Chennai, January 9: Hyderabad’s Rahil Pillarisetty (RACR Castrol Power1) took a big step forward towards the title by snatching the pole position in the premier Pro-Stock 301-400cc Open category with a blistering lap despite a cold track as the fifth and final round of the MRF MMSC FMSCI Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2025 commenced at the Madras International Circuit, here on Friday.
Late in the day, Chennai’s Jagathishree Kumaresan clinched the crown in the Women category of the Petronas TVS One-Make Championship despite finishing second behind Elakiya Ravi in the five-lap race. Jagathishree had sealed the championship going into the final round with three back-to-back victories for an unassailable lead in the championship points standing.
28-year-old Rahil, chasing only his second National title since his win in the Novice class in 2017, countered the overcast conditions and a track with low grip level with a brilliant ride that saw him post a best lap of one minute, 48.775 seconds, just ahead of team-mate Rajini Krishnan, in his swansong domestic season, and arch-rival from Pune Sarthak Chavan (Petronas TVS Racing).
While the pole position put Rahil, who leads 19-year-old Sarthak by 21 points in the Championship standings, in good space going into Saturday’s race, he felt the low temperatures prevented him from going faster. “Previous round, I did a 1:47. So, we were one second slower, but I am feeling very relaxed and looking forward to the race,” said Rahil.
Sarthak was a tad disappointed with his pace in the qualifying session. “Low track temperature, not much grip and some small issues with the bike. I managed to do only a couple of laps in the qualifying session. But I will give it my best and at least try and help our team win the team championship. As for my chances, let’s wait and see how the race goes,” said Sarthak, fresh from a training stint in Spain last month where he took part in two races, finishing third and fourth.
Another Hyderabad rider, Rajender Beedani (MAI Racing), also qualified for pole position, in the Stock 165cc (Novice) class while Bengaluru’s Jagadeesh Nagaraj (Motul Sparks Racing) took P1 in the Stock 30-400cc (Novice) category after negotiating a slippery track due to light drizzle on one section of the track. “Last round was a disaster for me. I led in both races but had to retire due to a mechanical failure and an accident when a rider crashed into me. Today, the track conditions were difficult due to slight drizzle in one part of the track. Hopefully, I will have a better weekend this time,” said the 29-year-old businessman.
Chennai’s Kamal Navas (Rockers Racing), lying third in the championship, qualified for P1 in the SuperStock Intermediate (up to 165cc) class ahead of the top two in the points standings, the Motul Sparks Racing pair of Raj Kumar and Mohamed Samrul Zubair.
The results (Provisional) – Qualifying (3 best laps):
Pro-Stock 301-400cc Open: 1. Rahil Pillarisetty (Hyderabad, RACR Castrol Power1) (01min, 48.775secs); 2. Rajini Krishnan (Chennai, RACR Castrol Power 1) (01:49.037); 3. Sarthak Chavan (Pune, Petronas TVS Racing) (01:49.116).
Superstock Intermediate (165cc): 1. Kamal Navas (Chennai, Team Rockers Racing) (02:04.535); 2. Raj Kumar (Coimbatore, Motul Sparks Racing) (02:04.736); 3. Mohammed Samrul Zubair) (Hyderabad, Motul Sparks Racing) (02:05.979).
Stock 301-400cc (Novice): 1. Jagadeesh Nagaraj (Bengaluru, Motul Sparks Racing) (01:59.661); 2. Kamal Navas (Chennai, Team Rockers Racing) (02:00.197); 3. Shyam Sundar (Tiruvallur, KYT Helmet ISBK Racing) (02:00.939).
Stock 165cc (Novice): 1. Rajender Beedani (Hyderabad, MAI Racing) (02:07.808); 2. Hari Haran R (Coimbatore, RACR Castrol Power 1) (02:08.082); 3. Vignesh Pothu (Mancherial, MAI Racing) (02:08.835).
Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup (CB 300F): 1. Raivat Dhar (Jammu) (02:06.009); 2. Tejash BA (Tumakuru) (02:07.019); 3. Solomon R (Chennai) (02:07.031).
Petronas TVS One-Make Championship – Expert (RR 310): 1. Mohan Babu P (Chennai) (01:56.527); 2. G Balaji (Chennai) (01:56.716); 3. Abdul Basim RS (Chennai) (01:56.745).
Women (Apache RTR 200) 5 laps (Race): 1. Elakiya Ravi (Chennai) (11:10.888); 2. Jagathishree Kumaresan (Chennai) (11:14.814); 3. Ananya Awasthi (Pune) (11:19.778).
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