COIMBATORE: A stunning last-lap showdown in the inaugural Continental GT Cup race ensured that Royal Enfield's entry into the field of racing in the modern era lived up to the hype going into the JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship on Saturday.
The Continental GT Cup was the highlight of this season's championship and it lived up to the billing as Anish Shetty pipped Allwin Xavier by a fraction of a second to win the first round. Royal Enfield had left no stone unturned to ensure that their maiden entry into competitive racing was a memorable one. After the manufacturers had done extensive research, which even included visits to watch the Isle of Man TT races, their cafe-racer styled motorcycles were ready to scorch the Kari Motor Speedway Racetrack in Coimbatore.
What ensued was the top talents from across the country testing out those twin-cylinder powerhouses.
"There were some apprehensions at the start because the Continental GT is such a heavy vehicle and no one has really raced on it. But it is a wonderful machine to ride and there is a lot of potential for this machine. It is good to see manufacturers like Royal Enfield getting into racing between it is good for motorsports. Looking forward to the upcoming rounds and seeing the bike develop," said Hubli-native
Anish after his thrilling win. For the majority of the race, it was a three-way battle between Anish, Allwin and Jayanth Prathipati. Allwin was leading till the last lap only for Anish to steal a march over him in the final corners in the most dramatic fashion.
"It's unlucky to finish second as I made some costly errors in the last lap. But second is still a good finish and I will learn from it. The bike is really promising and together with the tyre from JK, it is a wonderful combination. The tyres gave a lot of confidence going into corners and that helped us push hard," said Allwin who hails from Thrissur.
Meanwhile, the LGB Formula 4 category race had drama of its own with collisions, crashes and overtakes. The safety car was also pressed into action which made it more challenging for the drivers. Bangalore's Sohil Shah came out supreme eventually while Aryan Singh went onto take second place and Diljith TS finished third.
"It was a tough race but I am happy that I came out on top. It is always good to start the season with a win," said Sohil. Meanwhile, in the JK Tyre Novice Cup, it was Ruhaan Alva who finished on top of the podium in both the races of the Novice Cup.
Results (round 1):
Continental GT Cup: Anish Damodara Shetty 14:07.754, Allwin Xavier- 14.07.859, Jayanth Prathipati 14:08.859;
Formula LGB 4: Sohil Shah 23:26.923s, Arya Singh 23:27.088s, Diljith TS 23:27.186s.
JK Tyre Novice Cup: Ruhaan Alva 14:22.061s, Aadithya Parasuram 14:25.202s, Gaurav Kochar 14:34.275s; Race 2 Ruhaan Alva 15:06.124s, Jaden R Pariat 15:07.429s, Aasthiya Parasuram 15:09.109s.