Kuala Lumpur, May 20 (IANS) Two-time JK Kart Open champion Nayan Chatterjee has ended an eventful weekend at the Asian Rotax Karting Championship’s Round 3 at the Speedway Plus circuit in Subang on a high note by bagging his maiden podium in the Asian Championship.
Driving in the Senior Category, the 17-year-old Indian qualified in eighth position with a time of 44.748 minutes. Heat 1 was a hard fought battle for Chatterjee as he quickly made up positions and finished fifth on Sunday.
In Heat 2, Chatterjee’s efforts seemed to be washed away. Into the tight corner 1 at the start, he was hit by another driver causing him to fall down the order. He eventually made a few positions and finished 14th which cost him valuable points in deciding his grid position for the pre-final.
The pre-final proved to be even worse for Chatterjee. He started ninth on the grid, but was once again involved in a racing incident. The crash resulted in a bent chassis. Improper handling thereafter meant the Indian fell right down the order and eventually finished 16th.
In the finals, Chatterjee drove like a man possessed. He quickly made up positions in the first few laps and then started overtaking other racers on almost every lap.
As he crossed the finish line, he had brilliantly managed to work his way up to fourth place and bag a trophy along with podium position.
Chatterjee, who also clocked the second fastest lap-time of the race, said: “It was very disappointing in the pre-finals. I knew I had the pace, but a bent kart was disastrous for me after the incident.
“It was a lot of fun making up so many positions in the finals, but I had to stay focused; a big thank you to all those who have supported me.”