Reddy, set, go

A round-up of this month’s national motorsport happenings Tarun Reddy opens up big lead in the MRF FF1600 Championship

ASIDE FROM THE stifling heat, conditions at the fourth round of the MMSC-FMSCI National Racing Championship in Chennai seemed ideal for racing. Blue skies and no rain meant competitors went all-out from the get-go. Tarun Reddy, the 16-year old prodigy, was on fire throughout the weekend. He finished with a 23-point lead over next in line Advait Deodhar and Lee Keshav.

He extended his lead over the competition with three back-to-back wins. In race 1 of the MRF FF1600, pole sitter Lee Keshav took the lead, with Tarun Reddy and Vikash Anand hot on his heels. Starting 10th on the grid, Vikash moved up to third place by the end of lap 1. He was later given a jump start penalty. Tarun took the lead on lap 2 and pulled away from Deodhar, who tried hard to close the gap. The battle for third position was again a three-way affair, with Vikash battling Keshav and Kartik Tharani Singh. Tarun took top honours followed by Advait who finished second, with Lee Keshav taking the final step of the podium. In race 2 of the MRF FF1600, Tarun started on pole and had cleared traffic by the first corner. Advait followed closely after a quick start. He stayed close to Tarun for the first five laps but was unable to challenge for the lead. Vikash who started from sixth place on account of a penalty, had a brilliant drive and a quick start enabled him to finish the race in third place.