also elected during the AGM: Vicky Chandhok (MMSC), Farokh Commissariat (IARC), Ms Sita Raina (CMSC), Akbar Ebrahim (Meco MS), Arindam Ghosh (RRPM), Farooq  Ahmed (MSCC), B Vijaykumar (Spitfire MS) and Sanjay Sharma (PCRT).

    Fifty-eight-year-old Prithiviraj, the dynamic fountainhead of the highly active club in the home of Indian motorsports Coimbatore, takes over from Akbar Ebrahim, who led FMSCI for the last two years, igniting the sport in the country and setting an ambitious agenda for the future.

    The new council including the president and vice-president, which has been increased from eight to 10, vowed to carry forward the good work of the outgoing president, promising to create more platforms for the youth in the country and adding new championships and verticals in all its disciplines.

    “This is a proud moment for FMSCI. We all have a common goal now and I am sure this powerful council can do wonders to motorsports in the country,” newly-elected president Prithiviraj said.

    ends

  • Ashwin, Vishnu start favourites for Round 3 of 21st JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship

    Ashwin, Vishnu start favourites for Round 3 of 21st JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship

    EURO JK 18 championship leader Chennai’s Ashwin Datta in action.

    Coimbatore, October 13: Round 3 of the 21st JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship will commence here today at the Kari Motor Speedway with the Chennai trio of Ashwin Datta, Vishnu Prasad and Joseph Matthew looking to consolidate their positions on the leaderboard.

    Ashwin, who had surprised everyone with speed and guile this season, has managed to stay ahead of the pack with three podium finishes in the Euro JK 18 category with 51 points. He will be looking anxiously over this shoulder as he has a slender two-point lead.

    Mumbai’s Nayan Chatterjee

    Nayan Chatterjee (49 points) was breathing fire in Round 2 and will be keen to carry that momentum forward to stake his claim for the championship in the final round next month.

    “The championship has reached a very exciting stage, with anyone capable of winning in each of the championships,” Sanjay Sharma, Head of JK Motorsports, said. “It is going to be an intense battle this weekend.”

    In the LGB 4 category, MSport’s Vishnu was at his imperious best in the last round, winning two races and finishing second in one to gather a total of 28 points. With 50 points in the kitty from two rounds, he will look to widen the gap further at the top. Vishnu, however will be wary of his buddy and team-mate Raghul Rangasamy who is not too far behind him at 45 points.

    In the JK Tyre Novice Cup, all eyes will be on 14-year-old Tijil Rao of Momentum Motorsports, who annexed his maiden win to end the round with 13 points. He is currently third in the championship standings. Tijil’s team-mate Siddharth Mehdiratta is currently leading the standings with 16 points, just one ahead of but Viswas Vijayaraj.

    Chennai’s Vishnu Prasad

    Defending champion Joseph Matthew of Chennai continues to rule the Suzuki Gixxer Cup. He is yet to drop a point in the championship and has four wins from as many starts for a total of 40 points. He will be the man to beat once again.

    The top 3 after Round 2 – EURO JK 18: Ashwin Datta – 51 points; Nayan Chatterjee – 49 points; Brayan Perera – 43 points

    LGB Formula 4: Vishnu Prasad (Msport) – 50 points; Raghul Rangasamy (Msport) – 45 points; Rohit Khanna – 37 points

    NOVICE CUP: Siddharth Mehdiratta (Momentum Motorsports) – 16 points; Viswas Vijayraj (DTS Racing) – 15 points; Tijil Rao (Momentum Motorsports) – 13 points.

    JK Tyre Suzuki Gixxer Cup: Joseph Matthew – 40 points; Syed Muzzammil Ali – 30 points; Malsawmdawngliana – 21 points.

  • KY Ahamed pips mentor Jagan in the last lap; Jagan still leads the table: SuperSport 165 cc Class

    KY Ahamed pips mentor Jagan in the last lap; Jagan still leads the table: SuperSport 165 cc Class

    • Ann Jennifer takes honours in Girls race
    KY Ahamed (33) on way to winning the Super Sport Indian 165cc race from Jagan Kumar (3) and Mathana Kumar (46) on 22 Sept 2018. Photos by Anand Philar

    Chennai, 22 Sept. 2018: KY Ahamed scored a sensational last-lap victory in the premier Super Sport Indian 165cc class to lead a 1-2 finish for TVS Racing in the fourth round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship at the MMRT, here on Saturday.

    On a day which witnessed crashes in virtually every race, Prabhu Arunagiri (Team Alisha Abdullah) took the honours in the Pro-Stock 301-400cc class race that was red-flagged and re-started while Senthil Kumar (Honda Ten10 Racing) was gifted a victory in the Pro-Stock 165cc race after leader and team-mate Mithun Kumar went down.

    Ann Jennifer, wins the National Championship Girls race to extend her Championship lead.

    Meanwhile, 17-year old collegian from Chennai, Ann Jennifer chalked up her third win of the season in the Girls (Stock, 165cc) race after surviving a close fight with her Sparks Racing team-mate Ryhana Bee.

    The final outcome of the Super Sport race was in suspense until the last lap with Ahamed, his team-mate and defending champion Jagan Kumar and Honda Ten10 Racing’s Rajiv Sethu locked in a tight battle. On the last lap, going into the right-hander before the Bridge Complex “S”, Sethu ran wide and crashed even as Jagan dipped on the inside to overtake. It put Ahamed in the clear as he flashed across the finish line ahead of his mentor Jagan for his third win of the season. Honda Ten10 Racing’s Mathana Kumar came home a distant third, followed by team-mate Sarath Kumar while Sethu picked himself up to finish fifth.

    The result took Jagan’s tally to 130 followed by Ahamed (116), Sarath and Mathana (both 82) and Sethu (80), going into tomorrow’s Race-2 of the double-header.


    Senthil Kumar, winner of the Pro-Stock 165cc race

    The Pro-Stock 301-400cc race saw championship leader Amarnath Menon (Gusto Racing) crashing at Turn-3 which brought out the red flag. On re-start, Arunagiri, who had led from pole, maintained his track position at the very front to win comfortably even as his nearest challenger Satyanarayana Raju (Gusto Racing) retired due to an electrical failure. Finishing behind Arunagiri were Sparks Racing duo of Rahil Shetty and Peddu Sriharsha. With his second win of the season, Arunagiri moved up to 89 points to be placed third behind Menon (108) and Raju (101), going into the second race tomorrow.

    The results (Provisional):

    Super Sport Indian 165cc (Race-1, 6 laps): 1. KY Ahamed (TVS Racing) (11mins, 43.269secs); 2. Jagan Kumar (TVS Racing) (11:43.938); 3. S Mathana Kumar (Honda Ten10 Racing) (11:47.955).

    Pro-Stock 301-400cc (Race-1, 5 laps): 1. Prabhu Arunagiri (Team Alisha Abdullah Racing) (09:47.289); 2. Rahil Shetty (Sparks Racing) (09:53.426); 3. Peddu Sri Harsha (Sparks Racing) (09:58.214).

    Pro-Stock 165cc (Race-1, 6 laps): 1. Senthil Kumar (Honda Ten10 Racing) (12:09.582); 2. Kevin Kannan (Rockers Racing) (12:11.485); 3. Rahil Shetty (Sparks Racing) (12:11.778).

    Girls (Stock, 165cc, 5 laps): 1. Ann Jennifer AS (Sparks Racing) (11:11.767); 2. Ryhana Bee (Sparks Racing) (11:12.072); 3.Shruthi Nagarajan (Apex Racing Academy) (11:25.611).

    Yamaha-MMSC One-Make Championship (Novice, Race-1, 5 laps): 1. Varun Sobhan (Cherthala) (11:07.221); 2. Ajai Xavier (Pune) (11:07.843); 3. Hari Prasath (Vellore) (11:20.423).

  • TVS Racing-Honda rivalry continues but it’s advantage Jagan: Bike Nationals

    TVS Racing-Honda rivalry continues but it’s advantage Jagan: Bike Nationals

    Chennai, 20 Sept 2018: Reigning champion Jagan Kumar, who began his campaign on a slow note this year, in the  premier Super Sport Indian 165cc class, but picked up speed and is now well ahead of his staunch rivals from Honda who were trailing behind another TVS riders as the fourth round of the MRF Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2018 organised by Madras Motor Sports Club (MMSC) under the aegis of Federation of Motor Sports Clubs in India (fmsci) begins here on Friday.

    Jagan is riding high with 112 points for TVS Racing while teammate KY Ahamed is second with 91 points in second with another TVS rider Deepak Ravikumar (74) in third. Honda rivals Rajiv Sethu (70), Sarath Kumar (70) and Mathana Kumar (67) are placed in that order from 4th to 6th before the start of the fourth round.  The round which is put off due to the death of former Chief Minister Karunanidhi is scheduled for the middle of December after the monsoon break.

    The season enters its crucial phase when the focus shifts from just performance to scoring points as the fourth and penultimate round gets underway at the MMRT circuit.

    The final rounds of MMSC Indian National Drag Racing Championship 2018 for both four and two-wheelers will also be held post-lunch on Saturday and Sunday.

    With the two-wheeler racing championship titles in all categories still wide open and no rider within a sniffing distance of it, this weekend is expected to be more about strategy and tactics in a bid to gain maximum points possible.

    A unique feature of the racing championship is the participation of India’s top motorcycle manufacturers in various categories, dishing out thrilling contests involving not just the country’s leading riders, but also the Novice whose numbers is on the upswing with each round.

    Further, title sponsors of the championship, MRF, have also upped the ante by providing slick tyres to three categories – the premier Super Sport Indian 165cc, Pro-Stock (301-400cc) and Pro-Stock 165cc – leading to faster lap timings. The riders in these categories are unanimous in their appreciation of MRF’s gesture that has taken racing a couple of notches higher.

    While the top guns have benefitted greatly using the MRF slick tyres, MMSC’s continued efforts to spread the sport among Novice riders has borne rich dividends if the growing number of entries is any indication.

    Likewise, the Yamaha MMSC One-Make Championship in the Novice category has attracted about 60 entries with 40 being the cut-off to make the multiple qualifying rounds which, in turn, decide the final 20 riders for the two points-scoring races.

    If the competition among Novice (Stock 165cc) riders is razor-sharp with just three points separating Sparks Racing team-mates Karthik Mateti (61) and Aditya Rao Immaneni (58).

    The Pro-Stock 301-400cc category is developing into a straight fight between Gusto Racing team-mates Amarnath Menon (108) from Kozhikode and Hyderabad’s Satyanarayana Raju (101) while in the Pro-Stock 165cc class, Bengaluru-based techie Anish Shetty (101) has a healthy lead over local challenger Kevin Kannan (85) of Rockers Racing.

    In the Girls category, it is extremely tight at the top with Ann Jennifer (50 points, Sparks Racing) leading Shruthi Nagarajan (48, Apex Racing Academy) by just two points. Jennifer, after winning two races on the trot, crashed in the third round which Shruthi won to stay in contention.

  • Raghul Rangasamy clinches MRF F1600 National championship; Ashish Ramaswamy wins ITC title

    Raghul Rangasamy clinches MRF F1600 National championship; Ashish Ramaswamy wins ITC title

    Bengaluru’s Ashish Ramaswamy who was crowned National Champion in the Indian Touring Cars category on Sunday. Photos by Anand Philar

    Chennai, 9 Sept 2018: Raghul Rangasamy, hailing from the nearby temple town of Mamallapuram, emerged champion in the coveted MRF Formula 1600 category as the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Racing Championship 2018 concluded at the MMRT, here on Sunday. The title earned Rangasamy a ticket to this year’s Mazda Road To Indy shootout in the United States, a dream that the 25-year old pursued through the season.

    With three podium finishes this weekend, Rangasamy, who led Goutham Parekh (Chennai) by 11 points at the start of the final round, did just enough to clinch the championship. Rangasamy’s final tally was 182 points (two wins, seven podiums) to Parekh’s 174 (two wins, six podiums). Mumbai’s Nayan Chatterjee completed a double, winning Race 1 and 3, while 16-year old schoolboy from Bengaluru Yash Aradhya topped in Race 2, his second success in his debut season in this category.

    Bengaluru’s 27-year old Ashish Ramaswamy (Arka Motorsports), with his seventh consecutive podium finish of the season, annexed the championship in the premium Indian Touring Cars class with a tally of 167 points, edging out Coimbatore veteran Arjun Balu (Race Concepts) by just six points. For Balu, who missed the first round of the season, it was so near yet so far as he finished second in the championship despite scoring a double in the final round this weekend and winning five races from seven starts.

    Last year’s winner, Arjun Narendran (Arka Motorsports), who was black-flagged for taking “external assistance” (taking assistance of the marshals to push his car) after a spin following a collision with Balu at Turn-2 in the very first lap today, ended up fourth in the championship behind his team-mate Nikanth Ram.


    Raghul Rangasamy, winner of the MRF F1600 Championship on Sunday.

    Rangasamy, who thrives on speed which induced him to take to racing rather late at 19, was delighted with his championship title, but said he would have loved to end the season with a win. “I feel great to win the championship and look forward to the Mazda Road To Indy shootout. I wanted to finish the season with a win, but happy that I took the title at this level considering that I started racing only when I was 19. I love speed and I gave up my medical studies after three years to pursue racing which I do just for my pleasure since at 25, I can’t think of a career in racing,” he said.

    Ashish Ramaswamy, who had started the season with a double in the first round, said: “It has been a long wait for me to win my first-ever National Championship title. I had started the season well with a double in the first round, but two DNFs (Did Not Finish) thereafter, put me under pressure as I had to finish on podium in all the remaining races. I am absolutely thrilled and I thank my team Arka Motorsports and the mechs for the brilliant work they did these past months.”

    The results (Provisional, all 8 laps):

    MRF Formula 1600 (Race-2): 1. Yash Aradhya (Bengaluru) (16mins, 54.672secs); 2.Goutham Parekh (Chennai) 16:55.296); 3. Raghul Rangaswamy (Mamallapuram) (16:55.543). Race -3: 1. Nayan Chatterjee (Mumbai) (13:35.208); 2. Parekh (13:35.776); 3. Rangasamy (13:36.359). Champion: Raghul Rangasamy (182 points).

    Indian Touring Cars (Race-2): 1. Arjun Balu (Race Concept) (15:22.974); 2. Ashish Ramaswamy (Arka Motorsport)(15:37.888); 3.D Vidya Prakash (Prime Racing) (15:38.145). Champion: Ashish Ramaswamy (167 points). Turbo cars: 1. Karthick Tharani (VW Motorsport) (15:26.077); 2. Rayomand Banajee (VW Motorsport) (15:40.141); 3. Ishaan Dodhiwala (VW Motorsport) (15:49.744).