Aqil Alibhai scores commanding win in F4 Indian Championship
Diljith TS of Dark Don Racing made the best of the opportunity to win the 27th JK-LGB Formula 4 race on Day1
Coimbatore 19 October 2024: Chennai Turbo Riders continued their relentless assault on the championship by clinching their fourth win of the season through veteran Britisher Jon Lancaster as the Round 4 of the Indian Racing League, promoted by Racing Promotions Pvt Ltd, got off a thrilling start at the recently upgraded Kari Motor Speedway, here on Saturday.
The 35-year-old Lancaster produced moments of magic to hold off pole-sitter and former Formula 1 test driver Neel Jani of Hyderabad Blackbirds, returning to the Indian Racing League championship after missing the previous two rounds, in a tight finish. In P3 behind the two veterans was India’s Sohil Shah of Goa Aces JA Races.
In a race that kept spectators on their toes, Jani, the 40-year-old from Switzerland, starting from pole position, opened a near five-second gap over Lancaster while 23-year-old Bengalurean Shah made places with some super aggressive moves to tuck himself in P3.
Midway through the race, Jani slowed down considerably after getting stuck in a gear and Lancaster moved into the lead and quickly pulled an eight-second lead at one stage. However, Jani found his second win and swiftly caught up with the 35-year-old Lancaster but could not pass him with the Britisher displaying amazing skills to keep his P1 spot in which he finished. Jani had to be content with second place ahead of Shah.
Lancaster after the race said, “We did a lot of work on the car to put things together and it is a big step forward for our team.”
The two-day Indian Racing Festival, sponsored by Kingfisher Soda, JK Tyres, Mobil 1 and Megha Engineering & Infrastructure Limited was live on Star Sports and Fan Code.
Formula 4 Indian Open
South African Aqil Alibhai Hyderabad Blackbirds notched his third win of the season with a near-flawless drive starting from P2 on the grid. With a daring move at Turn-1 on the very first lap, Alibhai went past pole-sitter Ruhaan Alva of Shrachi Rarh Royal Bengal Tigers and never looked back for a deserving win which saw him consolidate his position at the head of the leaderboard.
While Alibhai disappeared into the distance, there were furious battles up and down the grid on a tight and tricky 2.2 Kms circuit that presented only a couple of overtaking opportunities. Alva, the teenager from Bengaluru, just about held on to his P2 after coming under pressure from Shillong’s Jaden Pariat of Bangalore Speedsters as the duo completed podium behind Alibhai who also picked up a bonus point for the best lap of the race.
The Safety Car deployed twice, and it left the drivers to do a one lap sprint at the end of the 25-minute race duration.
Reflecting on his performance, Alibhai said: “I managed to go on the inside of Ruhaan at Turn-1. Once past him, I put my head down and put in consistent laps. I am very happy with today’s win.”
27th JK Tyre-FMSCI National Racing Championship
Veteran Diljith TS (Dark Don Racing) from Thrissur made the best of a gift from leader Tijil Rao (Dark Don Racing) to win the JK-LGB Formula 4 race while Dhruvh Goswami (MSPORT) came in second. Tijil, who was comfortably ahead, ran wide while negotiating a back marker in the closing stages of the race and it allowed Diljith the space to take the lead with Dhruvh in tow. Tijil recovered to come in third.
The results (Provisional):
Indian Racing League (Race-1, Driver-A) 25 mins+1 lap: 1. Jon Lacaster (UK, Chennai Turbo Riders) (26mins, 54.251secs); 2. Neel Jani (Switzerland, Black Birds Hyderabad) (26:54.587); 3. Sohil Shah (India, Goa Aces JA Racing) (26:54.965).
Formula 4 Indian Open (Race-1, 25mins+1 lap): 1. Aqil Alibhai (South Africa, Black Birds Hyderabad) (26:34.669); 2. Ruhaan Alva (India, Srachi Rarh Royal Bengal Tigers) (26:35.335); 3. Jaden Pariat (India, Bangalore Speedsters) (26:35.887). Best Lap: Aqil Alibhai (01:06.767).
27th JK Tyre-FMSCI National Racing Championship:
LGB Formula 4 (Race-1, 15 laps): 1. Dilith TS (Thrissur, Dark Don Racing) (19:19.910); 2. Dhruvh Goswami (Bengaluru, MSPORT) (19:23.850); 3. Tijil Rao (Bengaluru, Dark Don Racing) (19:29.574).
Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup (Race-1, 10 laps): 1. Yogesh P (Bengaluru) (13:42.862); 2. Johring Warisa (Umrangso) (14:00.662); 3. Johson Saldanha (Mangaluru) (14:13.184).
