250cc class promises a lot

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S. Sarath Kumar’s thrilling back-to-back victories have turned the spotlight on Honda CBR 250cc class in the Sidvin-FMSCI national bike racing championship. In the third round that concluded here at the Irungattukottai track on Sunday, the Ten10 rider — the first Indian to participate in the MotoGP — announced his return to the country’s premier two-wheeler event with a delightful double – both starting fifth on a highly-competitive grid.

Moto-Rev duo of A. Prabhu and Dinesh Kumar, who were breathing down the neck of Sarath, finished second and third respectively in a keenly-contested race.

Currently, the class remains a one-make series with only Honda supplying the machines to the private teams. But given the excitement the 250cc vehicles have generated, the organisers are mulling over introducing an open class in the national championship. Amit Arora, chairman of FMSCI two-wheeler commission, says the federation has been in talks with other manufacturers.

“It’s going to be our showpiece category if we manage to get them on board. Introducing 250cc open class would be an ideal step up for the championship,” he said.

In the ongoing season, 600cc Superbike is the premier class, but only on paper. The grid has only half-a-dozen vehicles and the gulf between the top-three and rest of the pack is huge. Moto-Rev racer K. Rajini’s domination — winning five out of six races so far — is not helping the cause either.

R. Deepak’s sole win this season came on Sunday after Rajini’s surprise crash during the second lap.

With a packed grid and a free-hand for the teams to modify the components, Group B 165cc produced a lot of entertainment last year. But now it cuts different picture with only five bikes lining up at the start. Factory-run TVS Racing, spearheaded by international K. Jagan -- are enjoying the championship lead ahead of Moto-Rev India.

Amit said the private teams are finding it difficult to manage the budget. “Last year, teams spent between Rs 12-14 lakhs for a Group B bike. When we introduced Group C with restricted modification this year, the running cost was cut down drastically. So private teams started looking elsewhere,” he explained.