COIMBATORE: It turned out to be an emotional and special awards night on Sunday as the 25th JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship ended successfully.
For each of the winners who collected their trophies, this was a weekend to remember in the 25th year of the premier event in the country featuring four wheelers and bikes.
The biggest cheer was for the LGB Formula 4 category winners, the toughest event in the JK Tyre’s racing stable, where Ashwin Datta of Dark Don Racing was all smiles. He posed with the trophy and said, “It was a hectic weekend and boiled down to the last race.”
Arya Singh, who came a close second was happy but is keen to improve by the next edition as he and his teammate Ashwin Datta were separated by only three points, Viswas Vijayaraj from Ahura Racing came third and also collected the trophy.
Likewise, the JK Tyre Novice Cup winners also felt important on the awards night, where an audio visual presentation captured the journey of JK Tyre in rallying and racing over the years. “In fact, we completed 26 years as the first year was not counted as we had to prove ourselves,” said JK Tyre head -Motorsports, Sanjay Sharma, in an emotional speech on the stage.
“We have nurtured racing champions over these two and a half decades from Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandhok to Gaurav Gill,” added Sharma.
Arjuna Awardee Gaurav Gill, who was present on the night, was shown in the audio visual capturing his journey in racing and rallying. He has been the strongest force in Indian rallying for long now.
Hari Singh, the pioneer of rallying in India, and king at the wheels of Maruti Gypsy in golden days spoke of how the JK Tyre programme has been nurtured. He stands tall with his achievements, first as a driver and now as an architect behind the scenes with his team in ensuring that races take place with precision and safety is in total control.
Rajan Syal, who has been part of the JK Tyre journey in every capacity with regards to COC, race control and so on, spoke of how the voyage has been fantastic. “We have seen so many drivers make it to the international level. I am sure winners from this year will also move up to the international stage,” said Syal.
For all the guests and invitees, the audio visual on the giant screen was a visual treat as it captured all the highs from the last 25 years.
Points tally:
LGB 4 Formula category (Team championship)
1. Dark Don Racing (161 points). 2. Ahura Racing (119 points). 3. Msports (105 points).
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LGB Formula 4 category (Individual category)
1. Ashwin Datta (Dark Don Racing, 66 points). 2. Arya Singh (Dark Don Racing, 63 points). 3. Viswas Vijayaraj (Ahura Racing, 61 points)
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JK Tyre Novice Cup (Team category, constructors)
1. DTS Racing (185 points). 2. MSports (88 points). 3. Hasten Performance (78 points).
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JK Tyre Novice Cup (Individual category)
1. Kyle Kumaran (DTS Racing, 66 points). 2. Vinith Kumar (DTS Racing, 60 ppints). 3. Dhruvh Goswami (MSports, 56 points).
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LGB Formula 4 (Rookie category)
1. Amith Kutti Bala (Ahura Racing, 75 points). 2. Abhinav Reddy (Avalanche Racing, 74 points). 3. Monith Kumaran (Ahura Racing, 49 points).
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JK Tyre Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup (Pro category):
1. Allwin Xavier (49 points). 2. Anish D Shetty (42 points). 3. Sudheer Sudhakar (34 points).
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JK Tyre Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup (Amateur Category):
1. Soorya PM (85 points). 2. Varun Gowda (50 points). 3. Raj Kumar (44 points).
