HELLIBEES RACING EXCEL IN CURTAIN OPENER FOR 2017
The first tarmac event for 2017 was held on March 19, 2017 at Katukurunda, organised by the Lions Club of Sri Lanka District 306C-1, The Lions Top Speed Sri Lanka Super Series 2017. Hellibees Racing fielded 16 bikes and nine cars consisting of eight riders and six drivers. Although some of the riders and drivers of the team had to face some unforeseen issues with their bikes and cars, the rest of the team managed to secure amazing wins.
On the qualifying Saturday (March 18) most of the team members had outstanding runs. On another note while the 125cc, 150cc and the 125 two stroke did not need qualifying, Mohamad Shazan (125 – ZT), 14 year olds Hansika Abeysinghe and Sushmi Solanki the only two ladies in motorbike racing, had extremely fast runs.
In the 250cc Class, Shoel Daniel and Lathika Shamal too had fast runs. In the 250cc Supermotards Class, Sangeeth Suriyage had the second fastest time and in the Supermotard open event he was in pole position. In the 600cc Class Daniel qualified for pole position too. In the 1000cc Class Daniel developed engine issues and Hellibees rider Shrian Samuel secured the first spot.
Getting more seriously involved in the car category this year, Chandima Guneratne was on pole in the Honda SLH category and the Formula EFI event while Michael Wijesuriya was on pole in the up to 1050 modified event. The SLGT cars driven by excellent drivers Janaka Dias and veteran driver Sanjeewa De Mel had excellent runs considering the cars were very new to them, however it was an excellent day of qualifying for the Hellibees team.
Race Sunday was entertaining to Hellibees’ guests and sponsors who trickled in and soon filled up the seats in the paddock area. They had nine wins and seven podium finishes. The first race for the day for Hellibees was the 600cc Class where Shoel Daniel won with a considerable lead leaving the rest of the field way behind. It is worth mentioning that Daniel was the 2016 National Champion in the 600cc as well as the 250cc Categories and also the Motor GP Champion.
In other events to follow, 14 year old rider Hansika Abeysinghe, the youngest member of the Hellibees team, won the 150cc event with ease, leading with a large margin, Sushmi Solanki also 14 years of age, and the second girl in the Hellibees team came in a close fourth in that event where the rest of the riders were all men.
Abeysinghe also won the 125cc event with ease and Sushmi Solanki came in second. Incidentally Abeysinghe was the National Champion for these events in 2016 a reward achieved due to frequent training while both girls were overall faster in their events this year. In the 250cc it was a battle between the two Hellibees riders Shoel Daniel and Lathika Shamal resulting in Daniel winning and Lathika coming in second away from the field.in the 1000cc event and the two races in the up to 1000cc open the team had mixed fortunes. Shrian Samuel was for the first time on a 1000cc and on pole while Daniel, the Motor GP Campion 2016, started in the third slot. Daniel started leading the pack while Samuel was seen dropping back. Daniel still leading developed gear box issues and dropped to second place, however with his skill and confidence he managed to hold the second place until the finish of the race.
Unfortunately Daniel could not compete in the up to 1000cc open event as his machine could not be fixed on time. Meanwhile Hellibees rider Shrian Samuel won the first of the two races and came in second, in the second race, surprising the racing fraternity as this run a blast from the past took the reigns from Shoel Daniel to bring in podium finishes.
Sangeeth Suriyage came in a close second in the 250cc Supermotard and won the Supermotard open in grand style with an impressive lead. Suriyage was the 2015 National Champion for both these categories. Hellibbes rider Deshan Solanki fought his way and came in third.
Chandima Guneratne and Andrew Choksy fought their way to come first and second, in the first of the Formula EFI races. In the second race Guneratne’s car was a non starter and Andrew took the reigns to win giving Hellibees two out of two in this category.
In the Honda SLH category Guneratne was on pole but due to his axel giving way he had to withdraw as his luck continued to go against him. Michael Wijesuriya was on pole for the 1050cc modified event and had an excellent run to win the event.