Madesh Answers Back, Vijayaraj Makes It Nine as MRF Racing Returns to Chennai

The MRF Indian National Racing Challenge 4W reached its third round in Chennai with a championship leader who had won five races in succession and a field of young drivers ready to make the weekend theirs. Sunday did not follow the script. Ishaan Madesh and Krishay Gutte shared the MRF Formula 2000 victories, Saishiva Sankaran was pushed down the order by a penalty, and Viswas Vijayaraj left with a perfect record in the Formula LGB 1300 Open class: nine wins from nine starts.

The meeting ran at Madras International Circuit on 10 and 11 October, with the Sunday programme closing Round 3. The venue correction matters. This was the Chennai circuit at Irungattukottai, not Kari Motor Speedway in Coimbatore. Nine races brought five classes onto the programme and gave the championship a proper final-day rhythm, with several title leaders facing a direct test of their early-season advantage.

Madesh and Gutte split Formula 2000 honours

Gutte claimed Race 2, holding off Madesh for his first victory of the season in the premier MRF Formula 2000 category. Madesh came back in the next race and took the win in eight laps. Their results gave the weekend a balanced headline, though the most consequential moment for the standings came earlier. Sankaran, who had entered the round as the championship leader after five straight victories, received a five-second penalty following contact with Madesh. The penalty moved him from first to third in Sunday’s opening race.

Sankaran left Chennai without a win from the weekend’s three races, but still at the top of the points table. That distinction is important in a season where consistency may prove more valuable than a single spectacular Sunday. A difficult round can still be a good championship weekend if the points damage is contained. The next phase will show whether his early lead can absorb the response from Madesh and the confidence Gutte gained from his first win.

A milestone for Bejoy, another home win for Gyan

MRF Formula 1600 produced two different winners as well. Delhi’s Shivansh Bejoy earned his maiden victory in the category in Race 2, ahead of Evan Shrawan and Chennai’s Gyan S. Gyan answered with the Race 3 win, with Bhuvan Bonu second and Bejoy third. Two winners in two races made the class one of the weekend’s best reminders that promising young drivers do not always arrive in a neat order.

For Bejoy, the first win gives the season a marker he can build on. For Gyan, taking the last race at his home circuit adds another result to a campaign in which he has already shown front-running speed. Bonu, meanwhile, stayed close enough to keep himself in the conversation. The category’s value is exactly there: teenagers can race wheel to wheel, learn how to protect a line under pressure and turn good pace into a body of results.

Nine wins, and no sign of easing off

Viswas Vijayaraj was the weekend’s most consistent performer. Racing for DTS Racing in Formula LGB 1300 Open, the 27-year-old from Nellore completed a third consecutive triple crown, winning all three races at the circuit and carrying his unbeaten run to nine. Race 2 was close, with Diljith TS only 0.450 seconds behind. The eight-lap final was tight too, Vijayaraj crossing the line ahead of Vinithkumar by just over half a second.

A winning streak can become a number on a graphic, but nine races in a row takes more than speed. Reverse grids, traffic, starts and the small changes in grip across a weekend all put a driver back into the same question: can the next race be managed as well as the previous one? Vijayaraj’s answer has been yes every time. His own comment after the round, looking ahead to the three-month break and a renewed fitness programme, had the calm of someone who knows the work is not finished.

New faces find their footing

The Junior class offered its own lift. Sixteen-year-old Augustine Boby of Noida made his debut with a double victory for DTS Racing. Kaveen Rajapaksa, the Sri Lankan rider, protected his position at the top of the standings with three podium finishes. A debutant can have a fast weekend and still leave with plenty to learn. Rajapaksa’s results showed the other side of the contest: collect the points while the new challenger makes the headlines.

Diljith TS completed a double in Super Stock, while Aakash Vivek won two of the MRF Saloons races. Alisha Abdulla interrupted the sweep in Race 2, returning to competition after five years away. That win gave the saloon category one of the weekend’s most human stories. Long breaks can make a familiar car feel like a new problem. To come back and win among a field that has not stopped racing is a satisfying way to re-enter the conversation.

The next chapter waits until January

Round 3 closed the 2026 calendar for the 4W challenge, with racing due to resume in January 2027. The pause gives teams time to inspect the cars, review the championship picture and prepare for the remaining meetings. Sankaran still has the points lead in Formula 2000. Vijayaraj has nine consecutive wins to defend. Bejoy has a first Formula 1600 victory to turn into momentum, and Boby has announced himself with a debut double.

The weekend also made the case for keeping the Indian national circuit scene visible between headline events. These grids are where young drivers learn how to race in traffic, where returning competitors can write themselves back into a field and where a local audience can follow familiar names across a full season. Chennai delivered enough movement across the classes to make January feel a long way off.

Provisional Sunday results

In MRF Formula 2000 Race 2, Krishay Gutte won ahead of Ishaan Madesh and Saishiva Sankaran. Madesh won Race 3, with Sankaran second and Gutte third. Shivansh Bejoy and Gyan S shared the Formula 1600 victories. Vijayaraj won all three Formula LGB 1300 Open races. Augustine Boby won both Junior races. Diljith TS took two Super Stock races, while Aakash Vivek and Alisha Abdulla shared the MRF Saloons wins. Classifications were reported as provisional after the event.