Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm 2016, Day 2: Abhishek Mishra and CS Santosh continues to lead

After thrilling the crowds in Hanumanpur district in Rajasthan, the 14^th edition of the Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm rally moved to the City of Warriors, Bikaner, for an equally engrossing Leg 2. . Located in the heart of the Thar Desert, Bikaner played host to was one of the longest routes in the rally, covering a total distance of approx. 160 kms, starting from Badrasar.

As with Leg 1, Abhishek Mishra from Jaipur and his navigator PV Srinivas Murthi continued to reign supreme as they lead the category by clocking 04:34:32 Hrs. Manali man Suresh Rana and his navigator Ashwin Naik in their Grand Vitara, continue to trail at the second position by clocking in 04:50:18  Hrs, trying hard for the first place. Amanpreet Ahluwalia and Virender Kashyap are at the third position by clocking 05:05:00 Hrs in their Maruti Gypsy.

Leg 2 of Extreme category had one competitive stage of approx. 156 Kms of length between Bhadrasar and Dhaia. The rocky plateau and a tough desert terrain are taking a toll on the vehicles and an army of service team is working at a war speed to keep the machines at their prime performance.

In the XTreme bike category, rallyist C.S Santosh continues to lead at 04:14:00 Hrs followed by Aravind KP at 04:36:00 Hrs who moved a rank higher after beating Jess David by a margin of 2 mins.

The third category in the Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm 2016 is the NDure category, where motorists traveled the same distance as XTreme teams but in the Time Speed Distance format. Still maintaining the lead is SK Ajgar Ali and his navigator MK Mohammed Musthafa with a day end penalty of 00:01:03 Hrs. Jagmeet Gill and Chandan Sen with day end penalty of 00:04:24 Hrs has now moved to second position, while Vishnu Singh and Adithya Anthony made it to the top three with a day end penalty of 00:06:02 Hrs .

In the Xplore category, Sachin Singh with M Prakash continued to hold the first place on day 1, followed by Karthick Maruthi and S.Shankar Anand, while Pratap and his navigator T Nagarajan at the third position.

From Bikaner, the 14^th edition of the Maruti Suzuki Desert Rally will head for the sand dunes of Jaisalmer where the going is expected to get even tougher amidst the shifting sand dunes.

RESULTS AFTER LEG X:

XTreme Cars  -

1.       Abhishek Mishra & PV Srinivas Murthi - 04:34:32 Hrs

2.       Suresh Rana & Ashwin Naik - 04:50:18  Hrs

3.       Manpreet Ahluwalia & Virender Kashyap -   05:05:00 Hrs

Moto Quad - End of Leg X

1.       C.S Santosh -  04:14:00 Hrs

2.       Aravind KP -  04:36:00 Hrs

3.       Jess David – 04:38:00 Hrs

NDure Cars – End of Leg X

1.       SK Ajgar Ali & MK Mohammed Musthafa -  00:01:03 Hrs

2.       Jagmeet Gill & Chandan Sen - 00:04:24 Hrs

3.       Vishnu Singh & Adithya Anthony 0:06;02 Hrs

Xplore Cars – End of Leg X

1.       Sachin Singh & M Prakash – 00:03:00

2.       Karthick Maruthi & S.Shankar Anand – 00:03:31

3.       Pratap & T Nagarajan – 00:04:11