Scorcher of a start to JK Tyre Racing Championship 2013

~Akhil Khushlani aces Race 1 of the new JK Racing India Series~

~Saran Vikram has a good outing in the Formula LGB 4 class with a 1-2 finish~

July 20, 2013, Coimbatore: Round 1 of the 16^th JK Tyre Racing Championship got off to a scorcher under overcast conditions at the historic Kari Motor Speedway today. Held alongside Round 3 of the Indian National Rallying Championship 2013 – Rally of Coimbatore sponsored by JK Racing, this is the first time in Indian motorsport history that a rallying and racing event are being held at the same venue over the same weekend.

In the newly introduced JK Racing India Series, Akhil Khushlani dominated proceedings right from the start. Starting on pole with the best qualifying time of 1:05.740, Khushlani had Arjun Maini and Saran Vikram keeping him company at the start line. In the race, the experienced Khushlani who has been driving the car for a couple of years showed class as he set the pace for the rest to follow. While Khushlani lead right through in the 15 lap race, Vishnu was quick to move to second place behind Maini. The top three were quick to break off from the rest and kept increasing the distance till the end. Khushlani finished the race with a total time of 16:33.451 followed by Arjun Maini (16:38.503) and Vishnu Prasad (15:39.704).

The Formula LGB 4 introduced last year to the championship was a rather topsy-turvy affair. In the qualifying, Ajay Kini put in the best time followed by Saran Vikram and the veteran Sarosh Hataria. In Race 1, Kini and Hataria kept switching place throughout and the inevitable happened in the closing laps when Kini tapped Hataria forcing him to veer off. Despite being the first to cross the chequered flag, Kini finished sixth due to a 10 second penalty imposed on him for the incident with Hataria. Vishnu Prasad, who was the second to cross the chequered flag was later disqualified due to an underweight car. Owing to the top two being knocked out, Saran Vikram with a total time of 20:00.764 finished first followed by Kartik Krishna (20:01.593) and Tejas Ram Averipakam (20:03.046).

Race 2 of the Formula LGB 4 class was an exciting right from the word go, with winner of Race 1 Saran Vikram leading from the start for 5 laps, before Ajay Kini overtook him. While the top two were battling it out for the leadership position, an interesting battle was taking place for the third-fourth position between Vishnu Prasad and Sarosh Hataria. In a repeat of Race 1, involving Ajay Kini, an incident took place him and Saran which forced Kini to retire gifting Hataria the top position which he held on to till the end. Saran Vikram finished second with a total time of 19:41.340 followed by Vishnu Prasad in the third position with a total time of 19:41.980.

In qualifying race of the fourth season of Polo R Cup, Rahil Noorani took the top spot with the best time of 1:14.335, followed by Jeffrey Kruger from South Africa and rookie driver Anshul Shah with lap timings of 1:14.489 and 1:14.999 respectively.

The action continues tomorrow with 2 races each in the JK Racing India Series and VW Polo R Cup, and one race in the Formula LGB 4 class.

JK Racing India Series – Race 1

1. Akhil Khushlani (16:33.451) 2. Arjun Maini (16:38.503) 3. Vishnu Prasad (15:39.704)

Formula LGB 4 - Race 1

1. Saran Vikram (20:00.764) 2. Kartik Krishna (20:01.593) 3. Tejas Ram Averipakam (20:03.046)

Formula LGB 4 – Race 2

1. Sarosh Hataria (19:41.340) 2. Saran Vikram (19:41.340) 3. Vishnu Prasad (19:41.980)

VW Polo R Cup – Qualifying

1. Rahil Noorani (1:14.335) 2. Jeffrey Kruger (1:14.489) 3. Anshul Shah (1:14.999)

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About JK Tyre Motorsports
JK Tyre has always been closely associated with the world of sports. Almost three decades back the company laid down a long term and sustained approach to promote Motorsport. Participating in this form of the sport has helped the company in continuously updating its products to meet the challenges of gruelling Indian conditions. The sport at that time in India was perceived for elite but JK Tyre took upon itself to package and redesign the sport to suit the masses. The company not only made the sport affordable but also equivalent to International operating standards. JK Tyre’s foray into Motorsport was a well thought out strategic decision to not only use and develop this virgin branding platform but also to realize the dreams of making India a force in the field of motor sport.

In 2011, the company acquired the Formula BMW Series and rechristened it as the JK Racing Asia Series (JKRAS). With this acquisition, JK Tyre created history in Indian Motorsport by becoming the first Indian company to acquire an FIA accredited series. The series has to its credit of producing as many as six of the current Formula One drivers, including reigning two- time champion Sebastian Vettel. By taking over the series, JK Tyre promises to utilize it as a platform to encourage and support the world’s best racing drivers and promote India as one of Asia’s motorsport capitals. Thus, JK Tyre has conquered two steps in the motorsport program where the new racing aspirants first establish themselves in India, then graduate to Asian level i.e. to Formula BMW which is now JKRAS and then they move to higher levels of racing. JK Tyre now stands closer to achieving its mission of bringing world-class motorsport to the Indian masses.
The Racing and Karting programme by JK Tyre has been the breeding ground for the country’s motorsport talents like Narain Karthikeyan, Armaan Ebrahim, Karun Chandhok, Aditya Patel and other new emerging talents.

For further information, please contact:

Neha Tiwary
JK Tyre & Industries Limited
+91 97172 22586
neha.tiwary@jkmail.com

Sidharsan Mohan
Concept Public Relations
+91 9790852991
sudharsan@conceptpr.com