CHENNAI: “Speed thrills but kills,” say traffic boards. One would had to be at the Madras Motor Racing Track to know just how much of the former speed provides. That’s where the fourth leg of the Asia Road Racing Championship was held.
A Japanese shaking his legs to Bhangra beats belted out by the drummers, hundreds in boisterous mood cheering the home duo of Rajiv Sethu and Anish Shetty, an Australian winner of the day displaying his dancing skills on the podium — there were unusual scenes.
The final race of the day saw Japan’s Taiga Hada secure third place. Just being on the podium meant a lot to him, as he broke into a jig as soon as the drummers started playing. Racing in the SuperSport 600cc category, the Honda Racing India team member finished 16 laps in 27:17.568 seconds, behind Australia’s Anthony West (27:10.57) and Japan’s Tomoyoshi Koyama (27:17.240).
Chennai rider Rajiv Sethu and the Bengaluru-based Anish Shetty took part in the AP 250 class. Ten minutes before the start, Rajiv who was 16th on the grid, got off the bike to wave to the drummers in the stands. Of 65 racers, Rajiv and Anish were the only two Indians. They finished 16th and 19th.
The tarmac track, soaked in rain last night, got harder as the sun came out. This helped the racers focus on speed. “We were not too confident, thinking that there would be controlling problems due to the damp track. But we were relaxed today morning after inspecting the track,” said the 24-year-old Rajiv, a B Com correspondence student. “I am happy to finish and earn points. I wish the youngsters take up this sport,” he signed off.
nithin.kumar@newindianexpress.com
Asia Road Racing Championship: SuperSport 600cc (Race 2, 16 laps): 1. Anthony West (AUS, 27:10.57s); 2. Tomoyoshi Koyama (JPN, 27:17.240s); 3. Taiga Hada (JPN, 27:17.568s).
INRC: Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup (CBR 250): Race 1 (6 laps): 1. Abhishek Vasudev (12:18.230s); 2. Senthil Kumar ( 12:18.792s); 3. Aravind Balasubramaniam (12:18.891s). Race 2 (8 laps): Aravind Balasubramaniam (16:31.817s); 2. Senthil Kumar (16:32.049s); 3. Amit Richard Topno (16:33.190s).
TVS One-Make Championship (Apache RR310): Race 1 (6 laps): 1. Vivek Pillai (13:04.471s); 2. D Ravikumar (13:06.967s); 3. P Sriharsha (13:06.968s). Race 2 (8 laps): 1. PM Soorya (16:17.261s); 2. Vivek Pillai (16:17.821s); 3. Yashas RL (16:17.926s).