It was experience that triumphed over the exuberance of youth as Hyderabad’s Akhil Khushalani led from start to finish in the first race of the JK Tyres Racing Championship, held here at the Kari Motor Speedway on Saturday.
Bangalore’s Arjun Maini and Chennai’s Vishnu Prasad finished second and third in the race, which was contested under Formula BMW specifications.
“It went well in both qualifying and in the race. I can’t ask for anything more,” a jubilant Akhil said.
Indeed things could not have been any closer to the truth as the 23-year-old first grabbed pole position with a flawless display in qualifying and then led the race till the end without breaking a nervous sweat.
Sixteen year-old Maini, who had won Force India’s talent hunt in 2011, and Vishnu were left fighting for the other two podium spots as Akhil pulled away after the first lap. Akhil had previously driven the Formula BMW cars in both 2009 and 2011. The gulf in experience clearly showed as the youngsters were unable to exert any pressure on Akhil.
Victory for Saran
Saran Vikram pulled off an impressive win in the first round of the Formula 4 race. In a race that was vmarred by disqualifications, Saran, who was participating as a privateer, romped home, recording a best lap of 1:13.363 seconds. Finishing behind him were Dark Don Racing’s Kartik Krishna and Meco Racing’s Tejas Ram. Favourites Vishnu and Sarosh Hataria were disqualified from the race due to their cars being underweight, while Ajay Kini was handed a 10-sec penalty for ramming into Hataria. But both Sarosh and Vishnu put behind the disappointment of being disqualified by securing podium positions in the second F4 race held later in the evening. Sarosh won the race, while Vishnu finished third behind Saran.
Results: Formula 4, 1st Race: 1) Saran Vikram, 2) Kartik Krishna, 3) Tejas Ram; JK Tyre Racing Championship: 1) Akhil Kushlani 2) Arjun Maini, 3)Vishnu Prasad; Formula 4, 2nd Race: 1) Sarosh Hataria 2) Saran Vikram 3) Vishnu Prasad.