A first & second on the day kept honors even at the top of the championship table
With the championship now warming up, Round 9 and 10 of the series were expected to be a battle, and the Indian rider onboard his Yamaha R6, did not disappoint.
After a good practice session, Surya (Raja) was all set to make his return into the championship after a series of unfortunate events in the previous 4 races.
He made is intentions for the day clear by scoring his first career pole position with a time of 1’48.161. But, the Indian flyer had more action to offer in the races to come.
Race 1 saw Surya get off to a bad start from the pole and was 3rd into turn one. A bad start was later accompanied by a very close call on the same lap which cost Surya a couple of seconds. But, the trouble was far from over for the Indian who had gear shifter problems which were later resolved.
Never the less, he rode around the problems to pull back the 4 second gap, and eventually finished in 2nd place. Not only was he just 0.599 seconds behind the leader but also clocked the fastest lap of the race with a 1’47.181
Surya said: “I didn’t lose much time with the bad start, but I very nearly came off on turn five, and by the time I got myself back on, I had lost time on the leader, and with the gear issues there was a limit to how much I could push. But I’m happy with my performance, and having the quickest lap on my name gives me the extra boost I need for race two”
Race 2: was a duel sprint for 9 laps. The Indian rider put in a fantastic performance where he not only managed to close in from a big gap, but also made a pass on the leader, built a gap, and eventually took the checkered flag in 1st place. Yet again, the Indian put in a blistering lap of 1’46.924 to set the fastest lap of race 2 also.
Surya took a fine win in the second race after a 9 lap battle with Tannir
Surya said: “I totally enjoyed this race. There was so much to learn, and so much to prove. It’s a fact that my bike is lacking power, but I’m glad that even though I yet don’t have the complete package, I’m still capable of winning.
As far as the race went, it was very comfortable, I kept calm for three laps initially, just following Tannir around, but he obviously is not slow and was pulling away, so I had to make a move and quick. So I planned it, saw my chance, and made the move then built on it. Unfortunately, on the last lap my gear shifter issues kicked in again, but I had built a good lead, so I was able to use that and win”
So it seemed to be a good day out for Surya Raja. Although caught up with mechanical issues in race one, he bounced back to win in Race two. And with the 1’46.924 lap (which is 0.4seconds off the lap record) the Indian is high on confidence for the upcoming rounds in the UAE sport bike championship and is aiming for more Wins.
