Nikanth Ram steals the show

Young Nikanth Ram of Arka Motorsports chalked up the maiden win of his saloon car racing career as the first round of the MRF MMSC FMSCI National Racing Championship 2018 concluded at the MMRT circuit at nearby Sriperumbudur today.

While Ram,a 21-year old commerce graduate from Coimbatore, bagged full points, team-mate Ashish Ramaswamy from Bengaluru achieved a double by winning the second race earlier, but retired with an expired engine in the weekends third outing.

Meanwhile, 17-year old Brazilian Felipe Drugovich stamped his authority in the MRF Challenge 2017 as he swept to victory in both races run today to finish the season with 10 wins from 16 outings over four rounds.
 

In the final race of the 2017 MRF Challenge later in the day, Drugovich, starting second on the grid, got a jump on pole-sitter Rinus van Kalmthout of the Netherlands in the very first lap and then gradually increased the lead to notch another fluent win.

While Drugovich finished the season with 333 points, Martono (254) and Kalmthout (247) completed the top three positions in the championship.

In the day's first saloon car race, Ashish Ramaswamy was again the dominant force despite starting fourth on the reverse grid.

He jumped two places by the end of the first lap, tailed leader Vidya Prakash for a couple of more laps before moving into the lead.

Thereafter, he kept increasing the lead to emerge a comfortable winner while veterans Vijaya Kumar and Vidya Prakash finished behind him in that order while pole-sitter Nikanth Ram was a non-finisher following a spin.

Nikanth,however,was handed a victory on a platter in the next outing when Ashish,enjoying a massive lead after starting from pole, retired with engine problem in the fourth of the eight-lapper.

Results (Provisional): MRF CHALLENGE:RACE 3 (20 laps): 1. Felipe Drugovich (Brazil) (33mins, 09.353secs); 2.Presley Martono (Indonesia) (33:20.422); 3. Rinus van Kalmthout (Netherlands) (33:21.398).

RACE 4 (20 laps): 1. Drugovich (30:08.812); 2.Kalmthout (30:13.

094); 3. Martono (30:16.118).

NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP- SALOON CARS: INDIAN TOURING CARS (RACE 2- 12 LAPS):

1. Ashish Ramaswamy (Arka Motorsports) (23:25.024); 2. B Vijaya Kumar (Prime Racing) (23:51.922); 3. D Vidya Prakash (Prime Racing) (23:58.350).

RACE 3 (8 laps): 1. V Nikanth Ram (Arka Motorsports) (15:55.

693); 2. C Raja Ram (Prime Racing) (15:59.000); 3. Biren Pithawalla (Team N1) (16:11.372).

INDIAN JUNIOR TOURING CARS (RACE 2 - 11 LAPS)

1. Kamlesh Parmar (Team N1) (23:55.103); 2. Chrys DSouza (Unimek Racing) (24:24.572); 3.

Prabhu AS (Arka Motorsports) (24:24.

812).

RACE 3 (8 LAPS): 1. DSouza (17:48.207); 2.Prabhu (17:48. 434); 3. Nikunj D Vagh (Team N1) (17:49.100).

ESTEEM CUP (12 LAPS): 1. Raghul Rangasamy (Performance Racing) (24:20.

853); 2. Vinod S (Team N1) (24:33.727); 3. Archit Mylanda (Performance Racing) (25:06.829).

RACE 3 (8 LAPS): 1. Rangasamy (16:21.542); 2. Vinod S (16:30.

865); 3. Mylanda (16:43.432).

SUPER STOCK (12 LAPS): 1. R P Rajarajan (Performance Racing) (24:55.565); 2. Srinivas Teja K (Performance Racing) (25:18.133); 3. Swajit Acharaker (Team N1) (23:38.158+ 1 lap).

RACE 3 (8 laps): 1. Srinivas Teja K (16:52.869); 2. Acharaker (17:02.854); 3. Rajashekar R (Infinite Piston) (17:09.82).