Rally ace Gaurav Gill’s grand double in the Indian Touring Cars category has proved that he is a force to be reckoned with in circuit racing as well. Leaving seasoned drivers including defending champion Arjun Balu in his wake, the speed demon from Delhi dominated both the races of the tin-top class in the third round of the FMSCI-National Racing Championship on Sunday.
Gill’s Team Big Foots tuner-cum-teammate N. Leelakrishnan finished second in Race 1, while championship leader Arjun struggled in his new Volkswagen Vento before pulling out of the contest. Arjun, however, came back strongly to finish second in a rain-soaked Race 2 ahead of Leelakrishnan.
In the MRF Formula 1600, Chennai boys Ashwin Sundar and Tarun Reddy won a race each on Sunday. It was 15-year-old Tarun’s maiden triumph in a single-seater car.
Results: ITC (Race 1): 1. Gaurav Gill (Delhi), 2. N. Leelakrishnan (Coimbatore), 3. Ashish Ramaswamy (Bengaluru). Race 2: Gaurav Gill (Delhi), 2. Arjun Balu (Coimbatore), 3. N. Leelakrishnan (Coimbatore). MRF Formula 1600cc (Race 2): 1. Tarun Reddy (Chennai), 2. Yudai Jinkawa (Japan), 3. Ashwin Sundar (Chennai). Race 3: 1. Ashwin Sundar (Chennai), 2. Shinya Michimi (Japan); 3. Yudai Jinkawa (Japan). Formula Swift (Race 3): 1. K. Prashanth (Chennai), 2. Deepak Chinappa (Bengaluru), 3. Suhail Sabharwal (Bengaluru). Formula 4 (Race 3): 1. S. Narendran (Chennai), 2. C. Rajaram (Coimbatore), 3. Sudanand Daniel (Coimbatore). Toyota EMR (Race 3): 1. S. Diljith (Trichur), 2. Abhinay Bikkani
(Bengaluru), 3. Akhil Rabindra (Bengaluru).