0.032 seconds: Augustine Boby’s last-lap skirmish stuns Shetty

COIMBATORE: Augustine Boby edged past his competition Shatveer Shetty by just 0.032 seconds in the F1300 Novice Cup, in what was a thrilling recap of Round 2 of the CTR-JK Tyre FMSCI Indian National Car Racing Championship 2026 here on Saturday.

DTS Racing's Boby edged Meco Racing's Shetty after a late safety-car restart set up a frantic finish. Pranav Ramasamy grabbed the early lead, but Boby worked his way to the front from fifth on the grid. Shetty, who had slipped down the order from pole, recovered before passing Ramasamy on the inside in the closing stages to take second. Ramasamy finished third, while Boby set the fastest lap of 1:16.953.

Elsewhere, Dark Don Racing's Mehul Agarwal snatched victory from teammate Arya Singh by just 0.237 seconds with a late overtake in a closely fought 15-lap race. Agarwal eventually overtook Singh with two laps remaining, while Goswami recovered third ahead of Raghul Rangasamy. Patnaik finished fifth overall and first among the Rookies, ahead of Ashok Lal and Vikram Moodigere. Agarwal also set the fastest lap of 1:16.944.

Arka Motorsports’ Arjun Narendran won the Indian Super Touring Cars race by 7.288 seconds after holding off an early challenge from Arjun Balu, while Team N1 Intervalve’s Biren Pithawalla snatched second from Balu in the closing moments. Narendran also set the fastest lap of 1:13.485. In the Indian Touring Cars, Team Performance Racing’s Balaprasath A won ahead of Ramcharan Chandran and Vidyaprakash Damodaran.

Mumbai's Pratik Sonawane completed a double in the Gentleman class with two pole-to-flag victories. In the opening race, Sonawane built an early lead as Rookie rivals Kaveen Rajapaksa and Aadam Junaid fought for second overall. Action resumes on Sunday at the Kari Motor Speedway for the final day of Round 2, as early winners look to build on their performances and rivals fight back.