Rajini hopeful of strong showing in Asia Road Racing

Indian champion Krishnan Rajini hopes to get some momentum in his campaign as he prepares for the fifth round of the FIM Petronas Asia Road Racing Championship here this weekend.

Presently in 27th position with just four points as against his Moto-Rev India team-mate Toshiyuki Hamagachi who is fifth with 64, Rajini, fresh from winning the National title in Chennai last week, hoped that he would put in a strong performance here.

"I am very excited to be back in China, because this is a bike-friendly track. In 2009, I was timing 1:42:200 around the ZIC (Zhuhai International circuit). So I cannot wait to see how much better I have got, through all the fitness programs combined with the superior technical ability of my team's Race Engineers," said Rajini, the 31-year old Chennai-based rider.

Hamaguchi said: "I had a bad crash last week in the JSB1000 race in Japan. But I am 100 percent fit and raring to go for the Zhuhai GP. We are surely targeting the podium."

Rajini among points in China

CHENNAI: It may have come a little too late in the season but national bike racing champion K Rajini finally got his act together, earning valuable points for his team Moto-Rev India with a top-10 finish in the fifth and penultimate round races of the FIM Petronas Asia Road Racing Championship at Zhuhai International Circuit in China on Sunday.

Rajini's good showing came on a day when Manual Tech-Beet Kawasaki Racing's Japanese rider Katsuaki Fujiwara rode a flawless Race 1 from pole to chequered flag to seal the 600cc Super Sport category title with 196.5 points. With just a round to go in the season, Malaysian Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman of Boon Siew Honda Racing (140 points) is too far away in the standings to catch up with Fujiwara. The race for second and third place is still on though with Malaysian Md Zamri Baba of Petronas Yamaha Malaysia (107 points) still having a theoretical chance to upstage his compatriot from second place.

For Rajini, the points finish came at a right time as the Indian, back to form, is now confident of a good show at next month's FIM World Endurance Championship race at Losail Circuit in Qatar.

In Race 1 of the 600cc Super Sport category on Sunday, Rajini, who started in 18th position, climbed eight spots to finish 10th and score six points. The 29-year-old Chennai biker continued his good form in Race 2 too, with a 15th place finish that earned him another point.

The weekend is Zhuhai was a mixed one for Rajini's team Moto-Rev India though.

The team's lead rider, five-time Asian champion Toshiyuki Hamaguchi of Japan had a massive 200-kmph crash which resulted in four broken ribs and a minor abrasion to his lungs. The Japanese rider underwent a surgery and is reportedly safe though he will have to remain in the hospital for two weeks.

Moto-Rev's second Japanese rider Makoto Inagaki had a better outing, finishing seventh in Race 1 to score nine points. He did not finish Race 2 though, crashing out in the second lap.

Hamaguchi is now in eighth place in the championship standings with 64 points while Rajini and Inagaki are in 25th and 26th spots on the table with 11 and nine points respectively.

Rajini wins in National Motorcycle Championship

Chennai, Sep 3 (IANS) Krishnan Rajini of Moto-Rev India expectedly won the premium Group A (600cc) race very comfortably in the FMSCI National Motorcycle Racing Championship here Saturday.
The results:
Group A (600cc) 8 laps: Krishnan Rajini 1(Moto-Rev India) 1 (14:30.449); Deepak Ravikumar (Peethi Racing) 2 (14:35.334); M Gautham (Preethi Racing) 3 (14:44.375).
Group B (165cc Open) 6 laps: Deepak Ravikumar 1 (11:48.388); Sharat Kumar 2 (11:49.137); Jagan Kumar 3 (12:05.021).
Group D (165cc, Novice) 6 laps: Abhishek V (Apex Racing) 1 (13:32.693); S Madan 2 (13:38.133); Ramesh Kumar 3 (13:43.843).
Group D (130cc, Novice) 6 laps: Rajesh Rathina Kumar (TVS Racing) 1 (13:56.738); P Anand Raj (TVS Racing) 2 (13:59.244); Abdul Wahab 3 (14:02.651).

Double win for Kraisart in Supersport races of ARRC

CHENNAI: Decha Kraisart was unstoppable. Neither the sapping Chennai heat, nor the bumpy ride at the MMSC Race Track or the wheel-to-wheel, start-to-finish affairs with rivals could deter the defending champion from scoring a memorable double victory in the 600cc Supersport category at the third round races of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) on Sunday.

Thai Kraisart had missed out on the second round races in Indonesia due to a wrist injury. The Yamaha Thailand Racing rider, however, had made his intentions of storming back into the title race clear by taking pole after breaking the lap during qualifying on Saturday. And on race day, he just carried forward the form, breaking the lap record once again during Race 2, as he revved his way to the finish line.

With the win, Kraisart has jumped to fifth place in the championship table with 57.5 points. Japanese rider Katsuaki Fujiwara of Manual-Tech BEET Kawasaki, who finished seventh and sixth in Race 1 and 2, still leads the table with 114.5 points while Malaysians Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman of Boon Siew Honda Racing is second with 84 points followed by Mohd Zamri Baba (65 points) of Petronas Yamaha.

Moto-Rev India also had something to cheer when their lead rider Toshiyuki Hamaguchi of Japan finished fourth in Race 2 after starting from tenth position. The five-time Asian champion used all his experience to claw up the order, making up for an average outing in Race 1.

The Indian team's second rider, national champ K Rajini, had a poor outing at his home event though. The 29-year-old, fighting pain from a wrist sprain after a crash on Friday, finished 16th in Race 1 and failed to finish in Race 2.

But at the business end of the grid, Kraisart stamped his credentials as a champ. As he had predicted, he faced stiff challenge from Malaysians Baba and Kamaruzaman in both the races.

In Race 1, Baba made a flying start and overtook Kraisart in the first corner and maintained half a second advantage till the fifth lap when Kraisart made his move. At the start of the sixth lap, the Thai closed in on Baba in the first corner and made his pass after slip-streaming the Malaysian in the second.

There after Kraisart rode a flawless race, warding off the Malaysian challenge with some on-the-edge riding. The race was red-flagged prematurely in the 11th lap after Aussie Michael Edward Jones, who was running fifth, had a serious crash. Kraisart was declared the winner with Kamaruzaman and Baba finishing second and third.

Race 2 followed on similar lines with Baba, and Kamaruzaman taking over the lead from Kraisart during the race only to see the Thai champ regain his position. Kraisart crossed the chequered flag ahead of Baba and Aussie Aaron Morris of Yamaha Indonesia.

In the Underbone 115cc category, Rafid Topan Sucipto continued his literally unchallenged run in the season by scoring double victories. The Indonesian, riding for Yamaha CKJ TJM Racing, currently leads the standings with 125 points, followed by Hadi Wijaya of Kawasaki NHK Rextor (86 points). Hadi finished both the races in second place but way behind Sucipto.  

From Link

Moto-Rev gears up for road racing Championship

CHENNAI:  Moto-Rev India will be the sole team from India to field bikers in the PETRONAS Asia Ro­ad Racing Championship (ARRC), one of Asia’s most prestigious events for two-wheeler racing, scheduled at the Sriperumbudur track from August 4 to 7. Their th­ree-pronged attack comprises Toshiyuki Hamaguchi, Krishnan Rajini, Gautham Mayilvagnan.

Overall, 22 riders would feature in the Supersports 600cc category, which has seen participation from leading bike manufacturers – Kawasaki, Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki. Hamaguchi, Rajini and Gautham will mount Yamaha YZF-R6 bikes.Local lad Rajini is pumped up for the race. “I know this circuit like the back of my hand, but the quality of the riders in the ARRC is such that their learning time is next to zero. This is the third cons­ecutive year that Chennai will host the event. Event promoter, Two Wheels Motor Racing (TWMR) Promotions director Ron Hogg is hopeful of the race’s successful conduct in the city.