Chennai, 19 Jan 2017: The fifth and concluding round of the MRF Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2016, which spilled over from last year’s calendar, is set for a thrilling finish at the MMRT track in Sriperumbudur, near here, with titles in all categories up for grabs.
The card of 23 races to be run over three days beginning Friday includes the premium Super Sport Indian (400cc and 165cc) class along with Pro-Stock (165cc) and Stock (165cc) which form the National Championship besides MMSC One-Make Championships for TVS and Honda, and the Suzuki Gixxer Cup. Also scheduled are support races exclusively for ladies, by Honda and Alisha Abdullah Academy.
The Madras Motor Sports Club (MMSC) officials burnt the proverbial midnight oil to get the MMRT circuit facilities in order after the battering it received in December from cyclone Vardah that created havoc in the region while also forcing a postponement of the final round of the two-wheeler championship, which was earlier scheduled to be held on Nov 19.
Thus, it has been a three-month break in the championship and the riders, especially those in contention for the titles, are a bit eager to get back into action. As such, with so much at stake, the competition is expected to be razor-sharp as in all the previous four rounds.
In the Super Sport Indian (300-400cc), it will be a straight fight between two Rockstar Racing team-mates Ami van Poederooijen (135 points), a Spaniard based in Auroville, and Bengaluru’s Abhishek Vasudev (115), while a trio of TVS Racing mates reigning champion Jagan Kumar (141), Kannan Subramaniam (110) and Harry Sylvester (102), all from Chennai, are in title race in the Super Sport Indian 165cc class.
Two talented racers from Chennai who performed well in the 2016 Asia Road Racing Championships, Hari Krishnan Rajagopal (153) and Rajiv Sethu (144), both from Honda Ten10 Racing team, are locked in a tight battle in the Pro Stock (165cc) category, having won seven of the eight races between them over four rounds.
The Stock 165cc class will witness a four-cornered battle for top honours involving Hubbali’s Anish Shetty (122) of United Tech Torque, Antony Peter (Performance Racing, 120) from Coimbatore, Chennai duo of Joseph Mathew (Sparks Racing, 111) and PM Soorya (Team Speedup, 100).
The situation in the MMSC One-Make championships is much the same with the title race wide open and multiple competitors in the running for the top prize.
After Thursday’s practice sessions, action kicks-off with four races scheduled for Friday followed by a busy Saturday when 10 races will be run before the championship winds up on Sunday when the remaining eight are held. The programme will conclude with championship prize distribution trackside.
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eom/AP Media press release
