Chennai: Yet another chapter was added to Chennai’s motorsport legacy when city’s riders Sarath Shankar Kumar, Aravind B and Rihana Reya clinched the respective championships to bring curtains on the 2015 Honda One Make Race Championship at the MMRT, here on Sunday.
Sarath Shankar Kumar from Ten 10 Racing, who came into the final read with an unassailable lead, clinched the CBR 250R Championship without having to take to the tracks on Sunday. His 186 points tally was built on the back of 6 consecutive wins including ‘a double’ at the Buddh International Circuit during Round 4. His absence from the grid was fully capitalized on by Ranchi’s Sumit Lucas Toppo (Pro Lap Racing) and Chennai’s Dinesh Kumar D (United Tech Torque Racing), winning Race 1 and Race 2 respectively. Sunday also witnessed Ten 10 Racing clinch the Team Championship for 2015 season.
The CBR 150R Championship escalated into a 3-way showdown between joint leaders Sivanesan S and Aravind B (from Chennai); and Kishoar VS from Coimbatore, who had started the day on pole position. However, in the final race, Aravind B edged-out Sivanesan to the second spot and claim championship glory after latter had failed to finish his race. Kishoar VS, from Coimbatore, showed great composure to clinch both the races on Sunday, and finish the Championship on third position.
Honda Ladies Race
In a step towards achieving a greater democratization of motorsport, and to encourage more women participation, Honda today flagged-off the first ever Honda All Ladies Race in Chennai. Amid huge cheers, 10 women from all over India took to the grid for this historic race. In the end, despite Pune’s Pooja A Dhabi best-efforts, it was Chennai’s Rihana Reya who rallied brilliantly to jump two-places from her starting position and emerged triumphant in this inaugural race. Pooja finished second while SHruti (from Chennai) who finished third.
Congratulating the winners, Mr Prabhu Nagraj, Vice President, Customer Service, HMSI, said, “It is always Honda’s endeavor to bring new categories and excitement into the race. To democratize motorsport, and to offer the adrenaline pumping track experience to our women audiences as well, we have introduced, for the first time in Chennai, an All-Ladies Race. All 10 girls, who raced today have been trained by the Honda Racing Training Academy. I would like to specially congratulate all of them for being a part of this landmark race. The immense potential on display today, strengthens our belief in the talent that exists in the country. I would also like to congratulate all the winners and thank FMSCI for organizing and supporting our efforts in India. Look forward to see you all next year with greater enthusiasm.”
Results:
Honda MMSC One-Make Championship:
CBR 250R Championship (Open):
Race 1 (6 laps):
1. Sumit Lucas Toppo (Pro Lap Racing) 12:31.775
2. Mathana Kumar (Ten10 Racing) 12:34.839
3. Hari Krishnan R (Ten10 Racing) 12:34.978
Race 2 (6 laps):
1. Dinesh Kumar D (United Tech Torque Racing) 12:49.293
2. Rajiv Sethu S (Ten 10 Racing) 12:49.293
3. Harikrishnan R (Ten10 Racing) 12:49.914
Champion rider: Sarath Shankar Kumar
CBR 150R Championship (Novice):
Race 1 (6 laps):
1. Kishoar VS (Coimbatore) 7:53.076
2. Aravind Balakrishnan (Chennai) 8:00.248
3. Sivanesan Sethu (Chennai) 8:00.268.
Race 2 (6 laps):
1. Kishoar VS 07:48.673
2. Aravind Balakrishnan 07:48.719
3. Anish Shetty (Hubballi) 07:51.708.
Champion rider: Aravind Balakrishnan
Honda Ladies Race (4 laps):
1. Rehana Reya (Chennai) 06:17.491
2. Pooja Dabhi (Pune) 06:18.559
3. Soundari A (Chennai) 06:22.444.
