Bengaluru, 11 Sept 2017: Aided by a win and a fourth place finish in the back-to-back rounds, Bengaluru schoolboy Ruhaan Alva emerged vice champion in the Easykart 60 category of the Easykart Championship which concluded at the Lignano Sabbiadoro circuit in Italy on Sunday.

Ruhaan, supported by Italian kart manufacturer Birel Art, finished the nine-round championship tied with Patrese Lorenzo on 136 points. However, on count-back (number of wins), Ruhaan was adjudged vice champion, just 18 points behind overall winner Daniele D’Uroso. Ruhaan, in his debut season, had three wins, as against Lorenzo’s one.

Ruhaan’s final tally of points was all the more creditable considering that he missed the first round of the “60” category as he took part in the Mini before switching to the higher and more competitive class.

In Round 8 run on Saturday, Ruhaan qualified fourth in the heats, second in the pre-final with fastest lap. He came in second behind Adam Kowalski who, however, was docked 10-second penalty for starting the race on the wrong side of the grid and was shunted to eighth position. It elevated Ruhaan to first spot.

Going into Sunday’s Round 9, Ruhaan was third in the championship, trailing Lorenzo by just three points. He was ninth in the heats, fifth in the pre-final and fourth in the final. More crucially, he finished ahead of Lorenzo in the concluding round to earn 13 points as the two ended the championship tied on points, thus requiring the count-back which favoured the Indian.

“Overall, it was a fine performance by Ruhaan on debut in such a competitive championship. He started the season in the Mini category and won the opening round easily. We then decided to move him to the higher Easykart 60 category which had a bigger and more competitive grid.

“It was a steep learning curve for Ruhaan, but we are happy that he performed so well with three wins and a couple of podium positions to finish the championship as the vice champion,” said an elated father Umakanth Alva.

Siena (Italy), 16 May 2017: Ruhaan Alva, a 10-year old schoolboy from Bengaluru, India, missed a second consecutive win in the 60cc class by a whisker and settled for second spot in the third round of the Italian Easykart Championship here on Sunday.

In a thrilling 14-lap final, Ruhaan, supported by Italian kart manufacturer Birel Art, started second on the grid, but moved to the front of the 23-kart field on the second lap and held position despite close attention from his MLG Racing team-mate Lorenzo Patrese and Andrea Pirovano.

The trio was bunched tight after 12 laps before Ruhaan was pushed wide on a right-hander which effectively cost him a possible victory as he had to rest content with second place at the finish behind a late-charging Daniele D’Urso who now heads the championship.

The podium spot took Ruhaan to fourth in the championship with 48 points having missed the first round when he competed in the 60Mini category before opting for the for the more competitive higher class.

Earlier, Ruhaan topped the pre-Final race starting from fifth as he led eight of the 11 laps to make up for a disappointing Heats outing when he finished fifth. The points from these two outings put him second on the grid for the Final.

Ruhaan’s next outing in the championship is on June 10-11 in Lonato where the fourth round is scheduled to be held.

eom/Press Release