MRF F2000 Race-2 Winner Ishan Madesh (centre), flanked by second-placed Arjun Chheda (left) and Akhil Agarwal.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Ishaan Madesh and Arjun Chheda, two 16-year-olds stole the spotlight in the MRF Formula 2000 category, each clinching a race win as the first round of the MRF MMSC FMSCI Indian National Car Racing Championship 2025 concluded at the Kari Motor Speedway here on Sunday. Chheda completed a double, having won Race 1 on Saturday and returning to the podium again.
In the MRF Formula 1600 class, Arjun Nair and Nigel Abraham Thomas emerged victorious in one race apiece in the class.
In the Indian Touring Cars (ITC) category, defending champion Biren Pithawalla (Team N1 Racing) pulled off a dramatic win in Race-3, denying former national champion Arjun Balu (Race Concepts) a triple crown. Balu, who was leading the race, suffered a misfire in his car, allowing Pithawalla, despite a turbo issue in his VW Polo, to seize the opportunity and charge towards victory.
The results (Provisional – all 14 laps unless mentioned otherwise): MRF F2000 (Race-2): 1. Ishaan Madesh 15:41.539s; 2. Arjun Chheda 15:43.950; 3. Akhil Agarwal 15:52.431. Race-3 (12 laps): 1. Arjun 13:24.051s; 2. Ishaan 13:26.776s; 3. Akhil Agarwal 13:39.242s.
MRF F1600 (Race-2): 1. Nigel Abraham Thomas 16:52.562s; 2. Sai Shiva Makesh Sankaran 16:55.351s; 3. Zahan Commissariat 17:07.254s. Race-3 (12 laps): 1. Arjun Nair 14:21.433s; 2. Sankaran 14:21.938s; 3. Thomas 14:22.159s.
Indian Touring Cars (Race-2): 1. Arjun Balu 17:36.755s; 2. Biren Pithawalla 17:54.495s; 3. Dhruv Chavan (Buzzing Hornet) 18:00.579s. ITC1625: 1. Suprej Venkat 18:44.318s; 2. D. Vidyaprakash 18:45.078s. Race-3 (12 laps): 1. Biren 15:03.891s; 2. Arjun Balu 15:15.873s; 3. Dhruv 15:32.586s. ITC1625: 1. D. Vidyaparakash 16:03.234s; Suprej 16:06.154s.
Indian Junior Touring Cars (Race-2): 1. Rithvik Thomas (Race Concepts) 18:48.451s; 2. Nikunj Vagh (Team N1) 17:41.724s+1 lap; 3. Yug Italiya (Team N1) 17:41.755s+1 lap. Race-3 (12 laps): 1. Rithvik 16:10.084s; 2. Yug 16:20.009s; 3. Nikhunj 16:20.678s.
Super Stock (Race-2, 13 laps): 1. Krishanu Dutta Bhuyan (Zion Racing) 18:36.365s; 2. Kesara Godage (Redline Racing) 18:38.743s; 3. Manan Patel (Gameover Motorsports) 18:39.184s. Race-3 (11 laps): 1. Kesar (Redline Racing India) 15:41.190s; 2. Krishanu 15:44.604s; 3. Anirudha Arvind (Strada Motorsports) 15:46.728s.
Formula LGB 1300 Open (Race-2): 1. Bhuvan Bonu (MSPORT) 21:02.762s; 2. Bala Prasath (DTS Racing) 21:08.968s; 3. Neythan McPherson (Momentum Motorsports) 21:10.171s. Junior: 1. Bhuvan 21:02.762s; 2. Neythan 21:10.171s; 3. Aditya Patnaik (Momentum Motorsports) 21:12.492s.
Volkswagen Polo Cup (Race-2): 1. Aditya Patnaik (Buzzing Hornet) 18:15.689s; 2. Pratik Sonawane (Buzzing Hornet) 18:18.037s; 3. Ojas Surve (Buzzing Hornet) 18:18.904s. Race-3 (12 laps): 1. Aman Nagdev (Buzzing Hornet) 15:31.208s; 2. Aditya 15:39.615s; 3. Pratik 15:43.667s.
Published – July 20, 2025 08:15 pm IST