INDIA in F1

Tag: Rally

  • Santosh survives Day 1 with a 29th place after Stage 1; J-Rod crashes out

    Santosh survives Day 1 with a 29th place after Stage 1; J-Rod crashes out

    © RallyZone – Edoardo Bauer

    Pisco (Peru), 8 January 2018: Hero MotoSports Team Rally regained the momentum to make a solid show on the 2nd Day of the Dakar Rally 2018, shrugging off the unfortunate events of the Day 1 where their main rider, J-Rod Rodriques, dropped out of contention after an accident where he fractured his wrist and was airlifted to a hospital.

    Stage 2 was the first full-length stage of the Dakar with a short 12-km liaison section followed by a 267-km loop of Pisco. It is a challenging stage with tricky canyons in the first 40 km of the stage which make it only tougher by the series of dunes that follow.

    With a tough stage on the cards, both the Hero riders decided to be cautious and steady. Oriol Mena finished the stage at 27th place and Santosh at 29th.

    The third stage of the Rally will commence on January 8, when it moves to the next location of San Juan De Marcona, where the competitors can expect to encounter a Chott (dry/marshy saline lake), a number of canyons and almost 60% sand during the course of the 504 kms of riding.

    C.S Santosh (Comp No: 49) said: “The Dakar really kicked off today with a difficult stage. The sand was really soft and some of the dunes were really massive. I started really slow but then gained a good rhythm. I had fun today and really happy to make it to the end of day 2.”

    Oriol Mena (Comp No: 61) said: “It was a really hard day today but I covered the 1st half at really good speed and caught up with three riders in front of me. Before the re-fuelling station I had slight problem and lost a few minutes there but happy that I finished today and now have one day less to arrive at Cordoba.”

    Joaquim Rodrigues (Comp No: 26) said: “Thanks to all the friends and my team for the support and wishes. I am doing ok now and will be flying back home soon to complete my recovery. Sorry, my Dakar was short this year, hard luck but I will come back stronger. All the best to CS and Mena to make it to the finish line at Cordoba safely”

    Provisional Stage 2 Classifications: 1. Joan Bort Barreda, Honda Racing, Honda, 02h56m44s; 2. Adrian Van Beveren, Yamaha Official Rally Team, Yamaha,  +2m 54s; 3.Matthias Walkner,  redBull KTM Factory Racing, KTM, +4m 24s; 27. Oriol Mena           Hero Motosports Team Rally, Hero MotoSports, +24m 55s; 29. C.S. Santosh, Hero Motosports Team Rally, Hero MotoSports, +26m 07s.

    Overall Provisional Classifications after Stage 2

    1. Joan Bort Barreda, Honda Racing, Honda, 03h18m36s; 2. Adrian Van Beveren, Yamaha Official Team, Yamaha, +2m 30s; 3. Matthias Walkner, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, KTM +4m 50s; 27. Oriol Mena, Hero Motosports Team Rally, Hero MotoSports, +28m 12s; 28. C.S. Santosh Hero Motosports Team Rally, Hero MotoSports, +28m 26s.

    You can follow Hero MotoSports Team Rally at www.heromotosports.com

     

  • Gill rules the night stages of Rally of Arunachal: INRC

    Itanagar, (Arunachal Pradesh), 23 Dec 2017: King of Indian motorsports and reigning Asia Pacific Rally Championship, Gaurav Gill of Team Mahindra Adventure moved closer to another National title as he won along with long-time co-driver Musa Sherif, the Rally of Arunachal, the fifth and penultimate round of the MRF fmsci Indian National Rally Championship at Ziro on Saturday. With three wins, Gill has 75 points and is leading the table with Dean Mascarenhas in second place with 63 points.

    Fresh from his victory at the APRC championship victory at Chikkamagaluru, where he could not take part in the INRC which were held simultaneously. With the Mangalorean Musa Sherif making the calls, Gill was at this best speeding away through the Special Stages, as night stages made a comeback to add flavour to the first rally in the North East in the INRC on Friday.

    Young Turk Dean Mascarenhas of Mangalore came overall second and won his class, INRC3. Amittrajit Ghosh (co-driver Ashwin Naik) came third.

    Younus Ilyas and Harish Kumar won the INRC2 class edging out Rahul Kanthraj and Vivek Y Bhatt, who finished fifth overall, were leading the championship table in their class with only K-1000 round remaining in January. The South India Rally in Chennai is not likely to happen for want of calendar time as K1000 in Bengaluru is already pushed to the New Year.

    Karna Kadur and Arjun Rao failed to finish the rally due to mechanical problems.

    Provisional Results:
    INRC: 1. Gaurav Gill (Musa Sherif); 2. Dean Mascarenhas (Shruptha Padival); 3. Amittrajit Ghosh (Ashwin Naik);
    INRC 2: 1. Younus Ilyas (Harish Kumar); 2. Rahul Kanthraj (Vivek Y Bhatt); 3. Jacob KJ (Venu Ramesh Kumar);
    INRC 3: 1. Dean Mascarenhas (Shruptha Padival); 2. Daraius Shroff (Nitin Jacob); 3. Dr Punyabrata Barma (Mrinmoy Saha).

    eom/

  • Gill looking to conquer new territory in the North-East: INRC

    Itanagar  (Arunachal Pradesh), 21 Dec 2017: The King of Indian Motorsports and current Asia Pacific Rally Champion Gaurav Gill has come back to the fmsci Indian National Rally Championship, perhaps the penultimate round of this year’s calendar with only K-1000 remaining at Bengaluru next month. The postponed rounds now appear to have a slim chance of being organised as the 5th round begins in the North-Eastern territory, a new entrant into the INRC. Title sponsor MRF are all set for the Rally of Arunachal, which began today with the key contest being on Sunday.

    Despite not taking part in the INRC leg of the 4th round which was held along with APRC in the Coffee land of Chikmagalur, Gill, still leads the field with 50 points along with navigator Musa Sherif, after two victories for Team Mahindra Adventure. Karna Kadur who won the INRC category in the last round for the second successive year is five points behind. Kadur is also the defending champion.

    Dean Mascarenhas is leading the INRC3 class. Overall, Dean, who came back with his old navigator Shruptha Padival at Chikmagalur, has 43 points. But the duo lead their class with 75 points.

    ARKA motorsports’ Karna and Nikhil Pai are back in the fray, despite a non-finish in Round 3, the Rally of Jaipur.

    Karna yielded his pre-eminent position in the INRC 2 class to Rahul Kanthraj and Vivek Y Bhatt, who has managed a 2, 1, 2 finish so far. He is fourth in the INRC standings with 37 points.
    ends

  • APRC champ Gaurav Gill lights up the FIA gala prize-giving for all Indians

    APRC champ Gaurav Gill lights up the FIA gala prize-giving for all Indians

    Gaurav Gill at the FIA gala prize-giving along with Dr Shilpa Gill, in Versailles Paris on Saturday, 9th Dec 2017. An FIA image by Jean Marie Hervio. Image updated on 11 Dec, 6.30pm IST

    The King of Indian Motorsports, Gaurav Gill, receiving the honours was the highlight of the annual gala show for all Indians as was the presentation of the FIA Formula One World Drivers’ Championship Trophy to Lewis Hamilton.

    Gill is the only Indian Driver to have won the title and invited by the FIA for the Gala Awards night, revered as the Oscars of motorsport.

    Gill, the 36-year-old speed maestro from New Delhi defended his Asia Pacific Rally Championship, winning the title for the third time. Gill is the only Indian among the various winners of different world championships. The MRF driver has brute speed and inherent talent and has been punching above his weight year after year despite having minimum seat-time and other key limitations.  Unfortunately, his passion and commitment to motorsport seem to have hit a road-block as he finds in a funny situation with no sponsor coming forward to push him to a better platform, like the World Rally Championship or even a Euro event, to showcase his immense talent to the world.

    Gill actually started racing bikes, to begin with, and entered the competitive world of Indian motorsports in the National motocross championship in 1999. He also won National championship titles multiple times. He won the National Road Racing Championship in 2004 and 2006 before moving to the India’s National Rally Championship which he won in 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013 (SUV), and 2014. And in 2015 he is nominated by the FMSCI for the Arjuna Award, an Indian national award for sporting excellence, by the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) to the Government of India.

    In 2016, he created a record of sorts winning all the rounds of the FIA APRC before rounding it off in our very own well-conducted Rally of 1000 corners in the Coffee Estates of Chikmagalur. By now the genial giant of Indian Motorsport should have been winning titles and rubbing shoulders with the best in the World Rally scene but is yet get a deal. Last year, Mahindra showed interest and drew up plans but nothing is heard after that.

    After winning the championship in Chikmagalur last month, the muted celebrations hinted a tinge of disappointment despite giving his best and beyond to brighten the Indian Rally scene for many years now. However, according to a grapevine, Gill is likely to go to Dakar next year as part of a four-wheeler team, details of which are yet to be made public.

    Hamilton, cynosure of all eyes

    Hamilton, the Mercedes driver lifted the World Championship trophy for the fourth time in his career, a remarkable feat that puts him level with French Formula One legend Alain Prost and his great rival for this year’s title, German driver Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari.

    The Briton took nine victories during 2017, scored points in every grand prix of the season and along the way established a new benchmark of 72 career pole positions, beating Michael Schumacher’s previous record of 68. However, despite the record-breaking season, he said that he could not see himself eclipsing the German great’s seven championship titles.

    “It’s taken me 10 years to achieve four,” said Hamilton. “I currently don’t have that desire to match [Schumacher’s] seven, but matching Fangio [who scored five titles] would be quite cool. Given that I‘m going to be here for at least another couple of years, that’s my goal. To try and at least get that. We [he and Mercedes] definitely have more championships to win together.”

    In rallying, Sébastien Ogier’s fifth consecutive FIA World Rally Championship title puts the Frenchman into sole second place in the list of multiple title winners, ahead of legendary flying Finns Juha Kankkunen and Tommi Makinen.

    Ogier’s 2017 championship victory is perhaps his sweetest to date, coming after the departure of the all-conquering Volkswagen factory team with which he had achieved his previous four titles, and being achieved with privateer outfit M-Sport.

    Ogier said: “It’s amazing and we are very proud that we managed it again this year, because I think everyone is aware of the challenge we had to face with the retirement of our old team, and we had to find a new solution at the last minute. I think it’s been a very difficult season for us: very exciting, and very open, with a lot of different winners in WRC, but it’s nice to come out on top once again and to be here today to grab the trophy for a fifth time.”

    In the FIA World Endurance Championship, Germany’s Timo Bernhard and New Zealand duo Earl Bamberand Brendon Hartley took the Drivers’ Championship title, helping Porsche to sign-off on a four-season stint in the Championship with a third successive manufacturers’ title.

    A mid-season hot streak of four wins gave the trio a solid platform, and second-place finishes at the final two events were enough to seal a maiden title for Bamber and second championship crowns for Bernhard and Hartley, who also took the crown with Porsche in 2015.

    “From the word go it was a tense battle this season,” said Hartley. “The first round at Silverstone was won or lost by about six seconds and when you’re second that’s quite a brutal result, so we knew it would be tough. But winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans helped our cause a lot, so yes, it was an intense battle but fortunately, we were up to the job.”

    There were also new global trophies up for grabs in the FIA WEC, with the LMGTE Pro category being elevated to World Championship status in 2017. And it was Ferrari that emerged as the team champions, with the Italian squad’s pairing of James Calado and Alessandro Pier Guidi emerged victoriously.

    In the FIA World Touring Car Championship, Sweden’s Thed Björk made history, not just in winning his first FIA world title but also in becoming WTCC’s final champion in its current form, with the series bowing out from today, to be replaced by a new series, the WTCR – FIA World Touring Car Cup in 2018. Over the course of a rollercoaster campaign, Volvo Polestar driver Björk scored two wins and seven podium finishes to beat Honda’s Norbert Michelisz in a titanic battle that went down to the wire at the final event in Qatar.

    Sweden’s 2017 haul of world drivers’ titles was doubled by Johan Kristofferson who took a maiden FIA World Rallycross Championship title ahead of compatriot Mattias Ekström.

    Ekström opened his title defence with a trio of victories but after scoring his first win of the season in Belgium, Kristofferson rattled off a five-event run of victories to establish that allied to a final-round win in South Africa carried him to the title.

    The FIA’s future-focused, all-electric 2016/17 Formula E Championship was won by Lucas Di Grassi who took the title at the end of a nail-biting, down-to-the-wire fight with defending champion Sébastien Buemi. The Swiss racer took six wins to Di Grassi’s two, but the Brazilian was a model of consistency, scoring five further podiums and three pole positions to edge the battle as Buemi suffered a series of second half mishaps and a brace of missed races due to other racing commitments.

    A number of special FIA awards were handed out on the night. For a remarkable third year in a row, Max Verstappen won the FIA Personality of the Year while the FIA Action of the Year Awards went to WRC driverEsapekka Lappi for his spectacular 33m, 120kph flight over the Fafe jump at Rally de Portugal. Formula 2 Champion Charles Leclerc, recently announced 2018 Formula 1 driver with the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team, won the Rookie of the Year Award.

    The FIA President’s Award was this year expanded not only to incorporate those that have displayed courage, determination and sportsmanship but to also include those that have contributed greatly to the broader FIA community. The first of two awards in the category was presented to Jean-Charles Decaux, Co-Chief Executive Officer of the JCDecaux Group.

    In 2017, in partnership with the outdoor advertising giant, the FIA embarked upon an ambitious campaign named #3500LIVES that brings key road safety messages to a global audience using the JCDecaux’s advertising spaces around the world. To date, the campaign has generated an estimated 1.5 billion views in 900 cities in more than 75 countries.

    The second FIA President’s Award was presented to Billy Monger, the young British driver who in April 2017, at the age of just 17, suffered a horrific accident while competing in Formula 4. The crash resulted in Billy losing both legs, but his response was truly inspirational. Displaying immense courage and positivity he vowed to return to motor racing and just 11 weeks after sustaining life-changing injuries he was back behind the wheel of a specially adapted endurance car.

    The stars of the future were also honoured in Paris, with champions from across the FIA single-seater pyramid being presented with their trophies. In Formula 3, Briton Lando Norris , took an emphatic title win in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship, taking nine wins from 30 races in 10 event weekends. In Formula 4, the winners from 12 championships (Australia, Britain, China, Germany, Italy, Japan, Latin America, North East Europe, the UAE, Spain, the US and South East Asia) were awarded their trophies.

    CIK-FIA World Karting Champions Dexter Patterson, Paolo de Conto, and Danny Keirle were also awarded their trophies, marking an important milestone in what will likely become fascinating careers in motorsport.

    eom/with inputs from FIA release

  • Rohith Mahalikudi wins REDBULL Desert Wings mini-Daker race, off to Peru for World Finals

    Rohith Mahalikudi wins REDBULL Desert Wings mini-Daker race, off to Peru for World Finals

    Bengaluru, 2 Dec 2017: Rohith Mahalikudi  of MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology came out with flying colours setting the fastest time of 7.518 secs on a specially-created track  and won the remote controlled, ‘mini Dakar’ race beating seven other finalists in the inaugural edition of Red Bull Desert Wings University Challenge, a thrilling competition for student motorsport enthusiasts at the Narsee Monjee college in Mumbai on Nov. 30.

    Taking place for the first time ever in India, Red Bull Desert Wings University Challenge had five qualifiers in Patiala, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bangalore and Mumbai. Winners from each qualifier competed in the finals at Narsee Monjee College, Mumbai on 30th November 2017. The winner Rohit Mahalikudi has earned an all-expenses paid trip to Peru to compete in the World Finals at the University of Le Havre on 16th January 2018. The national winner will also get the opportunity to witness the toughest rally raid the Dakar Rally in Lima, Peru. Any university student above 18 years of age and holding a valid passport is eligible to participate.

    After winning the Red Bull Desert Wings Rohit said, “I never expected such a big opportunity to come my way. Two days ago I did not imagine I’d be taking part in such an event. Red Bull changed all of that, they came to my college and I took part. I’m very surprised and pleasantly shocked that I’m going to Peru, I’m sure it’s going to be an amazing experience.”

     Qualifiers

    Date: 12th November 2017

    Venue: Thapar University, COS Complex, Patiala

    Winner: Sarthak Gupta – Goswami Ganesh Dutta Sanatan Dharma College popularly known as S.D. College, Chandigarh – 14.3 seconds

    Number of Participants: 81 took part (147 registrations).

    Date: 18th November 2017

    Venue: Birla Institute of Technology & Science, basketball court, Pilani, Hyderabad

    Winner – Ashutosh Andhari – BITS Pilani – 16.183 seconds

    Number of Participants: 84 took part (148 registrations)

    Date: 24th November 2017

    Venue: Amity University, Atrium Area, Kolkata

    Male winner: Piyush Jindal – Amity University, Kolkata – 10.506 seconds

    Woman winner (wildcard entry): Vidhi Singrodia – Amity University – 14.083 seconds

    Number of participants: 84 took part (106 registrations)

    Date: 28th November 2017

    Venue: Ramaiah Institute of Technology, MSR Nagar, New BEL Road, Bangalore

    Winner: Rohith  Mahalikudi – M.S. Ramaiah Institute of Technology – 10.076secs

    Number of Participants: 64

    Date: 30th November 2017

    Venue: Narsee Monjee College, Vile Parle, Mumbai

    Wild Card entry winner – Desert Wings challenge conducted at IGX is – Manan Nagda

    Winner: Ayush Gurnani – Narsee Monjee College, Vile Parle- 10.042 secs

    Number of participants: 84

    National Finals

    Date: 30th November 2017

    Venue: Narsee Monjee College, Vile Parle, Mumbai

    Winner: Rohith Mahalikudi – M.S. Ramaiah Institute Of Technology – 7.518 secs

    eom/David Bodapati/inputs from release

    Rohith Mahalikudi poses after winning the Red Bull Desert Wings University Challenge 2017 National Finals in Mumbai on 30 Nov 2017. Image by Red Bull Content Pool.
  • Gaurav Gill brings home third APRC title, says Indians too can do it on the World stage

    Gaurav Gill brings home third APRC title, says Indians too can do it on the World stage

    Gaurav Gill obliges many of his little fans after defending his APRC title in Chikmagalur on Sunday. Photo by Srinivasa Krishnan
    India’s Gaurav Gill (right) and co-driver Stephane Prevot from Belgium with the FIA APRC trophy on 26 Nov 2017. Image by Anand Philar

    Chikkamagaluru, 26 Nov 2017: India’s Gaurav Gill came up with another mature drive to retain the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship title, his third since 2013, as he led another 1-2 Team MRF sweep in the Coffee Day India Rally 2017 ahead of team-mate Ole Christian Veiby from Norway, here on Sunday, by 17 minutes, 38.4 seconds.

    Going into the Coffee Day India Rally, organized by Motor Sports Club of Chikmagalur, and which doubled up as the fifth and concluding round of the 2017 APRC, 35-year old Gill and co-driver Stephane Prevot of Belgium led Veiby (Stig Rune Skjarmoen) by six points with both requiring a win to clinch the title. With the 21-year old Norwegian suffering mechanical problems yesterday and losing time, Gill cruised to another fine win.

    The victory was worth 38 points which took Gill’s tally to 174 while Veiby finished on 160. While the Indian ace won three of the five rounds, Veiby triumphed in the other two as MRF Tyres bag team championship while Skoda yet again took the manufacturer’s trophy. It was also Gill’s 17th win in APRC since his debut in 2008.

    Enjoying a commanding 15-minute lead overnight, Gill did not feel the need to push hard and yet he won one of the day’s four Special Stages while Veiby continued his charge to move from third to the second spot.

    Meanwhile, Abhilash PG, having completed all the Stages in third place today, retired during the transport run due to mechanical problems to the finish fourth, thus promoting Sri Lankan Shafraz Junaid (Akhry Ameer) to third.

    Reflecting on his victory and the third APRC title, Gill said: “Obviously, I am extremely pleased to win such a hard-fought championship. My satisfaction lies in the fact that I beat my team-mate OC (Veiby) who is a World Championship driver and even won the round in Poland. More importantly, this victory is for Indian motorsport and it showed that India is capable of competing with the best talent in the World.

    “For me personally, it satisfying to win three APRC titles despite the fact that I get to drive just five or six rounds in a year and not as much seat time in the rally car as my team-mate. OC, for instance, is a factory test driver for Skoda and also participates in the World Championship besides other rallies. So, for me to beat him despite the odds I face, is especially satisfying.

    “Looking ahead, I think I have done enough to show that I have the pace and ability to compete at the World-level as my first APRC title in 2013 was against my then team-mate Esapekka Lappi from Finland who today is a regular in the World championship with several wins. At the moment, I accept what is on offer without thinking too much about what is in store for me in my rallying career.”

    For APRC debutant Veiby, it was disappointing outing here and felt that he could have done much better than finishing second in the championship, but said he benefitted by competing against Gill.

    “Yeah, for sure, I could have had better results on my debut in APRC this year. I had mechanical issues with my car in three of the five rounds. However, it was fun competing with Gaurav and I think I learnt a lot. Overall, it was a great experience, driving in different conditions, terrain and countries,” said Veiby.

    Provisional results: APRC: 1. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (03hrs, 20mins, 19.8secs); 2. Ole Christian Veiby / Stig Rune Skjarmoen (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (03:37:58.2); 3. Shafraz Junaid / Akhry (Volkswagen Polo) (04:10:17.4).

    eom/press release

  • Gill touches unbelievable speeds, thrills fans; Karna/Nikhil win INRC2; Dean/Shruptha INRC3

    Gill touches unbelievable speeds, thrills fans; Karna/Nikhil win INRC2; Dean/Shruptha INRC3

    Gaurav Gill took a substantial lead on Saturday in the APRC. Photo by Anand Philar
    Ole Christian Veiby takes a corner at blistering speed after the gearbox was changed in the afternoon reverse run. Image by Srinivasa Krishnan

    Chikkamagaluru,  25 Nov 2017: The `King of Indian Motorsports’ was at it again. The Speed Maestro touched speeds of over 170 kmph as he enjoyed a lone `straight’ at the picturesque Coffee Estates owned by sponsors Coffee Day in Chikmagalur on Saturday, the first day of the final round of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship .

    “I was on 6th for a long stretch and I enjoyed the stage touching high speeds,” said a visibly-pleased Gaurav Gill, who loves his speed. The reigning APRC champion was talking to the reporters at the service park, about his run in Special Stage 1 where he did an average of 63.63 kmph for the stretch of 11.58kms. One veteran driver said, “if you get that kind of an average speed means that Gill was going over 90-kmph consistently for many stretches of these tight and twisty corners.”

    Gill and co-driver Stéphane Prévot scored wins in New Zealand and Japan while Ole Christian Veiby and co-driver Stig Rune Skjærmoen succeeded in Australia and Malaysia.

    Though Gill is leading by 6 points, whoever wins the Coffee Day India Rallly wins the APRC title this year. “Gaurav and Veiby are allowed to drive without team order for the victory in India and winning the championship, ” said Skoda Motorsport boss, Michal Hrabanek before the rally began. But there was no need for any team orders on Saturday as Veiby, the 21-year-young  exciting talent from Norway got into technical issues in the very first stage of the day and lost time on Gill, who by that time was galloping away on his Skoda Fabia R5 like a war horse, with navigator Stephane Prevot, giving the calls accurately on the tricky terrain which is nicknamed as a `Rally of 1000 corners’ by Gill himself, until Veiby renamed it as a `Rally of One million corners’. His first time here at the winding and twisty turns of Chikmagalur estates. In the pre-event press conference, Gill turned to OC and joked, “you are lucky”.  And then told the press that the stages were made broader this year. “They opened up the stages and they are much faster and safer,” the current championship leader added.

    Only a co-driver can understand the story behind all those umpteen corners one had to drive through. The co-driver prepares pace notes during the recce and say, if each page has about 10 calls, this rally demands a pace notes of over 400 pages which keeps the co-driver busy, and any wrong call will result in an immediate casualty what with the narrow stretches. Different navigators, as they were called in the days of yore, have different styles of preparing notes and different ways of making the calls.

    By the end of the day Veiby (OC), Gill’s closest rival and team-mate,  despite a late aggression after the gear box change, lost the chance of preventing the Indian from pulling away. Gill created a safe lead of 15min 21.0 seconds, and still not easing off, as is his wont, and is sitting pretty for a grand victorious run on Sunday.

    Meanwhile, in the fourth round of the MRF FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship that was run concurrently, Karna Kadur and co-driver Nikhil V Pai in a Volkswagen Polo emerged overall winners, ahead of Arjun Rao (Satish Rajagopal). Karna Kadur, whose ancestral home is at the nearby Kadur, enjoyed the home coming for another great win with Pai calling the pace notes, for a well-deserved victory in INRC2, even if it is by a very close margin of one second, where a charging Arjun Rao, ended at that. Dean, who also has his home in Mangalore, a neighbourhood city, won the INRC3 category with his old-time navigator Shruptha Padival. They slipped to overall third as the results were updated after midnight due to some scratch times, which were awarded for a cancelled stage. The youngster is considered as an up-and-coming talent, who shot into limelight doing great speeds as a teenager, a few years back.

    Gill, winner of APRC crowns in 2013 and 2016, enjoyed a six-point lead in the championship over Veiby going into the final round. In order to win the title Veiby has to score seven points more than Gill, which now looks extremely bleak. With four more Special Stages to be run on Sunday covering 64.12 kms, Gill, who leads second-placed PG Abhilash of R3A PGA Motorsports team by 15 minutes, 21.0 seconds, has one hand on the trophy. Veiby is lying third, trailing Abhilash by 02:25.1.

    Gill, who turns 36 in six days, was virtually in cruise control mode in his RaceTorque prepared Skoda Fabia R5 after Veiby encountered gearbox and driveshaft problems midway through the day’s first Special Stage. It cost the 21-year old Norwegian massive amount of time with his car losing front-wheel drive and stuck in third gear.

    Veiby’s misfortune was to PG Abhilash’s benefit as the Keralite in a Subaru Impreza WRX Sti eased into second place, but remained very much in the sight of a hard-charging Veiby, who after mid-day service saw his team of mechanics change the gearbox in 20 minutes flat. Veiby cut the eight-minute deficit to Abhilash at half-way mark, to a little over two minutes at the end of the day by being the fastest over the last five Stages.

    “Somewhere in the day’s first Stage today, I heard some noise and then lost the front-wheel drive. It was very difficult thereafter and worse still, my car was stuck in third gear. My co-driver Stig (Rune Skjarmoen) had to use the handbrake for me. We spun a few times too.

    “This is rallying, but I feel the game is not over yet. Anything can happen as there is still a lot of driving left in this rally. Of course, I will push as hard as possible from now on,” said Veiby during the service break.

    Despite the healthy advantage, Gill felt he still needed to bring home his car safely on Sunday. “It is a very difficult and long rally. Though I have a big lead, my aim is to bring home the car in one piece. Overall, I am pretty pleased with the car and especially the tyres which are of a new pattern that MRF developed. The tyres offered good grip and I could attack the corners with far more confidence,” said Gill.

    Gill, the genial giant, had the advantage of knowing the stages here `nearly by heart’. But he didn’t compete with the Fabia R5 since Rally Japan in mid-September while Veiby in the meantime got a lot of mileage on gravel roads with the same car on World Championship rallies in Spain and the United Kingdom. But he debuts at these estate dirt roads where Gill had his baptism into rallying many years ago.

    Meanwhile, New Zealand’s Mike Young, driving the Volkswagen Polo, was forced to retire following a fuel leak and other mechanical issues. “I thought I had good pace today, but the fuel tank developed a leak on SS-6, though I am not sure how because I didn’t hit anything, and I decided to pull out rather than risk a mishap,” he said.

    Provisional results:

    APRC: 1. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (02Hrs, 24mins, 22.2secs); 2. PG Abhilash / Srikant Gowda (Team R3A, PGA Motorsports, Subaru Impreza WRX) (02:39:43.2); 3. Ole Christian Veiby / Stig Rune Skjarmoen (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (02:42:08.3).

    MRF FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship – Overall placing):  1. Karna Kadur / Nikhil V Pai (ARKA Motorsports, VW Polo) (01:32:18.3); 2. . Arjun Rao / Satish Rajagopal (VW Polo R2) (01:32:19.3); 3.Dean Mascarenhas / Shruptha Padival (VW Polo) (01:32:54.4).

    eom/with inputs from the press release; updated at 10am, 26nov2017

  • Gill unleashes fireworks and the crowd erupts into a thunderous applause: Coffee Day India Rally

    Gill unleashes fireworks and the crowd erupts into a thunderous applause: Coffee Day India Rally

    Gaurav Gill weaves his magic to thrill the crowd at the Amber Valley School on Friday. Image by Anand Philar

    Chikkamagaluru, 24 November 2017: With a deep penchant for raw speed, Gaurav Gill has proved beyond doubt that he is the Master of the Game. Considered as the best rally driver India has ever produced, Gaurav Gill, the defending champion and the current leader of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship, set the tone for the sixth and final round at the Amber Valley School here on Friday.

    He shook the earth and raised the dust, literally, and the 10,000-odd joyous crowd (approximate estimates) loved every second and every inch of it, and erupted into a thunderous applause. The man-made dirt track sprang to life and the crowd stood up in awe. Be it the speed or the drifting moves, the corners and the hand-brake manoeuvres, the daring and passionate champion provided seat-edged thrills in the Super Special Stage which is fashioned to provide the die-hard fan a real close-up treat. And Mr Gaurav Gill did not disappoint them today!

    It lasted just, 2 minutes and 17.7 seconds, but with the start order being in reverse direction, the 38 INRC cars had to go through their laps before the faster APRC cars, six of them, arrived. But the crowd which gathered much before the scheduled 1.30pm had their fill. And the hours of wait, for over three hours, was worth the while, as Gill’s teammate Ole Christian Veiby clocked a blistering 2:17.9 and the crowd cheered him all the way. And it was, as if he is laying a red-carpet for his teammate, to take over the job of entertaining the fans. And then came the king of Indian motorsports, who unleashed his magic and the fireworks in ample measure. Then the ground was covered in thick, brown dust, and when it settled down, it was all over.

    But those two minutes showcased THE MAN, THE SPEED, THE SKILL… It was just two minutes of an experience but those are the moments that we carry in our memories, for many years, maybe for life time. Thank you, Gill!

    A difference of just 0.2 seconds, many thought was a minimal difference. But Gill beat OC (as the Norwegian is fondly called) by a substantial margin, as explained by a veteran motorsports journalist. For a SSS distance of 2.12 km, a difference of 0.2 seconds means, the gap would have been 2 seconds for 10 km and the first day’s stage distance is 143.42. So for a day, that margin of 0.2 seconds may not be 28-second gap in real terms but it gives a fair idea and puts in right perspective the difference between the Young Turk, who is well on his way to greater speeds, and the veteran warrior who loves to exhibit his passion and brute speed, and the inborn talent, on a larger stage, a la WRC2 or even an Euro Championship, where his teammate is currently on. And that’s the only logical conclusion onc can provide, for all his hard work, dedication and commitment for over a decade.

    Is MRF listening? Only time will tell!

    Super Special Stage report:

    Gill (co-driver Stephane Prevot), the defending champion, clocked a blistering 02 minutes, 17.7 seconds over the 2.1 Kms circuit while APRC debutant Veiby (Stig Rune Skjarmoen) returned 02:17.9, both giving a thrilling exhibition of controlled aggression in their respective Race Torque-prepared Skoda Fabia R5 cars much to the delight of thousands of spectators.

    Finishing a distant third behind the leading duo was PG Abhilash (Srikant Gowda) of Team R3A PGA Motorsports in a Subaru Impreza WRX Sti who timed 02:30.5, but ahead of New Zealand’s Mike Young (Malcolm Read), Sumit Panjabi (Nitin Jacob) and Sri Lanka’s Shafraz Junaid (Akhry Ameer).

    Gill, who leads Veiby by six points in the winner-takes-all APRC title stakes, was last on the track and rode on the wave of popular support with a drive that would be long remembered after the 21-year old Norwegian, a regular in the WRC-2, posted a seemingly quickest time.

    With so little separating them, Gill and Veiby are thus set for a battle royale over the next two days as the APRC caravan heads out to the estates of title sponsors Coffee Day Global for the Special Stages.

    Earlier in the day, Veiby was the quickest in the shakedown clocking 01:23.3 as against Gill’s 01:25.0 as the pair had the first feel of the Skoda R5 this week, but the true test

    “The stages are lot more open and wider than last year. So, the average speeds will be much higher. However, given the twisty route, I feel there will be a lot of stress on the car,” said Gill soon after the shakedown and during the pre-event FIA press conference when asked about his thoughts on the Stages following Thursday’s reconnaissance run.

    Veiby said: “This event is nicknamed as “Rally of 1000 corners”, but it looks more like a million corners. The Stages are quite fast and I have never driven on such terrain. So, it is all about having a good feel of the car.”

    In the MRF FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship that is being run concurrently and also organized by the Motor Sports Club of Chikmagalur, Younis Ilyas (Harish Kumar) was the quickest overall (02:35.7) followed by Arjun Rao (Satish Rajagopal) and Amittrajit Ghosh (Ashwin Naik) of Team Mahindra Adventure.

    Provisional results (Super Special Stage – 2.1 Kms):

    FIA APRC: 1. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (02mins, 17.7secs); 2. Ole Christian Veiby / Stig Rune Skjarmoen (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (02mins, 17.9secs); 3. PG Abhilash / Srikant Gowda (Team R3A PGA Motorsports, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti) (02:30.5).

    MRF FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship (Overall): 1. Younis Ilyas / Harish Kumar (02:35.7); 2. 2. Arjun Rao / Satish Rajagopal (Volkswagen Polo R2) (02:36.2); 3. Amittrajit Ghosh / Ashwin Naik (Mahindra Adventure, XUV 500) (02:36.6).

    eom/inputs from press release

  • JS group South Lake TSD rally successfully completes 7 editions

    JS group South Lake TSD rally successfully completes 7 editions

    Bengaluru, 13 Nov 2017: After a thrilling battle for top honours Vinay Prasanna and co-driver Ravi Kumar BM logged 18.46 penalty points to narrowly win the annual JS Group 7th South Lake TSD Rally organised by Startline Motorsports here on Sunday.

    Balaji Shetty along with navigator Natarajan were close behind in the TSD Challenge class with a penalty of 18.50 to take second behind Vinay and Ravi while the pair of Naveen and Lenin Joseph came third in 20.18. Mohan and Chandran duo won the Stock Amateur category with 40.49 penalty points. The drivers and organisers carried the messages of road safety and protection of lakes on the cars and promotion materials.

    Three categories were run in the TSD Endurance class. Akshay and Aprameya won the Corporate class. Supree Sagar along with co-drier Anushree won the couple class while Minaxi and Rajaratna claimed the all-Ladies class.

    Provisional results: TSD Challenge: Pro Expert: 1. Vinay Prasanna & Ravi Kumar BM 18.46 penalty points; 2. Balaji Shetty & Natarajan 18.50; 3. Naveen & Lenin Joseph 20.18. Pro Stock: 1. Mohan & Chandran 27.51; 2. Sai Prasad & Arun 37.56; 3. Pavan Kumar & Pradeep Nagaraj 46.02.

    TSD Endurance: Stock Amateur: 1. Shiva Kumar & Vignesh 40.49; 2. Manjunath & Shivaprasad 41.37; 3. Sachin & Vinay Prasad 44.09. Corporate: 1. Akshay & Aprameya 20.50; 2. Ponappa & Chengappa 23.20; 3. Prajwal Gowda & Devkanth GM 26.30. Couple: 1. Supreet Sagar & Anushree 15.30; 2. Abbas Anil & Aini Anil 18.37; 3. Suresh B & Manjushree 37.54. All ladies: 1. Minaxi & Rajaratna 15:14; 2. Noopur Agrawal & Nilofer Ibrahim 3:12.00; 3. Fernandes Dominic & Sonia Kaveriappa 3:32.00.

    eom

    Winners all: Winners of all the categories pose for a group picture after the PD in Bangalore on Sunday. Photo by Startline Motorsports
  • Back-to-back international rallies for Mike Young

    Back-to-back international rallies for Mike Young

    File photo of Mike Young at WRC Australia. Image by Geoff Ridder

    Bengaluru: The Coffee Day India Rally 2017 , the last round of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) will be organised by Motor Sports Club of Chikmagalur (www.mscc.org.in) at the stages near Chikkamagaluru from November 24 to 26.

    New Zealand rally driver, Mike Young, is preparing for two back-to-back international events in India and Australia in November. After the APRC, he will rally at the final round of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) Kennards Hire Rally Australia.

    Young will drive a Volkswagen Polo R2 in India with Malcolm Read in the co-driver seat, and Dunlop tyres as the duo are familiar and comfortable with how the package will perform on the notoriously difficult Indian stages.

    “I am so excited to get behind the wheel of the Volkswagen in India, thanks to Volkswagen India and GT Tuner’s Bengaluru. The Volkswagen is FIA R2 spec, so is a 1.6 litre car with a sequential gearbox and I think it will suit the narrow and twisty roads well,” said Young.

    “The roads are actually run in the coffee plantations along the narrow access roads. It’s quite mountainous and the average speed can be as low as 50 kilometres per hour. Plus add rock-lined banks and lots of trees, and you have a very tough environment but that’s why I think the nimble VW will be so good.”

    Both Young and Read enjoyed the buzz of the Indian event based in Chikmagalur last year and vowed to return this year after finishing second overall last year and winning the Group N category.

    “It is a very cool experience I must say. There is a crazy amount of spectators at every junction or spare piece of road. The first super special stage is a real highlight because thousands of people watch us fly around the Amber Valley School football field on a man-made track, which is very unique,” continued Young.

    Co-driver Malcolm Read from Hamilton is also looking forward to the events with Young and said he’s excited to compete with Young again, especially in India.

    “Mike and I haven’t had a lot of events together this year so I’m really looking forward to doing two rallies back to back. He’s a great driver so I’m sure he will adapt quickly to the front-drive Volkswagen and after our experience from last year I sure we can get another good result,” said Read.

    Fans can follow Young’s progress, and support his campaign by purchasing MYM merchandise through his Facebook page (www.facebook.com/mikeyoungmotorsport).

    Young’s campaign is supported by Cusco, Mike Young Motorsport, Dunlop, Yoda Rallying, Excelerate Media, APSM and Winnmax.

    Young is arriving in India on Nov 20 and will attend the Official Press Conference in Bengaluru on Tuesday Nov 21.

    eom/inputs from Young’s release