Triple delight for Bengaluru ace Hemanth Muddappa

CHENNAI: Mantra Racing’s Hemanth Muddappa yet again underlined his status as the “King of Drag” by completing a triple crown in the second round of the MMSC FMSCI Indian National Motorcycle Drag Racing Championship 2024 at the Madras International Circuit, here on Sunday.

Bengaluru-based Muddappa won in three of the four categories he participated in, including the premier “Unrestricted” on Sunday, adding to the double he had achieved on Round-1 on Saturday. He thus finished the weekend with five wins and three podium finishes.

Muddappa’s notable performance on the day came astride the Suzuki Hayabusa on which he powered to win in the “Unrestricted” category while avenging his Round-1 defeat to fellow-Bengalurean, Mujahid Pasha (Fast Track Racing) who finished second. In third spot was another Bengalurean, Attaulla Baig.

Muddappa had a better Reaction Time (RT) of 0.501secs at the start lights and a top speed of 220.31 Kmph on the 302-metre straight while Pasha (0.596s / 184kmph) and Baig (0.939s / 200.16kmph) were decidedly slower.

Earlier, Muddappa topped the 1051-1650cc run where he had a better timing of 07.697secs, and 851-1050cc categories quite convincingly while finishing third in the 551-850cc class behind the Hyderabad pair of Mohammed Riyaz and Altaf Khan.

Reviewing his performance over the weekend, Muddappa said: “The track conditions this year have been different than last year when I had a better grip. As such, I couldn’t break any records and also had to make some setup changes. Overall, a pretty satisfying weekend, but we can always do better.”

Later, Chennai’s Jagathishree Kumaresan (One Racing) continued her winning form by repeating her Round-1 victory in the Girls (Stock 165cc) category ahead of team-mate SP Shuria (Bengaluru) and Coimbatore’s Aisvariya (Motul Sparks Racing).

Mumbai rider Shahrukh Khan also notched a double, topping the 4-Stroke 361-550cc and 2-Stroke Up to 130cc categories, the former in Mantra Racing livery.

Provisional results (all 4-Stroke unless mentioned): Unrestricted: 1. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (07.739secs); 2. Mujahid Pasha (Bengaluru, Fast Track Racing) (07.809); 3. Attaulla Baig (Bengaluru, Pvt) (08.155).

1051-1650cc (Super Sport): 1. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (07.697s); 2. Mujahid Pasha (Bengaluru, Fast Track Racing) (07.962s); 3. Attaulla Baig (Bengaluru, Pvt) (08.052s).

851-1050cc (SS): 1. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (07.915s); 2. Niranjan R Kumar (Bengaluru, Pvt) (08.831s); 3. Khaja Awais Ahmed (Hyderabad, Pvt) (08.950s).

551-850cc (SS): 1. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad, Pvt) (08.511s); 2. Altaf Khan (Hyderabad, Pvt) (08.546s); 3. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (08.552s).

361-550cc (SS Indian): 1. Shahrukh Khan (Mumbai, Mantra Racing) (11.512s); 2. Jason D’Souza (Mumbai, Mantra Racing) (12.128s); 3, Imran (Bengaluru, Fast Track Racing) (12.386).

166-225cc (SS): 1. Prashanth S (Bengaluru, Pvt) (13.604); 2. Prashanth K (Pvt) (13.860); 3. Govardhan R (Chennai, Pvt) (14.068).

Up to 165cc (SS Indian): 1. Abdul Basim (Chennai, Rockers Racing) (13.975s); 2. Bharathraj J (Chennai, Rockers Racing) (14.061s); 3. Madhan R (ACCSYS India Rookies Racing) (14.069s).

Girls (Stock 165cc): 1. Jagathishree Kumaresan (Chennai, One Racing) (16.449s); 2. SP Shuria (Bengaluru, One Racing) (16.886s); 3. Aisvariya (Coimbatore, Motul Sparks Racing) (17.289s).

2-Stroke (131-165cc, SS): 1. Imran (Bengaluru, Fast Track Racing) (12.874); 2. Prashanth (Bengaluru, Pvt) (12.970); 3. Shashi Kiran V (Bengaluru, Pvt) (13.147).

2-Stroke (Up to 130cc, SS): 1. Shahrukh Khan (Mumbai, Pvt) (13.308s); 2. Balasubramanian (Chennai, Big Boys Racing) (13.393); 3. Madhan R (Chennai, Big Boys Racing) (13.498)