Key Points

Part of the 28th JK Tyre Racing Championship, the weekend saw exciting races in its two categories as Anish Shetty and Bhuvan Bonu came out all guns blazing in Round 1, which concluded over the weekend.

Anish dominated the Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup. To win a hat-trick of races spread over Saturday and Sunday was a sight to watch. If competition in the two-wheeler category was made to look woefully one-sided by Anish, born in Hubli and settled in Bengaluru, he had slogged hard for it. These bikes, weighing close to 200 kg, are not easy to tease on the track. Anish showcased fitness, form, and above all, speed to catch the attention of one and all. The weather pattern over the two days was different.

Saturday was sunny and bright, and Anish showed that the rich field belonged to him. He has been racing bikes since age 15. Now, at 30, he is the seasoned master who is reaping the rewards for working hard and pushing his bike.

The GT Cup grid is a mix between the seasoned riders and novices who have emerged from a trial of sorts from the street to the circuit.

Perhaps, one more boy who could match Anish in terms of challenge was Kayan Zubin Patel from Mumbai. Kayan was not as fast as Anish, but the third race of the weekend saw defending champion Navaneeth Kumar from the previous season bouncing back to second place.

Overall, in the standings, Anish Shetty is way ahead with 30 points. Kayan is at 19 points and Navaneeth at 12 points. "It has been a fruitful weekend, and all the hard work paid off," said Anish Shetty.

For the young drivers who were also part of the grid as novices, watching Anish was a learning experience. He showcased speed and style with his bike. Among the amateurs, Bryan Nicholas from Pondicherry was just too good as he won all three races (36 points). Behind him was Johring Warisa (27 points) from Umrangso. Kabir Sahoch from Vadodara was third in overall standing with 18 points.

In the JK Tyre Novice Cup, Bhuvan Bonu was too fast for the rest of the field. The 15-year-old from Bengaluru, who trains in the United States of America, was pushing his car effortlessly. At some stages, it looked as if he was in a different car altogether. Indeed, to be getting the racing juices flowing all through two days, Bonu was confident. "I kept getting better and better. I enjoyed the weekend," said the lad.

As for the rest of the field, which included Ojas Surve and Abhijit Vadavalli, it was more of watching Bonu tease his car on two consecutive days. He did not want to say much about how fast his car was in an incident-filled last race on Sunday.

Provisional Race results:

Race 1:Professionals: Anish Shetty: 13:46.628Kayan Zubin Patel: 13:52. 702Ashish Patel: 14:01.852

Amateurs:Bryan Nicholas: 14:08.432Johring Warisa: 14:08.629Saran Kumar: 14:25.828

Race 2: Professionals:Anish Shetty: 13:39.635Kayan Zubin Patel: 13:42.676Navaneeth Kumar: 13:49.416

Amateurs:Bryan Nicholas: 14:02.450Johring Warisa: 14:07.477Kabir Sahoch: 14:15.237

Race 3: Professionals:Anish Shetty: 13:28.442Navaneeth Kumar: 13:31.330Kayan Zubin Patel: 13:31.493

Amateurs:Bryan Nicholas: 13.44.805Johring Warisa: 13.48.084Saran Kumar: 14.07.926

JK TYRE NOVICE CUP:Race 1Bhuvan Bonu (Team MSport):13:59.719Abhijit Vadavalli (Team Momentum): 14:10.391Ojas Surve (Team DTS Racing): 14:26.937 Race 2:Bhuvan Bonu (Team MSport):14:14.815Ojas Surve (Team DTS Racing): 14:27.489Parthik Ashok (Team DTS Racing): 14.28.154

Race 3:Bhuvan Bonu (Team MSport):14:54.313Parthik Ashok (Team DTS Racing): 15:16.183Lokithingeash Ravi (Team DTS Racing): 15:16.263.

- ANI