Sport - Racing : Motor

Srikandaraja and Santhosh sizzle

CHENNAI: The third leg of the Yamaha YZF-R15 championship took place under murky skies and a nagging drizzle at the Madras Motor Race Track here on Sunday.

The race, which witnessed participation by Yamaha R15 bike owners from Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka, provided the casual motorcycling enthusiast an opportunity to race under professional conditions on a customised circuit.

Divided into two groups based on their riding ability, participants competed in category ‘B’ (expert class) and category ‘C’ (novice class) in skiddy and blustery conditions.

Srikandaraja of Karnataka took the honours in category ‘B’. He was closely followed by State-mate Vinod. Raj Kumar of Tamil Nadu came in third.

Category ‘C’ was dominated by Karnataka as G.A. Santhosh took the chequered flag. He was followed by Kerala’s M.S. Sudheesh and Andhra Pradesh’s C. Rahul. Earlier, a delayed start compelled the vibrant Mistress of Ceremonies to invite riders to the podium to exhibit skills other than riding ability; what resulted was a rather out-of-tune rendition of Linkin Park’s ‘Numb’ by one of the contestants that, predictably, did not go down well with the scattered audience.

Other winners of the afternoon included Karnataka’s Mahesh in the Best Dressed-Up Vehicle category and Tamil Nadu’s Ajay, who was adjudged the Best Dressed-Up RIder.

The final leg of the series, with over Rs. 1 lakh of prize money at stake will take place on December 13.

The results: Category ‘B’: 1. Srikandaraja (Kar) 2. Vinod (Kar), 3. Raj Kumar (TN). Category ‘C’: 1. G.A. Santhosh (Kar), 2. M.S. Sudheesh (Ker), 3. C. Rahul (A.P.). — Sports Reporter

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu