Indian National Rally Championship 2020: Gill wins Round 1, Kadur finishes second

Gaurav Gill took a total of 56:55.200 minutes to complete eight special stages and record a victory by a margin of an impressive 4:25.700 minutes over Karna Kadur.

Gaurav Gill was in his ominous best and even a flat tyre in the final stage could not stop him from underlining his supremacy in the opening round.

Ace Indian rally driver Gaurav Gill began the Champions Yacht Club-FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship 2020 in style, winning the Rally of Arunachal on Thursday.

Gill, driving for JK Tyre, took a total of 56:55.200 minutes to complete eight special stages and record a victory by a margin of an impressive 4:25.700 minutes over Karna Kadur. Dean Mascarenhas finished third overall with a time of 1:02:30.500 hour.

The three-time APRC champion was in his ominous best and even a flat tyre in the final stage could not stop him from underlining his supremacy in the opening round.

Gill along with co-driver Musa Sherif got off to a thrilling start and after opening up a considerable lead on the opening day, which witnessed four thrilling night stages, it was all about driving safe and bringing his XUV300 home.

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However, that did not stop him from going full throttle and he drove like a man possessed to win three on day four to increase his lead further.

“It was a great start to the season. The stages were really fast and I enjoyed driving here. The car has been fantastic and there is absolutely nothing I could complain about,” Gill said.

“We made some adjustments to the car from last year and it has worked wonders.”

Karna Kadur on MRF Tyres overcame initial hiccups, which involved a tailspin on ss2, to make his way to the podium.

Karna, driving a Volkswagen Polo, won the final stage of the round, clocking a total time of 1:01:2.900.

Karna and his navigator Nikhil V Pai, who ended the opening day in second place, showed great grit to stave off a fierce challenge from Dean and co-driver Shruptha Padival, who finished third.

Defending champion Team Yokohama’s Chetan Shivram’s title defence took a great hit as he crashed out of the round in the first stage due to engine failure.

The round 2 of the race will be held on December 19.