Muzaffar Ali cynosure of all eyes in Gulf Cup Dirt Track Racing Finals

Bhopal: Muzaffar Ali of Bhopal was cynosure of all eyes as displaying his spectacular skills and stamina he finished on top in all the four races he participated in the Gulf Cup ‘Clash of the Titans’ in Bhopal here on Sunday to emerge the undisputed king of dirt track motorcycle racing in India. He won the maximum races in the event to be richer by Rs. 35,000/- and certainly proved himself on the National motor sports scenario and will be the one to watch out for in events to follow.

Following closely Muzaffar was Bangalore's Pramod Joshua who came up with a brilliant display to reach the finish line first in the two races he participated in the Gulf Cup.

If the experienced riders, like Joshua, Pradeep, Muzaffar Ali and Nataraj dazzled, young novice Murthy R. of Bangalore was equally good as he won Novice championship for bikes up to 165cc 4-strokes and up to 130cc-4 strokes.

A. Anand of Coimbatore came first in Novice Class Group C championship for bikes up to 165cc 2-strokes and was placed second in up to 165cc-4 strokes.

Muzaffar Ali of Bhopal and Joshua & H K Pradeep from Bangalore, who showed the class champions are made of in the previous legs of the dirt track motorcycle racing held in Jaipur, Hyderabad and Nashik, again proved a distinct class above the field featuring only the top riders from the previous rounds in this final leg.

The event was organized by Sportscraft, Mumbai, in association with Bhopal Automobile Sports Club at the BHEL Dussehra ground, Govindpura.

Muzaffar Ali, a motorcycle mechanic by profession having studied up till Std. XII only, won the Private Expert Class Group B up to 260cc 2 & 4 strokes, with Firoz Khan of Aurangabad and Jes David of Jaipur coming in second and third place respectively. Muzaffar received Rs. 28,000/- while Firoz and Jes got Rs. 20,000/- and 15,000/- respectively.

The three events in which Muzaffar won hands down were Scooters - Group C - up to 110cc 2 & 4 strokes (Prize money Rs. 2000/-); Local Class - Group C - Motorcycles up to 165cc - 4 strokes (Prize money Rs. 2500/-) and Local Class - Group C - Motorcycles up to 165cc - 2 strokes (Prize money Rs. 2500/-).

Talking to this Correspondent Muzaffar said he had passion for motorcycle racing since childhood and his ideal has been Syed Ehtesham, an international motorcycle racing champion who has now settled in Dubai. He hopes to participate in international events in future and would ride a foreign motorcycle in 260cc category next year. He was champion in the Novice Class in 2007.

Meanwhile, besides winning the Indian Expert Class Group A Foreign Motorcycles up to 260 cc, Joshua also won the Indian Expert Class Group B up to 260cc 2 & 4 strokes to garner total amount of prize money Rs. 54,000/-. Like in all the previous rounds, the Bangalore rider, astride a TVS was a clear winner in the Indian Expert class Group A for foreign motorcycle despite being challenged all the way by Pradeep, who finished second, and R. Nataraj, who was placed third.

Joshua was always under pressure as he went through the motions on the serpentine course but, to his credit, did well to strike the perfect balance on the sharp bends and stay ahead of the rest of the field and come out trumps.

If his first race was rather easy, his second outing in the Indian Expert Class Group B was a close affair. Sudeep Kotegar, who ran him close in the previous rounds, tailed him right through, but again had to settle for second best. Vishal Barguje took third place.

Much was anticipated from this Clash of the Titans, and none disappointed as they went through the motions on a specially-laid out course at high speeds, their superbly prepared bike raising a dust storm all over.

The course laid out by organizers Sportscraft was really tough. In addition to the sharp bends there was also loose gravel and water-logged areas which made riding a dicey proposition, but all riders displayed excellent skills to come through this test of man and machine in flying colors.

Maninder Singh won the Private Expert Class for foreign motorcycles 260cc 2 & 4 stroke, beating back a strong challenge from Vineeth Kurup and Jatin Jain, who finished second and third respectively.

While the goodly crowd that turned up was appreciative of the event, the riders too were all praise for Sportscraft’s conduct of the Gulf Cup which saw four legs being held at different venues and culminating with the “Clash of the Titans” here in Bhopal. They all thanked both Gulf Oil and Sportscraft for giving motorcycle riders an opportunity to parade their skills and expressed hope that the event will be held next year too.

Shrikant Karani, Chairman Organising Committee and founder member of Sportscraft, appeared pleased as punch at the successful completion of the event.

(pervezbari@eth.net)

Home | Top of the Page

  Comment on this article