The season opener of the Volkswgen Polo R Cup 2013 got off to a scroching start at the Kari Motor Speedway in Coimbatore. Rahil Noorani clinched the first pole position of the season, and went on to complete a perfect lights to flag win the opening race of the weekend.
Finishing a close second was Jeffrey John Kruger - the South African being the only foreign driver on the grid this year. Kruger had qualified second on Saturday and couldn't challenge pole sitter Rahil in the first race, ultimately finishing a close second.
Kruger did make amends in race two though, charging through the pack and into the lead on the opening lap despite having started seventh due to reversed grid. Rahil, who had started one grid spot behind, also managed to tag along but couldn't show the pace he had in race one. After a long duel, he was relieved of second place by Prashanth Tharani in the final laps and settled for third, with Kruger winning by a comfortable margin.
Results
Volkswagen Polo R Cup, Round 1, Kari Speedway
Race 1:
1 | Rahil Noorani (Mumbai) | 1:15.100 | 14:26.151 | - |
2 | Jeffrey Kruger (Johannesburg) | 1:15.400 | 14:28.820 | +2.669 |
3 | Prashant Tharani (Chennai) | 1:15.746 | 14:35.441 | +9.290 |
Race 2:
1 | Jeffrey Kruger (Johannesburg) | 1:14.918 | 19:10.815 | - |
2 | Kartik Tharani (Chennai) | 1:15.419 | 19:15.294 | +4.479 |
3 | Rahil Noorani (Mumbai) | 1:15.544 | 19:18.476 | +7.661 |