Rajini in cruise mode
In the Pro-Stock 301-400cc Open race, pole-sitter Ahamed led a 1-2 finish for his team with Deepak Ravikumar in tow, while Rajini Krishnan (RACR Castrol Power1), starting from P4, struggled with a clutch pedal issue, but used his vast experience to good effect and managed to scramble to third position.
The result means that defending champion Rajini needs just one point from Sunday's concluding race to seal his 11th career national title. Ahamed trails the champion by 25 points with Ravikumar in third, a further eight behind.
Rohan leads Axor 1-2
Earlier, Coimbatore's Rohan Ramesh fashioned a 1-2 for Axor Sparks Racing in the Novice (Stock 165cc) category ahead of Kayan Zubin Patel (Mumbai) with Vignesh Goud, a privateer from Hyderabad in third.
Hubballi's Sarvesh Balappa, also of Axor Sparks Racing, came in fourth, but he has effectively clinched the title in this category as he leads by 54 points going into Sunday's Race-2.
Rookie Class
In the Rookie Class of the Petronas Racing One-Make Championship organised by MMSC, Bengaluru's Chiranth Vishwanath posted his ninth win in as many races.
So did Mumbai youngster Raheesh Mudassar Khatri in the Novice (CBR 150) category of the Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup.
Results (all 6 laps unless mentioned)
National Championship
Pro-Stock 301-400cc Open (Race-1):
1. KY Ahamed (Chennai, Petronas TVS Racing) (11min, 20.954secs )
2. Deepak Ravikumar (Chennai, Petronas TVS Racing) (11:21.029)
3. Rajini Krishnan (Chennai, RACR Castrol Power1 Ultimate) (11:22.050).
Pro-Stock 165cc Open (Race-1):
1. Jagan Kumar (Chennai, Petronas TVS Racing) (11:50.902)
2. Rajiv Sethu (Chennai, Idemitsu Honda SK69 Racing) (11:51.067)
3. Mathana Kumar (Tiruchirapalli, Pacer Yamaha) (11:51.308).
Novice (Stock 165cc, Race-1):
1. Rohan Ramesh (Coimbatore, Axor Sparks Racing) (13:00.141)
2. Kayan Zubin Patel (Mumbai, Axor Sparks Racing) (13:02.912)
3. P Vignesh Goud (Hyderabad, Pvt.) (13:04.091).
Support race (Stock 301-400cc, Novice):
1. Ashwin R (Race Abilities) (12:31.762)
2. Naresh Shobha Kaname (Pvt) (12:37.897)
3. Jayanth Prathipati (Pvt) (12:39.376).
Qualifying (best lap, top 3): Girls (Stock 165cc):
1. Ann Jennifer (Chennai, Alpha Racing) (02:08.446) 2. Jagruti Penkar (Mumbai, Axor Sparks Racing) (02:08.399)
3. Ryhana Bee (Chennai, Pacer Yamaha) (02:09.858).
Petronas TVS One-Make Championship: Girls (Apache RTR 200) 5 laps:
1. Nithila Das (Bengaluru) (10:59.765)
2. Ananya Awasthi (Chennai) (11:22.981)
3. Aditi Krishnan (Bengaluru) (11:33.456).
Rookie (Apache RTR 200, Race-1):
1. Chiranth Vishwanath (Bengaluru) (12:46.968)
2. Jinendra K Sangave (Kolhapur) (12:56.733)
3. Abdul Basim RS (Chennai) (13:15.111).
Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup: NSF 250 Open (Race-1):
1. Sarthak Shrikant Chavan (Pune) (11:15.886)
2. Mohsin Paramban (Malappuram) (11:16.828)
3. Shyam Sundar (Chennai) (11:17.075).
Novice (CBR 150, Race-1):
1. Raheesh Mudassar Khatri (Mumbai) (12:58.554)
2. Harshith V Bogar (Bengaluru) (13:06.690)
3. Siddesh Sawant (Kolhapur) (13:06.845).
Support Race - Honda Hornet 2.0:
1. G Balaji (Chennai) 13:37.031)
2. Kayan Zubin Patel (Mumbai) (13:46.308)
3. T Ramakrishnana (Valliyor) (13:46.649).