Donison claims season opener
It was Ricky Donison all the way in the finals and pre- finals of the opening round of the 13th JK TyreFMSCI National Rotax Championship in Hennur, Bengaluru, on Sunday.
Driving in the Senior Max category ( above 15 years), Donison dominated the weekend with a flawless display. After topping the unofficial practice sessions, he won both the heats and the pre- finals as well before sweeping to victory in the final.
“It has been an amazing weekend. It’s a perfect start to the season and has been an incredible weekend,” said Donison.
Having taken the early lead, Donison kept the chasing pack at bay with ease. Ameya Bafna of Rayo Racing, who is here without any testing, came up with an inspired performance to claim second place, but still it was not enough to challenge the race leader.
Nayan Chatterjee of Meco Racing, who fell back into sixth place on the first lap, worked hard to move up the order to take third place.
In the Junior Max category, Manav Shrama of BPC Racing controlled the pace from the front in both the finals and prefinals. Starting the pre- finals in fourth, he soon took the lead and retained it till the flag.
In the final, Sharma kept himself out of trouble going into the first corner and kept his head down thereafter for the remaining 18 laps.
Nirmal Umashankar had a race- long scrap with his Meco racing team- mate, Paul T. Francis, for second place.
In the Micro Max ( 7- 12 years) finals, Shahan Ali Mohsin, who is leading the cadet class in the Asia Max Championship in Malaysia, had to battle past Ruhaan Alva in a close race.
It has been an amazing weekend. It’s a perfect start to the season and has been an incredible weekend. RICKY DONISON