Apache Attack
The oldest players in the Indian racing scene bring their latest creation to the track
THIS YEAR, TVS RACING have introduced the new Apache RTR 200 4V to the track as the weapon of choice in the One-make Championship. Younger, less experienced riders took part in three races held under the Novice Class, while the seasoned racers fought it out in two hotly-contested Open Class races.
TVS Racing are a pioneer in the Indian racing scene, with over three decades dedicated to the sport, and they have developed the race-ready Apache 200 to provide a platform for aspiring racers to hit the track and prove their worth in the One Make Championship. The matte blue bikes, although looking to be almost in stock form, seemed to be glued to the track through sticky Pirelli rubber, and made much more power than their road-going counterparts due to more aggressive camshafts, race exhausts and race-spec jetting. TVS will continue developing and making this bike more and more track-focused in the coming seasons. On with the races.
Novice Class
RACE ONE
The first TVS One Make Race of the weekend was held on Friday afternoon, and saw experienced young racers as well as newcomers taking it hard to the track in the Novice Class. The top three finishers were very close in terms of lap times. First place went to Chennai’s Yuvaraj S, who went around his home circuit in 2:15.014, the second fastest lap was achieved by third-place finisher Kamran Alam from Patna who
clocked 2:15.742, while Bengaluru’s Yashas R L completed his fastest lap in 2:15.861, but rode consistently enough to finish second, crossing the finish-line less than half a second behind Yuvaraj.
RACE TWO
The second Novice Class race, held on Saturday, saw Yuvaraj S set a blisteringly fast time of 2:13.766, but a mistake cost him a place on the podium and he finished fourth. Yashas R L improved on his previous day’s performance to stand proud atop the podium, completing the 3.717-kilometre circuit in 2:15.085. He was followed to the finish-line by fellow Bengaluru rider Aditya Rao Immaneni who clocked 2:15.642 around the circuit, while it was once again Kamran Alam who finished third.
RACE THREE
Sunday’s novice class race saw both Yuvaraj S and Kamran Alam in good form to claim the top two steps on the podium. Barely a 10th of a second separated their best lap-times, and although they traded places at the front a few times during the race, it was Yuvaraj who finished less than half a second ahead of Kamran. Chennai’s Hari Prasath R secured the last podium position, finishing over five seconds behind Yuvaraj.
Open Class
RACE ONE
The first Open Class race on Saturday saw an all- Chennai podium, with Kannan K at the top. He rode a flawless six laps to open up an impressive five-second lead over second-place Vivek Pillai by the finish-line. Arvind Ganesh secured a hard-fought third place, battling for the last spot on the podium with Hari Prakash. At the finish-line, only .026 of a second separated these two Chennai riders.
RACE TWO
Kannan K made it double by winning the second Open Class race on Sunday, with podium places reflecting the previous day’s race. Vivek Pillai once again secured second, this time less than a second behind the leader, and Arvind Ganesh once again had to fend off the aggressive advances of Hari Prakash, who missed out on a podium finish by just .030 of a second.