Gaurav Gill underlines supremacy by clinching Popular Rally for fifth time; Chetan Shivram set for maiden INRC title
India's top rally driver Gaurav Gill underlined his supremacy in the Popular Rally, the final round of the FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship, winning the title for an unprecedented fifth time at Kottayam on Sunday.
-
Gaurav Gill, with Musa Sherif as his co-driver, won SS9 and finished second in SS10 and SS11 on Day 2 to regain his aura over the weekend
-
Gill's teammates, Dean Mascarenhas and Suhem Kabeer, too did well, taking the third and fourth positions in the overall category
-
Chetan Shivram seems set to take the 2019 INRC champion,riding on his twin triumphs in the Rally of Coimbatore and the K1000 in Bengaluru
Kottayam: India's top rally driver Gaurav Gill underlined his supremacy in the Popular Rally, the final round of the FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship, winning the title for an unprecedented fifth time at Kottayam on Sunday.
The Team Mahindra driver, supported by JK Tyre and with Musa Sherif as his co-driver, won SS9 and finished second in SS10 and SS11 on Day 2 to regain his aura over the weekend with some brilliant driving.
Team Mahindra's Gaurav Gill stands atop the podium along with co-driver Musa Sherif. INRC
Gill's teammates, Dean Mascarenhas and Suhem Kabeer, too did well, taking the third and fourth positions in the overall category.
Bengaluru's Chetan Shivram, however, seems set to take the 2019 INRC champion, riding on his twin triumphs in the Rally of Coimbatore and the K1000 in Bengaluru. The MRF supported driver, who had suffered a massive crash in the opening stage on Saturday, returned to complete Day 2's three stages to protect his lead.
Chetan of Team Akshara, along with Dilip Sharan, nursed his car smartly, taking the tenth position in SS9 but revved up to the fifth in the last two stages for a valiant show. A second crown, the INRC 3 category, however, may well have eluded him as Fabid Ahmer (Sanath G) pipped him to the post.
Fabid finished second behind Aditya Thakur (Virender Kashyap) which was probably good enough to nudge off Chetan from the top.
Team Champions' Dr Bikku Babu (Milen George), a local favourite, finished third in the overall category and first in INRC 2 for a highly rewarding Popular Rally.
also read
Watch | This 64-year-old from Kerala juggles football like a pro
The clip has garnered almost six lakh views to date. Several users were awestruck by the 64-year-old and called him ‘legend’. Others wished they could have a grandparent like him
Govt taking all steps for safety of women athletes, says Anurag Thakur
Regarding women's safety measures, Thakur said "we are trying not only to issue guidelines but to pass on these to every sportsperson so that they are not uninformed and they can protect themselves and their dignity"
Unanimously work to get India in top 10 sporting nations in world: Anurag Thakur to sports ministry officials
Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Singh Thakur on Friday chaired the two-day national conference of Ministers of Youth Affairs and Sports that took off in Kevadia in Gujarat