Motorsport
Matthai clocks fastest time, bags triple crown in Autocross Nationals
The 1.2-Km lap saw Matthai clock a time of 1:36.37 seconds and was adjudged as the overall fastest driver.
Philippos Matthai (Source: The Goan)
Delhi's Philippos Matthai, representing Team Speed Sport, recorded the fastest time on way to a triple crown in the second round of the BMC FMSCI Indian National Autocross Championship (INAC) here.
The 1.2-Km lap on the winding dirt-track with a couple of tricky corners saw Matthai clock a time of 1:36.37 seconds and was adjudged as the overall fastest driver.
Three Goans -- Azim Hanchi (1:40.64s), Amey Desai (1:41.06s) and Saamag Kudchadkar (1:41.81s) -- finished behind Matthai. The eight INAC classes will see the top-five racers from each class, in every round, qualify for the grand finale, where they will battle it out for Indian National Autocross Champions 2023 crown in December this year.
Matthai, a multiple-time national champion, won Autocross titles in 2019 and 2022, and has been racing for the last 22 years, and is a well-known racer in the popular longer-format Indian National Rally Championship (INRC). Along with the INRC sub-class title, he now has three national championship trophies.
"Dirt track racing is relatively low-cost and people can witness the entire race from a vantage point and gives the drivers a thrill, to provide seat-edged excitement to the spectators," said Matthai. Saamag Kudchadkar of Goa became the fastest driver, clocking 1:36.22s in time attack, a non-championship class and also won the INAC3 open class.
