Chennai, April 18 (NationPress) Karna Kadur, alongside his co-driver Kumar Ramaswamy from Arka Motorsports, executed a stunning drive, establishing a commanding 22-second gap over the renowned Gaurav Gill (Srikanth GM) from Delhi to secure victory in the 49th South India Rally at Madras. This achievement came at the conclusion of Leg-1 on Saturday at the Madras International Circuit.

With four additional Special Stages planned for Sunday and a substantial advantage, Kadur is favorably positioned to challenge for the championship title.

The three-day event, which wraps up on Sunday, acts as both Round 2 of the FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship and Round 1 of the FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship.

The 37-year-old racer from Bengaluru, Kadur, currently leads both the APRC and INRC Overall standings, leaving behind three-time APRC champion Gill (Srikanth Gowda). Jeet Jhabakh from Hyderabad, partnered with veteran Musa Sherif from Kasargod, occupies the third position in APRC. Despite facing a broken driveshaft during the day's second stage, he managed to navigate the car back to the garage using the LSD (Limited Slip Differential) and resumed racing after repairs.

Following Kadur and Gill in the INRC Overall standings is another crew from Duran Racing, comprising Vishakh Balachandran from Thiruvananthapuram and co-driver Chiranth Jain from Karkala, who also lead the INRC 3T class.

In the INRC 2 category, Bengaluru's Ritesh Guttedar and co-driver Suraj M lead the pack, ahead of Dehradun’s Anushriya Gulati and co-driver Karan Aukta. The INRC 3 class is also dominated by Bengaluru, with Arvind Dheerendra and Shahid Salman in the forefront, followed closely by Abhishek Gowda and co-driver Mahesh Nandi.

Tarushi Vikram from Chikkamagaluru maintained her impressive performance by leading both the Ladies and Junior INRC categories, partnering with Athreya Kousgi.

The showdown between Kadur and Gill was a highlight of the day. Kadur enjoyed a largely trouble-free outing on Saturday in his Volkswagen Polo, clinching victories in all four Special Stages. “I aimed to secure the win today. My strategy was to start conservatively and ramp up gradually, but with Gaurav (Gill) right behind me, I had to push hard to stay ahead of a legend. I have a solid lead, but we have four more stages tomorrow in the reverse direction. I intend to remain cautious of the ruts and rocks we created today,” remarked Kadur, who captured his third National title in 2024.

Gill, in pursuit of his eighth National title, reflected philosophically on his performance. “We encountered brake issues today that caused overheating. As I mentioned yesterday, this VW Polo, which I am driving competitively for the first time, is using developmental tyres with varying patterns. Overall, our Polo is down by at least 50bhp compared to the INRC 1 cars, but it is what it is. Tomorrow, I will need to focus on the points I can secure, which will guide my approach,” stated the Arjuna Award recipient.

Provisional classification (Leg-1):

Asia-Pacific Rally Championship:

1. Karna Kadur / Kumar Ramaswamy (Arka Motorsports) (01Hr, 01min, 09.9secs);

2. Gaurav Gill / Srikanth GM (01:01:32.3); 3. Jeet Jhabakh / Musa Sherif (01:04:22.3).

Indian National Rally Championship:

INRC Overall:

1. Karna Kadur / Kumar Ramaswamy (Arka Motorsports) (01:01:09.9);

2. Gaurav Gill / Srikanth GM (01:01:32.3);

3. Vishak Balachandran / Chiranth Jain (Duran Racing) (01:03:39.9).

INRC 2:

1. Ritesh Guttedar / Suraj M (AART Motorsports) (01:04:21.1);

2. Jeet Jhabakh / Musa Sherif (Pvt.) (01:04:22.3);

3. Arun Y Mavaji / Jeevarathinam (Chettinad Sporting) (01:06:17.6).

INRC 3:

1. Arvind Dheerendra / Shahid Salman (Chettinad Sporting) (01:03:52.3);

2. Abhishek Gowda / Mahesh Nandi (Arka Motorsports) (01:04.45.1);

3. Chandan Manchegowda/ Suraj Keshav Prasad (Arka Motorsports) (01:04.59.3).

INRC 3T:

1. Vishak Balachandran/ Chiranth Jain (Duran Racing) (01:03:39.9);

2. Anushriya Gulati/ Karan Aukta (Arka Motorsports) (01:06:04.7);

3. Adith KC/ Avinash CA (Arka Motorsports) (01:08:25.2).

Ladies:

1. Tarushi Vikram/ Athreya Kousgi (Chettinad Sporting) (01:05:17.0);

2. Anushriya Gulati/ Karan Aukta (Arka Motorsports) (01:06:04.7);

3. Shivani Pruthvi / Vinay Padmashali (01:06.26.1)

Junior INRC:

1. Tarushi Vikram/ Athreya Kousgi (01:05:17.0)