Rahil pillarisetty

Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup:  Two teenagers, Sarthak Chavan from Pune and Chennai collegian Abdul Basim put in sizzling laps to qualify for pole position in their respective categories as the fifth and final round of the National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2023 got underway at the Madras International Circuit, here on Friday.

The 16-year-old Sarthak, who joined the Petronas TVS Racing team this season, took pole position in the premier Pro-stock 301-400cc Open category with a best lap of one minute, 50.854 seconds.

Qualifying for P2 was championship leader, Chennai’s Rajiv Sethu who clocked a best of 01:51.076 despite nursing a healing left shoulder that was dislocated following a crash in the previous round. Completing the front row was Hyderabad’s Rahil Pillarisetty with a hot lap of 01:51.823.