Chennai, India, October 30, 2026: Pune’s Sarthak Chavan made his 20th birthday memorable by claiming pole position with a new lap record in the premier Super Sport 301-400cc Open category at the third round of the MRF Indian National Racing Challenge 2W 2026 at the Madras International Circuit in Chennai on Friday.

The PETRONAS TVS Racing rider clocked an impressive 1:47.251 during qualifying, bettering the previous best of 1:47.291 set earlier in the day by his team-mate Chiranth Vishwanath during free practice.

Chavan, who leads the championship standings after winning three of the four races held so far, continued his strong form by heading a PETRONAS TVS Racing 1-2 in qualifying. Veteran KY Ahmed secured second position, while Thiruvallur’s Mohamed Mikail of Madrabbit Racing qualified third.

However, Chiranth Vishwanath will start Saturday’s Race 1 from eighth on the grid following a penalty for an infringement during qualifying.

Ann Jennifer, Mathana Kumar secure pole positions

In the other categories, Chennai’s Ann Jennifer of Motul Sparks Racing secured pole position in the Super Stock 165cc Intermediate class following a late improvement in her qualifying session.

Veteran Mathana Kumar, returning to competitive racing after an extended break, topped qualifying in the Super Stock 301-400cc Open category.

Kavicholaiarasan of Trichy-based Speed Up Racing secured pole position in the Stock 301-400cc Novice category, while Vijayawada’s Akarsh Jangam of MAI Racing was the fastest qualifier in the Stock 165cc Novice class.

Hyderabad’s Rajender Beedani of Maxperience Racing also secured pole position in the Pro-Stock 200cc category and will lead the field into Saturday’s race.

PETRONAS TVS One-Make Championship qualifying

In the PETRONAS TVS One-Make Championship, Rajender Beedani continued his strong form in the Expert category for the Apache RR 310, claiming pole position as expected.

The championship points leader will start ahead of Coimbatore’s R Hari Haran, who qualified second, and Bengaluru’s AS James in third.

In the Women’s category, Bengaluru’s Poojitha Anil Kumar emerged as the quickest rider in qualifying to secure pole position for Saturday’s race.

With Sarthak Chavan carrying strong championship momentum into the weekend, Saturday’s races at the Madras International Circuit promise plenty of action as competitors look to strengthen their positions in the 2026 MRF Indian National Racing Challenge 2W championship.