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Tag: INRC
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Arjun Rao-Satish Rajagopal pair wins K1000 rally
By Bodapati David
Bangalore, 5 Dec 2010: Darkhorse Arjun Rao Aroor of Team MRF, with Satish Rajagopal navigating the Mitsubishi Cedia, won the K-1000 Rally, the fourth round of the Speed Indian National Rally Championship making a grand 1-2 finish for MRF as they displayed controlled aggression clocking the second-best time at the Super Special Stage here on Sunday.
However, it was Lohit Urs (Srikanth Gowda), who stole the limelight today with a lightening run covering the of the 4.5km in a blazing 5 minute 59 seconds, the only car on the day to go under six minutes. He thrilled the audience with his driving and as his car drifted sideways towards the grand stand, the crowd gave him a thundering applause. The MRF driver who was unfortunate to go out of contention for top honours on Saturday, finished second and was followed by Red Rooster Racing’s Vikram Mathias and PV Srinivasa Murthy. Vikram who stalled his car during the first lap lost a lot of time but still provided seat-edged thrills for the spectators to clock 6 min 20 seconds.
Thus, Arjun Rao Aroor pitchforked himself into contention for the Speed INRC title but even as Naren Kumar leads the table with Vikram Mathias running close behind. “It was a fantastic day for me. I am at the crossed roads and before this event I decided that I would prove all my critics wrong or else quit the sport. I am so glad, I won this rally,” said a visually pleased Arjun Aroor.
Bangalore Brothers Balram CG and Raghuram CG came overall third, a stunning performance and finished first in their class, the 1400 cc with a timing of 2 hours 17 minutes 14.5 seconds. Rattan Gangadhar and Nikuj finished second.
The Rally Star Cup saw Kaushik H Shinde and Ninad A Mirajgaonkar win the K-1000 with a comfortable 39 second lead over Dr Dhirendra Kumar and Ravi Raidurg, who had to be content with a second position.
The Army team of Amrinder Brar, with Himanshu as co-driver, virtually won the Speed INRC title in the Gypsy class with a fourth straight win while teammates Shakti Bajaj and Dharmesh Sinha came second followed by Harpreet Singh Sidhu and Hardevinder Brar.
Though the Lankan team of Ahamed Farooque and Ashan E Silva, driving a Mitsubishi Evo 10, put on view the beast of a machine on Sunday in the Super Special Stage, they failed to finish the rally in the Open Class.
After the triple S, Speed Master and ambassador for Bharat Petroleum, Narain Karthikeyan, entertained the audience with a quick lap. The first Indian to drive in Formula One said that he took part in simulator test for Force India after the last race in Abu Dhabi recently. Olympian and hockey legend MM Somaya was also present.
Provisional Unaudited Final Results:
Overall: 1. Arjun Rao Aroor/ Satish K Rajagopal (Team MRF) 1 hour 53 min 32.6 secs; 2. Lihitt V Urs/ Srikanth Gowda (MRF) 1: 53: 22.7 secs; 3. Balram CG/ Raghuram CG (privateers) 02: 17: 14.5 secs.
2000 N+ class: 1. Arjun Rao Aroor/ Satish K Rajagopal (Team MRF) 1 hour 53 min 32.6 secs; 2. Lihitt V Urs/ Srikanth Gowda (MRF) 1: 53: 22.7 secs; 3. Vikram Mathias/ PV Srinivasa Murthy (Red Rooster Racing) 2: 17: 28.4.
1400 cc class: Balram CG/ Raghuram CG (privateer) 02: 17: 14.5 secs; 2.Rattan N Gangadhar/ Nikunj GN (pvt) 2: 57: 02.3.
Rally Star Cup: 1. Kaushik H Shinde/ Ninad A Mirajgaonkar (pvt) 2: 14: 15.8; 2. Dr Dhirendra Kumar/ Ravi Raidurg 2: 14: 54.0; 3. Aditya S /Kariappa KB (pvt) 2: 18: 00.4;
Gypsy class: 1. Amrinder Brar/ Himanshu (Army Adventure Wing) 2: 09: 40.6; 2. Shakti Bajaj/ Dharmesh Sinha (AAW) 2: 14: 51.1; 3. Harpreet Singh Sidhu/ Hardevinder S Brar 2: 17: 14.5;
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Naren-Ram thrill crowds winning in the Rajasthan desert tracks
By David Bodapati
Jodhpur, 19 Sept 2010: Come-back king Naren Kumar, with veteran navigator Ram Kumar in tow, was in his elements as he thrilled the Sunday crowd with controlled aggression in the Super Special Stage but still kept his cool to finish the rally for a second successive victory in the Rally of Rajasthan, the third round of the Speed Indian National Rally Championship 2010 for cars to firmly entrench Team Red Rooster Racing on top of the leaderboard for manufacturers as the first rally in Rajasthan ended here with a sizeable crowd enjoying the daring feats of the drivers.
The third round of the high-octane Speed INRC also helped the champion from Coimbatore to take the lead over former champion and Red Rooster teammate Vikram Mathias by three points. Naren who got 10 points for this victory will now have 27 points to Vikram’s 24. Red Rooster Racing’s Amittrajit Ghosh (Ashwin Naik) finished second but it was Lohit Urs and Srikanth Gowda of Team MRF who scorched the tracks at the Chamia Polo ground to set the fastest time in the `triple s’ to clock 1 min 53.2 seconds, a fraction of a second faster than second placed Ghosh.
Regarded as the most prestigious event in Indian Motorsports, the 3rd round, Rally of Rajasthan, of Speed INRC was organized by Sportscraft under the aegis of FMSCI and is promoted by IMG Sports and Pro-Sports Promotion.
Driving a Mitsubishi Lancer Cedia in the 2000 cc N+ category, Naren Kumar and co-driver Ramkumar were not back in the contention for the National title after a disappointing start in the first event at Nashik. Teammate Amittrajit Ghosh and co-driver Ashwin Naik too bagged valuable points to come back into striking distance.
Sponsored by Bharat Petroleum’s SPEED brand, the Jodhpur round turned out to be a thriller with defending champion Gaurav Gill of Team MRF taking the Maharaja of Jodhpur on a joy ride around the circuit and then did his sliding drifts which sparked seat-edged excitement to the spectators today. Gill crashed out yesterday and could not officially compete today.
Bangalore duo Rahul Kantharajj and Vivek Bhatt pipped arch rivals Shailendar Hegde and Sheeraz in the SSS today and took the honours in the 1600cc class while Vishal and Robinson finished third.
However, it was Kerala pair Dr Bikku Babu and Bonnie Thomas who are unsung heroes as they not only won the 1400cc class but comprehensively defeated higher-rated cars and drivers finishing overall 8 ahead of all 1600cc cars. Byram Godrey and Anjay Kapadia were second in 1400cc category.
Venkatapathy MR and Santosh Kumar won the Rally Star Cup while Maj Amrinder Brar and Lt.Col Himanshu Parek from the Army Adventure Wing came out triumphant in the Gypsy class.
Provisional Unaudited – Final Classification:
Overall: 1. Naren Kumar / Co-driver Ram Kumar, Red Rooster Racing, 35:50.9; 2. Amittrajit Ghosh/Ashwin Naik, Red Rooster Racing, 36:36.8; 3. Lohit Urs/ Srikanth Gowda, Team MRF, 37:12.9;
Group 2000cc N+: 1. Naren Kumar / Co-driver Ram Kumar, Red Rooster Racing, 35:50.9; 2. Amittrajit Ghosh/Ashwin Naik, Red Rooster Racing, 36:36.8; 3. Lohit Urs/ Srikanth Gowda, Team MRF, 37:12.9;
Group 2000cc N: 1. Girijashankar Joshy / Chandramouli M, Ovion Racing, 40:10.9; 2. Sujay Suresh/ Bharath SM 41:23.1; Sirish Chandran/ Nikhil Pai Team Overdrive 42:05.1;
Group 1600cc N: 1. Rahul Kantharaj/ Vivek Bhatt privateer (pvt) 42:56.1; 2. Shailendar Hegde/ Sheraz Ahmed, pvt 43:30.6; 3. Vishal GA/ Robinson, pvt 48:04.6;
Group 1400cc N: 1. Dr Bikku Babu/ Bonnie Thomas, pvt – Kerala, 41:49.0; 2. Byram Godrej/ Anjay Kapadia, pvt, 47:54.0; 3.Sanjay Sikand/ Koka Rahul Rao, 49:33.4;
Group Rally Star Cup (RSC): 1. Venkatapathy MR/ Santtosh Kumar S, 44:52.0; 2. Harikesav N/Ashvin Nadig, pvt, 45:10.8; 3. Kaushik H Shinde/ Ninand A Mirajgaonkar, pvt, 47: 01.0;
Group Gypsy: 1. Maj Amarinder S Brar/ Himanshu Pareek, pvt – Army Adventure Wing, 47:16.6; 2. Harpreet Singh Sidhu/ Sanjay B Gokhale, AA Wing, 48:16.5, 3. Sameer Pandey/ Honey Narula, Pvt, 48:32.5.
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MAK K1000 INRC bike rally on Sunday
Bangalore, 20 August 2010: Bangalore : The Karnataka-1000, the second round of the MAK Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) for two-wheelers will be held Sunday at Siddhalaghatta, near here.
After a successful season opener at Coimbatore, which saw a record entries of over 40 bikes, the Bangalore leg too is bound to provide exciting thrills as the ‘Big Daddies’ are set to make their mark in K-1000.
“Some Bullet fans have approached us showing interest to rally these big bikes and we are expecting to make arrangements and five of these biggie would be seen in action,” said Praneeth Perumal, who set the technically daunting but fast track, about 140 km, from the city.
The second of the five rounds of the MAK INRC for Motorcycles will be organised by the Karnataka Motor Sports Club (KMSC) under the aegis of Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI), the governing body for the sport in the country.
Riders from Team TVS Racing, who have dominated the two-wheeler section for long will continue to be strong contenders. Reigning National champion Arvind KP, along with the Pramod Joshua, who began the season with a bang, winning the Coimbatore leg, will be among the top contenders.
The rally will have two Special Stages of 10.92 km and 8.95 km, and they will be run four times each in the same direction with service breaks in between. The total distance of Special Stage rallying will be 79.48 km.
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Naren Kumar, Ram Kumar duo put Red Rooster on top in home town
By David Bodapati
Coimbatore, 8 August 2010: Veteran war-horse and local pride Naren Kumar of Red Rooster Racing clinched the Speed Rally of Coimbatore, the second round of the Speed Indian National Rally Championship after he thrilled the spectators at the Super Special Stage with controlled aggression at the Ganga Naidu Charities Trust ground here on Sunday.
With Ram Kumar navigating in the Mitsubishi Lancer Cedia, the Coimbatore duo turned the tide for Red Rooster Racing with a facile win. Teammates Vikram Mathias and co-driver PV Srinivas Murthy finishing second, ahead of Team MRF’s Arjun Balu (Sujith Kumar BS). However, it was Team MRF’s Lohit Urs (Srikanth Gowda) who stole the limelight in the two-lap 1.3km Super Special Stage (SSS), the last special stage with a timing of 1 min 53 secs while defending national champion Gaurav Gill stalled his Cedia in the second lap but not before the few hundreds had a taste of his stunning drifts on the first lap. Gill crashed out in the first leg on Saturay but came back today gunning for the leg points in vain.
Team Ovion Racing’s Sujay Suresh and co-driver Bharath SM in a Mitsubishi Lancer Cedia won the 2000cc N category while the other Ovion team Girija Shankar Joshy and co-drier Chandramouli suffered bad luck with a flat tyre twice in the day. Vikram Devadasan (Shivaprakash) finished second ahead of Chethan Shivaram and Roopesh Kholay, who took advantage of mechanical problems faced by Sirish Chandran (Nikhil V Pai) of Overdrive.
In 1600cc N category, Shailendar Hegde (Sheraz Ahmed) brought home their Maruthi Baleno for a victory over the Kerala pair of Vishal GA and Robinson R George. The other team from Kochi, Ranjith Gopinath and Dileep R came third.
Dr Bikku Babu and co-driver Bonnie Thomas won the 1400cc class while Phalguna Urs (Anoop Kumar) took home the Rally Star Cup. The Army Adventure Club duo of Maj Amrinder Brar and Himanshu Pareek pushed back Shakti Bajaj (Dharmesh Singh) to the second place and won the Gypsy class comfortably.
Provisional un-audited Classification:
Overall: 1. Naren Kumar / Co-driver Ram Kumar, Red Rooster Racing, 1:35:58.3; 2. Vikram Mathias / PV Srinivasa Murthy, Red Rooster Racing, 1:36:32.7; 3. Arjun Balu/ Sujit Kumar BS, Team MRF, 1:39:27.4;
Group 2000cc N+: 1. Naren Kumar / Co-driver Ram Kumar, Red Rooster Racing, 1:35:58.3; 2. Vikram Mathias / PV Srinivasa Murthy, Red Rooster Racing, 1:36:32.7; 3. Arjun Balu/ Sujit Kumar BS, Team MRF, 1:39:27.4;
Group 2000cc N: 1. Sujay Suresh / Bharath SM, Ovion Racing, 1: 46: 53.9 ; 2. Vikram Devadasen/ Shivaprakash E, privateers (pvt), 1:51: 21.5; 3. Chethan Shivaram/ Roopesh Kholay, 1: 54: 47.2;
Group 1600cc N: 1. Shailendar Hegde/ Sheraz Ahmed, pvt, 1: 52:32.7;
2. Vishal GA/ Robinson R George, pvt, 1: 52: 55.9; 3. Ranjith Gopinath/ Dileep R, pvt, 1: 54: 55.7;
Group 1400cc N: 1. Dr Bikku Babu/ Bonnie Thomas, pvt-Kerala, 1: 49:59.0; 2. Byram Godrej/ Anjay Kapadia, pvt, 1: 50: 18.6; 3. Monish L /Jeevarathinam J, 1:58:43.9;
Group Rally Star Cup (RSC): 1. Phalguna Urs/ Anoop Kumar, pvt, 1: 52:25.1; 2. Harikesav N/Ashvin Nadig, pvt, 1: 53:38.3; 3. Venkatapathy MR/ Santtosh Kumar S, 1: 55:16.9;
Group Gypsy: 1. Maj Amarinder S Brar/ Himanshu Pareek, pvt – Army Adventure Wing
1: 53:34.6; 2. Shakti Bajaj/ Dharmesh Singh, pvt- Army AW, 1: 56: 22.2; 3. Harpreet Singh Sidhu/ Sanjay B Gokhale, 1: 56: 54.5. -
Gaurav Gill-Musa Sherif win opening round at Nashik
By David Bodapati
Nashik, 27 June 2010: Speed devil Gaurav Gill and co-driver Musa Sherif began with a bang and put Team MRF on the top winning the opening event of the Speed Indian National Rally Championship as they displayed controlled aggression with a comfortable lead in hand and won the Rally of Maharashtra with ease at the Dadasaheb Phalke Smarak here on Sunday.
The spectacular speeds at the spectator spectacle unfolded at the crowded Phalke Smarak and for once Gill had to control his speed an make sure the car does not play truant like last year. However, he did not shy away from entertaining the crowd with his drifts sliding down the corners without lifting off the gas. In the course, it was Red Rooster’s Vikram Mathias, last year’s winner here, who zoomed to the best timing in the Super Special Stage came out trumps in 1 minute 48.4 seconds, a clear 3.1 seconds faster than Gill but had to be content with the second place in his Mitsubishi Cedia with co-driver PVS Murthy. Kolkata’s Amittrajit Ghosh and Aswin Naik also of Team Red Rooster Racing took the third place on the podium in the inaugural event..
“It was a grand opening round for me and my team MRF. Finally, I got the monkey off my back and broke the Nashik jinx,” was how a relieved National champion Gill reacted. At the same venue last year, Gill’s car stalled soon after the start and was out of the competition. Gill never won at Nashik till today morning.
“We went in with a different set-up today and I was more intent on doing some drifts just to give the spectators something to cheer about. Overall, it was a good outing for us and we had no problems with the car,” said Gill as he busied himself to leave for New Zealand for the Asia Pacific Rally championship commencing next weekend.
In the 2000cc N category, Girijashankar Joshy and co-driver Chandramouli won the first title in the season for Team Ovion in its debut race with a timing of 1hr 29:46.5secs. Teammates Sujay Suresh and Varun Sathyanarayan made it a one-two for team Ovion while Sirish Chandran and Nikhil Pai came third.
Bangalore duo, Rahul Kantharaj with Vivek Bhat navigating in the 1600cc notched up an authoritative win over Shailender Hegde/Shiraz Ahmed. “We are very happy to launch our campaign with a win in,’’ said Rahul while Vivek said: “It was a daunting rally for the navigator with a lot of blind corners. The first day was slushy but otherwise it was a good rally with a lot calls. We enjoyed it.’’
Overnight leaders Dr Bikku Babu and co-driver Gerorge Varghese of Kerala won the 1400cc class while Byram Godrej/Anjay Kapadia came second. Monish-Jeeva pair took the third place.
Amrinder Brar and co-driver Himanshu Pareek put paid to the hopes of Sachin Singh/Adhiraj Bhardan pair in their Gypsy while Shakti Bajaj and Dharmesh duo finished third.
In the Rally Star Car category, Mysore pair Phalguna V Urs and Anoop Kumar made sure of their first title of the season with a comfortable win edging out Coimbatore pair Venkatapathy/Santosh Kumar. VS Ratan and Preetham came third.
Final Results (Provisional unaudited classification):
Overall and 2000cc N+: 1. Gaurav Gill/Musa Sherif (Team MRF) (1 hr 22:42.5); 2. Vikram Mathias/PVS Murthy (Team RRR) (1hr 25:03.2); 3.Amittrajit Ghosh/Ashwin Naik (Team Red Rooster Racing) (1:26:35.7);
2000cc: 1. Girijashankar Joshy/Chandramouli M (Ovion Racing) (1:29:46.5); 2.Sujay Suresh/Varun Sathyanarayan (Ovion Racing) (1:32:01.3); 3. Sirish Chandran/Nikhil Pai (1hr 34:30.7)
1600 cc: 1. Rahul Kanthiraj/Vivek Bhat (1hr 36:15.4); 2. Shailender Hegde/Sheraz Ahmed (1hr 40:02.5).
1400cc: Dr Bikku Babu/George Varghese (1hr 36:24.8); 2. Byram Godrej/Anjay Kapadia (1hr 36:39.9); 3. Monish/Jeeva (1hr 45:49.1)
Gypsy: 1. Amarinder Brar/Himanshu Pareek (1hr 37:03.6); 2.Sachin Singh/Adhiraj Bhardhan (1hr 41:19.4); 3. Shakthi Bajaj/Dharmesh Sinha (Army)(1hr 43:00.7)
Rally Star Cup: 1. Phalguna V Urs/Anoop Kumar (1hr 37:26.7) 2. Venkatapathy Mettuchetty/ Santosh Kumar Selvaraj (1hr 38:57.1); 3. VS Ratan/Preetham(1hr 41:58.6). -
Gaurav Gill-Musa Sherif begin with a bang at Nashik
By David Bodapati
Nashik, 27 June 2010: Speed devil Gaurav Gill and co-driver Musa Sherif began with a bang and put Team MRF on the top winning the opening event of the Speed Indian National Rally Championship as they displayed controlled aggression with a comfortable lead in hand and won the Rally of Maharashtra with ease at the Dadasaheb Phalke Smarak here on Sunday.
The spectacular speeds at the spectator spectacle unfolded at the crowded Phalke Smarak and for once Gill had to control his speed an make sure the car does not play truant like last year. However, he did not shy away from entertaining the crowd with his drifts sliding down the corners without lifting off the gas. In the course, it was Red Rooster’s Vikram Mathias, last year’s winner here, who zoomed to the best timing in the Super Special Stage came out trumps in 1 minute 48.4 seconds, a clear 3.1 seconds faster than Gill but had to be content with the second place in his Mitsubishi Cedia with co-driver PVS Murthy. Kolkata’s Amittrajit Ghosh and Aswin Naik also of Team Red Rooster Racing took the third place on the podium in the inaugural event..
“It was a grand opening round for me and my team MRF. Finally, I got the monkey off my back and broke the Nashik jinx,” was how a relieved National champion Gill reacted. At the same venue last year, Gill’s car stalled soon after the start and was out of the competition. Gill never won at Nashik till today morning.
“We went in with a different set-up today and I was more intent on doing some drifts just to give the spectators something to cheer about. Overall, it was a good outing for us and we had no problems with the car,” said Gill as he busied himself to leave for New Zealand for the Asia Pacific Rally championship commencing next weekend.
In the 2000cc N category, Girijashankar Joshy and co-driver Chandramouli won the first title in the season for Team Ovion in its debut race with a timing of 1hr 29:46.5secs. Teammates Sujay Suresh and Varun Sathyanarayan made it a one-two for team Ovion while Sirish Chandran and Nikhil Pai came third.
Bangalore duo, Rahul Kantharaj with Vivek Bhat navigating in the 1600cc notched up an authoritative win over Shailender Hegde/Shiraz Ahmed. “We are very happy to launch our campaign with a win in,’’ said Rahul while Vivek said: “It was a daunting rally for the navigator with a lot of blind corners. The first day was slushy but otherwise it was a good rally with a lot calls. We enjoyed it.’’
Overnight leaders Dr Bikku Babu and co-driver Gerorge Varghese of Kerala won the 1400cc class while Byram Godrej/Anjay Kapadia came second. Monish-Jeeva pair took the third place.
Amrinder Brar and co-driver Himanshu Pareek put paid to the hopes of Sachin Singh/Adhiraj Bhardan pair in their Gypsy while Shakti Bajaj and Dharmesh duo finished third.
In the Rally Star Car category, Mysore pair Phalguna V Urs and Anoop Kumar made sure of their first title of the season with a comfortable edging out Coimbatore pair Venkatapathy/Santosh Kumar. VS Ratan and Preetham came third.
Final Results (Provisional unaudited classification):
Overall and 2000cc N+: 1. Gaurav Gill/Musa Sherif (Team MRF) (1 hr 22:42.5); 2. Vikram Mathias/PVS Murthy (Team RRR) (1hr 25:03.2); 3.Amittrajit Ghosh/Ashwin Naik (Team Red Rooster Racing) (1:26:35.7);
2000cc: 1. Girijashankar Joshy/Chandramouli M (Ovion Racing) (1:29:46.5); 2.Sujay Suresh/Varun Sathyanarayan (Ovion Racing) (1:32:01.3); 3. Sirish Chandran/Nikhil Pai (1hr 34:30.7)
1600 cc: 1. Rahul Kanthiraj/Vivek Bhat (1hr 36:15.4); 2. Shailender Hegde/Sheraz Ahmed (1hr 40:02.5).
1400cc: Dr Bikku Babu/George Varghese (1hr 36:24.8); 2. Byram Godrej/Anjay Kapadia (1hr 36:39.9); 3. Monish/Jeeva (1hr 45:49.1)
Gypsy: 1. Amarinder Brar/Himanshu Pareek (1hr 37:03.6); 2.Sachin Singh/Adhiraj Bhardhan (1hr 41:19.4); 3. Shakthi Bajaj/Dharmesh Sinha (Army)(1hr 43:00.7)
Rally Star Cup: 1. Phalguna V Urs/Anoop Kumar (1hr 37:26.7) 2. Venkatapathy Mettuchetty/ Santosh Kumar Selvaraj (1hr 38:57.1); 3. VS Ratan/Preetham(1hr 41:58.6).ends/david. 973 180 2333
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Gill regains Speed INRC title
By David Bodapati
Chikmagalur, 21 Nov 2009: Speed demon Gaurav Gill and co-driver Musa Sherif of Team MRF clinched the Speed Indian National Rally Championship for the year 2009 winning the Coffee Day Rally of Chikmagalur, the fifth and final round of the Speed INRC which saw a Red sweep as Team MRF won the top three places here on Sunday.
Excitement was at its feverish pitch as fancied Gaurav Gill kept his poise to pocket his second National championship title as the curtains came down on the Coffee Day Rally. With a comfortable lead in the first leg, Gill left his characteristic speed dashes and did not go all out. He displayed controlled aggression and was content to be second fastest today with the title in mind. Though the official declaration is expected on Nov 28 on the pending protests, Gill is unlikely to be affected as he has an insurmountable 46 points.
Twentyeight-year-old Gill, who won the National Title under the colours of MRF two years ago, did an encore and promptly thanked the support. “I am happy to have done the job but the prime reason has been the perfect tyres. Today my gearbox stuck in the final stage but I wriggled out without shifting the gears thanks to my lead.”
Gaurav Gill, left, and Musa Sherif, who won the Coffee Day Rally to clinch the INRC title on Sunday. An INDIAinF1 image It turned out to be MRF’s day with Lohith Urs (co-driver Sikanth Gowda) and Arjun Rao Aroor (Satish Rajagopal) doing just about enough to take the second and third placings respectively. Lohith gave Gill a close run and in fact was fastest in all the stages but lost 3 minutes due to a penalty for early arrival. “I am happy that it turned out to be Gaurav’s day as he had been the most consistent here. In my view, the good show has been due to the experimentation in the vehicles and the solidity of the tyres even in slushy conditions,” said Lohith. Their job was made easy as Red Rooster Racing drivers Vikram Mathias and Amittrajit Ghosh did not finish.
Girijashankar Joshy (Chandramouli M) won the 1600cc category with a time of 1 hr 42 min 26 seconds pushing Rahul Kanthraj (Vivek Bhat) and Joseph C Jos (Royce Kizhakoodan) to second and third places respectively but it was Sujay S who earned a leg point today and won the National title in this class with 50 points. Joseph Jos and Rahul Kanthraj finished second and third in the National championship.
In the 1400 cc class, Vikram Devadasan (Nikhil Pai) won with a time of 1 hour 44 min, 57 seconds while Ahijeet N Pai (Satvik GA) finished second and Deepak Chinnappa (Chandrashekar) third. Vikram Devadasan won the National title with 54 points and Nikhil Pai, his Navigator won the Co-Drivers’ Championship. Francis K Jose (Manoj M) who finished fourth today bagged five points to take second place in the National championship. Dr Bikku Babu, who had 14 points before this rally, just managed to push Deepak Chinnappa (13) by one point. Deepak came third here to garner 7 points but the third place in the National Championship.
Karna Kadur had the taste of a National title in the Rally Star Cup. The greenhorn said it has been a learning ground complementing the good work of his navigator Somonita Ghosh, sister of the young racing talent Amittrajit Ghosh. Kadur finished sixth in this rally to earn three valuable points and being the fastest today he added three more leg points which helped him to win the National title with 52 points ahead of Balram CG (Raghuram CG) who won the rally here but fell short by two points for the national title. Phalguna Urs finished third in this rally to ensure his third place in the INRC with 45 points. Karan AM (Somaiah AG) were second today.
In the Maruti Gypsy class, the well endowed Kushwant Randhawa blamed it on the gears not holding its own losing the title eventually to Sandeep Sharma by just one point. Kushwant (49) enjoyed a narrow three point lead over Sandeep (46) before the start of this rally. Sandeep garnered all the 16 points here to take his tally to 62 while Kushwant could only get 12 and missed out with a total of 61 points.
The Results (Provisional unaudited classification):
Overall 2000cc N+: 1. Gaurav Gill/Musa Sherif (Team MRF) (1 hr, 36 min 16 secs); 2. Lohith V Urs/Srikanth Gowda (Team MRF) (1:37.21); 3. Arjun Rao Aroor/ Sathish Rajagopal (Team MRF) (1:37:55);
1600 cc: 1. Girijashankar Joshy/Chandramouli M (1 hr, 42min 26 secs); 2. Rahul Kanthraj/Vivek Bhatt (1:43:41); 3. Joseph C Jos/Royce Kizhakoodan (Team DDL) (1:44:17);
1400cc: 1. Vikram Devadasan/Nihkil Pai (1 hr, 44 min, 57 secs); 2. Abhijeet N Pai/Satvik G.A (1:45:10); 3. Deepak Chinnappa/ Chandrasekar M (1:47:37);
Rally Star Cup: 1. Balram CG/Raghuram CG (1 hr, 48 min, 03 secs) 2. Karan AM/ Somaiah AG (1:48:59); 3. Phalguna Urs/ Anoop Kumar (1:49:20);
Gypsy: 1. Sandeep Sharma/ Anmol Rampal (1 hr 47 min, 02 secs); 2. Kushwant Randhawa/ Ravindra MS (1:49:05); 3. Shafeeq Ur Rahman/ Ajith KP (1:52:27);
ends
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Pramod Joshua wins MAK 2W-INRC Mysore Round
By David Bodapati
Mysore, 5 Sept 2009: Team TVS Racing once again cornered the glory as Pramod Joshua earned his second victory and along with Aravind KP made it 1-2 for TVS Racing for the second time at the MAK Rally of Mysore 2009, the second round of the MAK Indian National Rally Championship for two-wheelers at KR Nagar, near here, on Sunday.
However, it was local teenager Abdul Waheed Tanveer, who stole the limelight spoiling a sweep by Team TVS Racing as he pushed Natraj behind to finish a creditable third. “I really enjoyed my rally today. The stages were fast and the competition was tough. But riding here is fun,’’ quipped the Privateer from Mysore.
Pramod Joshua, riding for Team TVS Racing, in the Group B (modified) 4 stroke 130 cc to 160 cc category, finished overall first to add to the win he achieved at the first round in Coimbatore last month. He now leads the championship table with 40 points ahead of teammate Arvind KP, who again ended up second, in the same category. Arvind, who overcame a tough challenge from a determined HK Pradeep clinched the second place. He retained his second place in the MAK INRC with 36 points. Defending champion HK Pradeep, also from Team TVS Racing, was in the second place after the first two stages, but toppled in the third Special Stage and damaged his bike. He lost close to three minutes to give way to Arvind and Natraj. Late in the day Natraj, who was leading by just two seconds after SS4, lost out to Abdul, the 18-year-old privateer from Mysore.
The MAK INRC for Motorcycles, organized by Mysore Adventure Sports Club (MASC) under the aegis of Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India, the governing body for the country under the International Motorcycle Federation (FIM) attracted 37 entries in different classes. The event promoted by IMG Sports and Pro Sports Promotion ran over a distance of 156.2 kms with six Special Stages. Cauvery stage and Kapila stage, the two special stages were run three times each to make up a distance of a little over 62 kms.
Provisional Unaudited Results:
Overall and Group B 4 Stroke 130 to 160cc: Pramod Joshua (TVS) 1; Arvind KP (TVS) 2; Abdul Waheed Tanveer (TVS) 3;
Note: KP Aravind spelling changed in June 2017 to facilitate search
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Stylish rally star Arjun Balu wins maiden K1000 with navigator Sujith Kumar
By David Bodapati
Bangalore, 23 Aug 2009: Team MRF painted the City Red sweeping the podium as Arjun Balu, the most stylish driver in the Indian rally scene, won his maiden IMG Sports K-1000 rally, the second leg of the SPEED Indian National Rally Championship at the Manyata Tech Park here on Sunday.
“This win means a lot for me. Though it was tough for the last three days, I enjoyed every bit of it,’’ said the champion driver from Coimbatore driving the 200+ horsepower Mitsubishi Lancer Cedia machine.. The 34-year old Speed Master switched off and went on a safe mode but his racing line and the sliding turns showed his class in the Super Special Stage today when he gave a joy ride to the Indian cricket captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the brand ambassador of SPEED, the high-quality product of Bharat Petroleum.
However, it was his teammate Gaurav Gill who stole the limelight with two blistering laps of the 2-km Super Special Stage providing seat-edged thrills and the adrenalin rush to over 5000-odd Sunday crowd. Taking an acute right before the hair-pin bend in front of the Grand Stand, Gaurav Gill, gave spectacular moments of speed and thrill with his sliding dash without letting off the gas and the crowd enjoyed every bit as he clocked a time of 2 min and 7 seconds, the best today. That also helped Gaurav Gill and co-driver Musa Sheriff to bag all the three stage points of Leg 2 pipping Arjun Balu and Sujith Kumar with a tie, which went in favour of Gill and Sheriff as they had fast times in more Special Stages on Day 2.
Arjun Balu and co-driver Sujith Kumar with trophies after winning the K1000 rally, the second round of INRC 2009 in Bangalore on Sunday. An INDIAinF1 Photo Arjin Rao Aroor and Satish Rajagopal, also of MRF, completed the top-three in the the 2000cc N+ Category. The splashing at the water spot and the airbourne cars at the jump spot in front of the spectator gallery made the Super Special Stage spectacular for the spectators and the presence of Dhoni added excitement.
Joseph C Jos and Royce Kizhakoodan of Team DDL Kochi who has won many autocross events has entered the rally championship this year and quickly adopted to the circuit. He won the 1600cc class where Sujay S and Varun S finished second and local pair Rahul Kantharaj and Vivek Bhatt came third.
Local lad Vikram Devadasan, navigated by Nikhil Pai of Secunderabad, who showed his promise in the Rally Star Cup last year with good performances, won the the 1400cc class. Jose Francis and Manoj M of DDL Sports, Kochi came second while Samarth Gowda and Bharathi SM finished third.
In the Rally Star Cup, the entry class, Phalguna V Urs and Anup Kumar edged out Balram CG and Raghuram CG to the second place. Harikeshav Nambiar and Ashwin Nadig were third.
Sandeep Sharma and Anmol Rampal of Team Thunderbolt brought their Gypsy to the podium while Kushwant Randhawa and co-driver Harminder Singh finished second ahead of local team Sanjay Agarwal and Chetan Shivaram.
Provisional, unaudited results:
Overall/2000cc: Arjun Balu/Sujith Kumar (Team MRF, Cedia N+) 1 ; Gaurav Gill/Moosa Sherif (Team MRF, Cedia N+) 2; Aroor Arjun Rao/Satish Rajagopal (Team MRF, Cedia N+) 3
1600cc (Baleno): Joseph C/Royce 1; S Sujay/Varun 2; Rahul Kantharaj and Vivek Bhat 3;
1400cc (Esteem): Vikram Devadasen/Nikhil Pai 1; Jose Francis/ Manoj M 2; Samarth Gowda/Bharath SM 3.
Rally Star Cup (Carbureted Esteem): Phalguna Urs/Anoop Kumar 1 ; Raghuram CG/Balram CG 2, Harikeshav Nambiar/Ashwin Nadig
Gypsy class: Sandeep Sharma /Anmol Rajpal 1; Kushwant Randhawa /Harminder 2;
Sanjay Agarwal/ Chetan Shivaram 3.
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Ghosh, Naik win Rally of Coimbatore with 20-sec `Grace Time’
Coimbatore, 28 June 2009: Amittrajit Ghosh and co-driver Ashwin Naik of Red Rooster Racing won the Rally of Coimbatore, the season opener of the IMG-PSP Speed Indian National Rally Championship at the Windmill farms of Kethanoor, near here on Sunday.
The Kolkata-Mangalore duo were helped by a stewards’ decision late on Saturday night to push Saturday’s leaders Arjun Rao Aroor and co-driver Satish Rajagopal to second place. Ghosh gained 20 precious seconds as stewards upheld his request for `grace time’ as he lost a lot of time after the duo were boxed down by a slower car during the Special Stage 8 on Saturday.
Now Rao and Rajagopal finished 14 seconds behind Ghosh. On Sunday morning, Ghosh steered his Cedia well and made up crucial time clocking an identical time in the final stage after he lost 19 seconds to Rao in the penultimate stage. The overnight lead of `grace time’ given to him, helped him clinch the issue.
However, Team MRF protested the 20-second `grace time’ given to Ghosh and if the Stewards uphold the protest, then it is likely that Rao might yet be declared champion again. Delhi’s Sandeep Sharma and co-driver Arjun Chopra of Team Thunderbolt finished third in a Maruti Gypsy.
Results (provisional): Overall: 1. Amittrajit Ghosh/ Ashwin Naik (Red Rooster Racing, Cedia N+) (2:10:45); 2. Arjun Aroor Rao/ Satish Rajagopal (Team MRF, Cedia N+) (2:10:58); Sandeep 3. Sharma/ Arjun Chopra (Team Thunderbolt, Maruti Gypsy) (2:16:12).
2000cc Class (Cedia N+): Amittrajit Ghosh/ Ashwin Naik 1; Arjun Rao Aroor/ Satish Rajagopal; 2. Arjun Balu/Sujith Kumar (Team MRF) (2:18:08).
1600cc (Maruti Baleno): 1. Vishal GA/ Robinson Rajkumar (2:21:58); 2. Sujay S/ Varun S (2:22:42); 3. Rahul Kantharaj/ Vivek Bhatt (2:26:48).
1400cc (MPFI Esteem): 1. Bikku Babu/ Bonnie Thomas; 2. Amith Anand/ Prakash Rodrigues (2:20:23); 3. Francis Jose/ Manoj M (DDL Sports) (2:22:08),
Rally Star Cup (Carbureted Esteem): 1. Karna Kadur/ Somonnita Ghosh; 2. Venkatapathy/ Santosh Kumar S; 3. CG Balaram/ CG Raghuram (2:18:17).
Maruti Gypsy: 1. Sharma/ Chopra; 2. Khushwant Randhawa/ Harminder S Kaler (2:22:04); 3. Vijay Jose/ Pradeep Nagabhushan (2:36:16).
