Sethu dominant in INMRC Round 4; TVS e-racing series debuts

Round 4 of the 2023 Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship (INMRC) saw Rajiv Sethu continue his dominant form in the Pro-Stock 301-400cc class. The RACR rider secured his seventh win in as many starts so far this season.

TVS Racing’s new Electric One Make Championship also made its debut at the round. The first race featured eight riders hand-picked by TVS, and Chiranth Vishwanath emerged as the series’ first race winner.

Pro-Stock 301-400cc

Sethu is competing in both, the Pro-Stock 301-400cc and 165cc Open classes this season. He failed to score any points in the 165cc Open class after being disqualified from the first two races due to a technical infringement and a crash in Race 3.

But he salvaged his weekend by winning both races in the headlining class, extending his championship lead to 85 points with just one more round to go.

Results

Race 1

1. Rajiv Sethu (RACR Castrol Power1 Ultimate) - 11mins, 21.000secs

2. Rahil Pillarisetty (KTM Gusto Racing) – 11mins 22.194secs

3. Alwin Sundar (KTM Gusto Racing) – 11mins 27.023secs

Race 2

 1. Rajiv Sethu (RACR Castrol Power 1 Ultimate) - 15mins, 04.518secs

2. Sarthak Chavan (Petronas TVS Racing) – 15mins 05.091secs

3. Rahil Pillarisetty (KTM Gusto Racing) – 15mins 06.290secs

Pro-Stock 165cc Open

Prabhu Arunagiri stood out in Round 4 with two back-to-back wins. But despite not scoring any wins in Round 2, KY Ahamed’s two podium finishes were enough for him to take the overall lead, displacing Sethu in the class.

Results

Race 1

1. Chiranth Vishwanath (Petronas TVS Racing) – 9mins 56.159secs

2. Rajiv Sethu (RACR Castrol Power 1 Ultimate) – 9mins 58.863secs

3. KY Ahamed (Petronas TVS Racing) – 10mins 03.002secs

Race 2

1. Prabhu Arunagiri (Pacer Yamaha) – 11mins 48.680secs

2. Sarthak Chavan (Petronas TVS Racing) – 11mins 52.473secs

3. KY Ahamed (Petronas TVS Racing) – 11mins 52.859secs

Race 3

1. Prabhu Arunagiri (Pacer Yamaha1) (- 12mins 00.450secs

2. KY Ahamed (Petronas TVS Racing) – 12mins 00.634secs

3. Jagan Kumar (Petronas TVS Racing) – 12mins 06.113secs

Novice Stock 165cc

Manvith Reddy K won the opening race after a number of frontrunners, including polesitter Vignesh Goud, retired. But Goud shrugged off the crash and pulled off an impressive charge up from 19th on the grid to win Race 2 – his sixth win in seven starts. He now holds a 54 points lead in the class.

Results

Race 1

1. Manvith Reddy K (RACR Castrol Power1 Ultimate) – 13mins 16.375secs

2. Abdul Basim (Rockers Racing) – 13mins 16.375secs

3. Tasmai Cariappa (Pacer Yamaha 1) – 13mins 16.869secs

Race 2

1. Vignesh Goud (Race'ists Motorcycle Club) – 13mins 17.927secs

2. Savion Sabu (Axor Sparks Racing) – 13mins 18.431secs

3. Abul Basim RS (Gulf Rockers Racing) – 13mins 19.205secs

Girls Stock 165cc

Lani Zena Fernandez won both races in the Girls Stock 165cc class to take a 45 points lead in the championship. The RACR rider has scored three wins in four outings so far this season.

Results

Race 1

1. Lani Zena Fernandez (RACR Castrol Power1 Ultimate) – 11mins 10.327secs

2. Jagathishree (One Racing) – 11mins 12.974secs

3. Ryhana Bee (Axor Sparks Racing) – 11mins 17.529secs

Race 2

1. Lani Zena Fernandez (RACR Castrol Power 1 Ultimate) – 11mins 12.128secs

2. Ryhana Bee (Axor Sparks Racing) – 11mins 12.328secs

3. Jagatishree (One Racing) – 11mins 17.191secs

TVS One-Make Championship

Chiranth Vishwanath completed a clean sweep in the TVS Open (Apache RR 310) category. This moves him to the top of the standings, seven points clear of Alwin Sundar. The 16-year-old also became the first-ever race winner in the new TVS Racing Electric One-Make Championship (e-OMC).

The first round featured eight riders hand-picked by TVS Racing, all of them competing aboard identical TVS Apache RTE motorcycles. These race bikes have been specifically developed for the championship. TVS says the Apache RTE features a carbon-fibre battery case that also acts as a stressed member of the chassis. It features a liquid-cooled electric motor and while performance figures haven’t been revealed, TVS says it has the “highest power-to-weight in its class”.The Apache RTE also gets Ohlins front and rear suspension and a Brembo brake system – with a 320mm front disc, calipers and master cylinder.

Results

TVS Racing e-OMC

1. Chiranth Vishwanath – 7mins 35.876secs

2. Sarthak Chavan – 7mins 38.922secs

3. Jagan Kumar – 7mins 41.402secs

Open (Apache RR 310) Race 1

1. Chiranth Vishwanath – 11mins 34.135secs

2. Senthil Kumar C – 11mins 38.154secs

3. G Balaji – 11mins 42.214secs

Open (Apache RR 310) Race 2

1. Chiranth Vishwanath – 15mins 26.971secs

2. Senthilkumar C – 15mins 32.850secs

3. Romario John – 15mins 36.798secs

Open (Apache RR 310) Race 3

1. Chiranth Vishwanath  -11mins 35.564secs

2. Senthilkumar C – 11mins 35.647secs

3. Alwin Sundar – 11mins 40.329secs

Girls (Apache RTR 200)

1. Saimah Ajaz Baig – 11mins 19.600secs

2. Nadine Faith Balaji – 11mins 20.014secs

3. Aisvariya V – 11mins 34.185secs

Honda India Talent Cup

Kavin Quintal was in a league of his own, winning both Honda NSF250R races virtually unchallenged. The 18-year-old won Race 1 by 16 seconds and Race 2 by 13.5 seconds to extend his championship lead to 45 points.

Results

Race 1

1. Kavin Quintal – 15mins 06.431secs

2. Mohsin P – 15mins 22.491secs

3. Raheesh Khatri – 15mins 22.534secs

Race 2

1. Kavin Quintal – 11mins 20.815secs

2. Mohsin P – 11mins 34.391secs

3. Johann Reeves Emmanuel – 11mins 34.448secs

Also see:

2023 INMRC: Sethu, Chavan score wins in Round 2