Keith Desouza clinches his first win of Vento Cup 2016; Niranjan Todkari and Karminder Pal Singh finish off on podium

• First race of the MMSC Volkswagen Vento Cup 2016 Round 2 witnessed a lot of action with many drivers exchanging positions throughout the 10 laps
• Excitement shoots up as three races so far in the season have seen three different winners

Volkswagen Motorsport India returned to Madras Motor Race Track (MMRT) after a gap of three years this weekend for the Round 2 of MMSC Volkswagen Vento Cup 2016. 20 drivers arrived to the freshly laid track of MMRT, most of who were entirely new to the circuit. After getting used to the layout of the track and rubbing off some rubber on the new tarmac, the drivers were up to competitive speeds during the qualifying earlier this morning. Pune’s Niranjan Todkari clinched pole position with a fastest lap time of 1:58.767 followed by Keith Desouza in second position with a fastest lap time of 1:59.224. Taking the third position on the second row of the grid was Aditya Pawar with a fastest lap time of 1:59.541. Joining him on the second row was Vento Cup 2016 leader Ishaan Dodhiwala with a fastest time of 2:00.449.

As the lights went off for the first race of the weekend, Niranjan took a good start to lead the pack into the first corner. However, he kept his lead for a very short period and lost it to Keith after making a mistake at turn 7 of the circuit. Keith jumped at the first opportunity he had to take the lead in the race and maintained it all the way till the end. Despite putting pressure on Keith for a couple of laps, Niranjan was not able to get past him and had to settle in the second position. Crossing the finish line in third position was Karminder Pal Singh after having started back in the sixth position on the grid. Karminder started making his moves from the second corner of the first lap itself as he overtook guest driver Sirish Chandran, followed by Ishaan Dodhiwala and Aditya Pawar.

An excited race winner, Keith Desouza commented, “It was fantastic race for me. The Volkswagen Vento Cup race car was extremely consistent throughout helping me get to pace early in the weekend. Starting the race from second position was not the best but I took the lead at the first opportunity I got and held on to it till the end.” He further add, “Tomorrow I will start from eighth position and I am expecting another exciting race. There are quite a few guys ahead of me who have good pace.”

Volkswagen Vento Cup 2016 – Round 2 Race 3 results: 

About Volkswagen Motorsport India: Taking ahead 50 years of enriching global motorsport legacy of Volkswagen, Volkswagen Motorsport India commenced operations with the Polo Cup India in 2010. The series started off with a first- ever iconic race being held at Shri Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex at Balewadi in Pune, the hometown of Volkswagen in India. The vast global expertise, coupled with rich dynamic history of the Group has enabled Volkswagen Motorsport India to progress swiftly and become the best one make series in a short span of time. The Volkswagen Polo R Cup enhanced awareness as well as underlined the technological advancement of Volkswagen in India. In 2015, Volkswagen Motorsport India shifted to Vento Cup and continued to provide a vital platform for the talented young racers to demonstrate their capabilities nationally and internationally by nurturing them. In the one-make series, all participating cars are technically identical with the same performance making it possible for only the most skilled drivers to leave an impact. Successes in Indian Rallying: Under the Customer Sport Initiative, Volkswagen Motorsport India started providing teams and individuals running Volkswagen Polo rally cars in the Indian Rally Championship (IRC) with technical assistance and spares from 2013. The Volkswagen Polo won the 2013 and 2014 season in the 1600-cc class.