Arjun Maini, Rishon Rajeev and Ishaan Madesh crowned champs in MECO-FMSCI National Karting Championship 2020 (Rotax Max)

by Suman Gupta

Bangalore, January: Bangalore’s young racers dominated the MECO-FMSCI National Karting Championship 2020 (Rotax Max), sweeping all three titles on offer with Arjun Maini, Rishon Rajeev and Ishaan Madesh clinching the honours over an action-packed weekend.

The championship drew to a close with three rounds being held back to back at the same venue to ensure safety and convenience of all drivers and teams in the middle of a raging pandemic. The weekend also saw India’s first Formula 1 driver, Narain Karthekeyan driving in a few races as a guest driver.

Formula 2 racer Arjun Maini (NK Racing Academy) was head and shoulders above the Rotax Max field, garnering the maximum points in each of the three rounds to comfortably take the crown.

He finished second in the pre-finals and finals in Round 3 and 4 but raced to the first place in Round 5 twice for a tally of 431 points. His younger brother, Kush (NK Racing Academy), incidentally clinched the top position in each of the three rounds he had competed in. He didn’t take part in Round 2 and Round 5, which allowed Arjun to claim the title.

Agra’s Shahan Ali Moshin (MSPORT) took the second position with an aggregate of 400 points in the category while Bangalore’s Mihir Suman (Birel Art) finished just 4 points behind to take the third place in the championship table.

Another Bangalore lad, Rishon Rajeev (Birelart), kept his grilling run going, winning the Junior Max title with 436 points. Rishon began slowly, though, finishing third in Round 3’s two races and Round 4’s first. But thereafter he was in a league of his own, taking the top spot in the remaining three races. He won Best Driver of the Year Award for his consistent performances.

Ruhaan Alva (MSPORT) with 410 points and Rohaan Madesh (Peregrine Racing Intl) with 399 grabbed the other two positions on the podium.

Rohaan’s younger brother Ishaan Madesh (Peregrine Racing International), however, brought home a championship trophy by clinching the Micro Max title fairly comfortably. He collected  445 points which was way better than Aditya Suresh Kamat (Birelart Racing; 413) and Arafath Sheikh (MSPORT; 413).

Aditya was declared the Best Newcomer of the Championship. Ishaan Madesh won two special awards, for the most number of poles and the most number of wins through the season.

The participation of Narain Karthikeyan ( F1 ), Arjun Maini ( F2 ) and Kush Maini ( F3 ) added a lot of value to the championship and reinstated the worth and value of the commitment of Meco Motorsports to provide a fantastic platform for young Indian drivers to progress from.

Championship winners:

Senior Max: 1. Arjun Maini (NK Racing Academy; 431); 2. Shahan Ali Moshin (MSPORT; 400); 3. Mihir Suman Avalakki (Birel Art; 396)

Junior Max: Rishon Rajeev (Birelart; 436); 2. Ruhaan Alva (MSPORT; 410) 3. Rohaan Madesh (Peregrine Racing; 399)

Micro Max: 1. Ishaan Madesh (Peregrine Racing; 445); 2. Aditya Suresh Kamat (Birelart Racing; 413); 3. Arafath Sheikh (MSPORT; 413)