Mathana Kumar leads 1-2 finish for Pacer Yamaha

Coimbatore: On a day of stunning reversals in fortunes, Mathana Kumar and Prabhu Arunagiri delivered a 1-2 finish for Bengaluru-based Pacer Yamaha team in the Pro-Stock 165cc Open category while Hubballi’s Sarvesh Balappa (Axor Sparks Racing) was handed a victory in the Novice (Stock 165cc) race despite finishing third as the Rolon Round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2022 headed to a climax at the Kari Motor Speedway here on Saturday.
However, veteran Rajini Krishnan (RACR Castrol Power 1), riding his refurbished Yamaha R3 with a lighter frame and assorted modifications, restored normal service by comfortably winning the premium Pro-Stock 301-400cc category race as the expected fight from known rivals dissipated amidst crashes and penalties.
Similarly, Mathana and Arunagiri trumped the Pro-Stock 165cc Open field with some fine riding for a top-two sweep for Pacer Yamaha after a gap of 12 years, while the top guns in this class, Petronas TVS Racing’s Jagan Kumar and KY Ahamed, exited the contest due to mechanical issues with their bikes. As such, the Pacer Yamaha riders had little to contend with as the pair finished well ahead of Rajiv Sethu (Idemitsu Honda SKRacing 69).