MRF INRC 4W 2026: Ishaan Madesh Ends Saishiva Sanakran’s Winning Streak at Madras International Circuit

Pics: Pramod Mani

Chennai, India, September 27, 2026: Bengaluru’s Ishaan Madesh returned to winning form in the MRF Formula 2000 class as the second round of the MRF Indian National Racing Challenge 4W 2026 concluded at the Madras International Circuit on Sunday.

Ishaan, the reigning Formula 2000 champion, missed the opening round of the season and had limited seat time ahead of the second round. After finishing second and third in the opening two races of the weekend, he came back strongly in Race 3 to claim his first victory of the 2026 season.

His win also brought an end to Pune teenager Saishiva Sanakran’s run of five consecutive victories across the opening two rounds. Saishiva had won Race 1 on Saturday and Race 2 on Sunday before Ishaan took control in the final race.

Starting alongside Saishiva, Ishaan made a decisive move at Turn 1, passing the pole-sitter around the outside. Running on new tyres, the Bengaluru driver had greater grip and pace and subsequently pulled clear of the field to secure victory.

“Yes, I salvaged my weekend with this win. I went out on new tyres which gave me better grip than the others who were on old tyres. So, I could push and take the lead at Turn-1, passing Saishiva, the pole-sitter, on the outside. Thereafter, I had the pace to extend the lead for this win,” Ishaan said.

“I came here on Saturday without enough seat time, so, I am happy with my performance in the last race,” he added.

Bhuvan Bonu dominates MRF Formula 1600

In the MRF Formula 1600 category, Visakhapatnam’s Bhuvan Bonu enjoyed a strong weekend, winning two of the three races. He finished second in the remaining race behind Chennai’s Gyan S.

Bhuvan’s double victory underlined his pace across the second round, while Gyan prevented a clean sweep by taking the top step in the other race.

Viswas Vijayaraj completes Formula LGB 1300 clean sweep

Nellore’s Viswas Vijayaraj produced one of the most dominant performances of the weekend in the Formula LGB 1300 (Open) category.

Representing DTS Racing, Viswas won all three races to spearhead his team’s strong showing in the class.

The Junior section also produced a notable international result. Bengaluru’s Shatveer Shetty won Race 2, while Sri Lankan drivers Aadam Junaid, Kaveen Diyyan Rajapksa and Saurika Livindu completed a podium sweep for Colombo-based Momentum Motorsports in Race 3.

Alisha Abdulla returns with podium double

Chennai’s Alisha Abdulla made a competitive return to racing after a five-year break following marriage and motherhood, securing two podium finishes in the MRF Saloons (Toyota Etios) category, including a victory on track.

However, her victory was subsequently overturned following a disqualification for an infringement. Hemachandran R of Puducherry, who had won the previous race, was therefore promoted to first place to complete a double.

Coimbatore’s S Gokula Rathinam had won the opening race of the weekend.

Alisha’s return was nevertheless one of the highlights of the second round, with the former racer immediately demonstrating competitive pace after her extended absence from the sport.

Pratik Sonawane takes two Volkswagen Polo Cup wins

In the Volkswagen Polo Cup, Mumbai’s Pratik Sonawane emerged as the leading driver of the weekend, winning two of the three races.

Noida’s Aman Nagdev claimed victory in the remaining race to prevent a clean sweep for Sonawane.

Diljith TS and Lal Kattikulam Bharathan share Super Stock wins

The Super Stock category saw Thrissur’s Diljith TS and his DTS Racing team-mate Lal Kattikulam Bharathan take one victory each.

The second round of the MRF Indian National Racing Challenge 4W 2026 therefore produced a varied set of winners across the championship’s different categories, with Ishaan Madesh’s return to the top step in Formula 2000 and Viswas Vijayaraj’s three-race clean sweep among the weekend’s standout performances.

The results (Final, all 8 laps unless mentioned):

MRF F2000 (Race-2, 10 laps): 1. Saishiva Sankaran (Pune) (16:06.547); 2. Ishaan Madesh (Bengaluru) (16:13.734); 3. Swarnav Das (Pune) (16:23.293). Race-3: 1. Ishaan Madesh (Bengaluru) (12:54.597); 2. Saishiva Sankaran (Pune) (13:03.529); 3. Krishay Gutte (Mumbai) (13:06.041).

MRF F1600 (Race-2, 10 laps): 1. Gyan S (Chennai) (17:35.235); 2. Bhuvan Bonu (Visakhapatnam) (17:35.549); 3. Shivansh Bejoy (New Delhi) (17:39.506). Race-3: 1. Bhuvan Bonu (Visakhapatnam) (13:57.878); 2. Gyan S (Chennai) (14:10.759); 3. Shivansh Bejoy (New Delhi) (14:17.501).

Formula LGB 1300 (Race-2, 10 laps) (Open): 1. Viswas Vijayaraj (Nellore, DTS Racing) (18:56.086); 2. Liron Jaden Samuels (Tirunelveli, DTS Racing) (18:57.614); 3. Vinith Kumar (Tirupur, DTS Racing) (18:58.572). Race-3 (6 laps): 1. Viswas Vijayaraj (Nellore, DTS Racing) (11:37.984); 2. Liron Jaden Samuels (Tirunelveli, DTS Racing) (11:38.576); 3. Dhruvh Goswami (Bengaluru, Meco Racing) (11:40.965).

Junior (Race-2, 10 laps): 1. Shatveer Shetty (Bengaluru, Meco Racing) (19:21.666); 2. Aadam Junaid (Colombo, Momentum Motorsports) (19:36.677); 3. Dhrihan Dagha (Mumbai, Meco Racing) (19:39.313). Race-3 (6 laps): 1. Aadam Junaid (Colombo, Momentum Motorsports) (11:51.860); 2. Kaveen Diyyan Rajapksa (Colombo, Momentum Motorsports) (11:57.336); 3. Saurika Livindu (Colombo, Momentum Motorsports) (12:08.053).

Super Stock (Race-1): 1. Diljith TS (Thrissur, DTS Racing) (16:33.904); 2. Lal Kattikulam Bharathan (Thrissur, DTS Racing) (16:42.711); 3. Deepa S John (Thiruvananthapuram, DTS Racing) (16:46.485). Race-2 (10 laps): 1. Lal Kattikulam Bharathan (20:55.028); 2. Diljith TS (20:55.156); 3. Deepa S John (21:16.563).

Volkswagen Polo Cup (Race-1): 1. Pratik Sonawane (Mumbai) (15:37.630); 2. Aman Nagdev (Noida) (15:41.744); 3. Neel Shah (Mumbai) (15:42.456). Race-2 (10 laps): 1. Aman Nagdev (Noida) (19:37.328); 2. Neel Shah (Mumbai) (19:39.604); 3. Pratik Sonawane (Mumbai) (19:41.239). Race-3: 1. Pratik Sonawane (Mumbai) (15:35.740); 2. Aman Nagdev (15:37.678); 3. Neel Shah (15:37.901).

MRF Saloons (Toyota Etios) Race-1: 1. S Gokula Rathinam (Coimbatore) (17:17.519); 2. Hemachandran R (Puducherry) (17:22.108); 3. Aakash Vivek (Chennai) (17:26.603). Race-2 (10 laps): 1. S Gokula Rathinam (Coimbatore) (21:36.324); 2. Alisha Abdulla (Chennai) (21:38.817); 3. Hemachandran R (Puducherry) (21:39.781). Race-3: 1. Hemachandran R (Puducherry) (17:19.350); 2. Aakash Vivek (Chennai) (17:19.676); 3. S. Gokula Rathinam (Coimbatore) (17:22.886).