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Dinesh lands a double at Pannala
By M. Shamil Amit
Dinesh Deheragoda came back to the winning post when he landed a double at the Singer Autogard Motor Races at Pannala last Sunday. Though winning the two events he was a disappointed man as he had no one to give him a fight driving his powerful Mitsubishi Evolution VII to lift the Group M and T event for over 1665cc and the Motor Car open event.

Deheragoda said he came prepared and was expecting his arch rivals Pradeep Jayawardena and Aravinda Premadasa would be competing but only to be disappointed. He went on to say that in most of the races he participated this year he was unable to take part at the trials and had the disadvantage of being at the back of the grid nevertheless I had performed well to come in at least to the second spot.

Dinesh will be a tough customer in time to come as he has already brought down the latest Mitsubishi Evolution VIII which he expects to race at the next Pannala Motor Races. The car has to be modified and two mechanics from Australia are due shortly to put the finishing touches. Anyway it was unfortunate that he had no challengers at the Pannala meet.

Dilantha Malagamuwa who as usual comes down specially from Japan where he is based to participate at Pannala. Came down this time with a new Suzuki Cultus which was brought down just a week before the meet was due to take place, he finished a fair third in the Group M & T event and was satisfied as the car was not fully prepared. The race being won by Nilanga Dela in his powerful Austin Mini.

Earlier in the day in the motor cycle events Dilantha tasted his first defeat when Ruwan Pieris created when he rode magnificent trace on his Honda 250cc to score a rare defeat in the Racing Up to 250 cc Motor cycles event.

Taking the lead from the start Ruwan kept the other riders at bay to win in style. In an earlier event Dilantha had to pull out due to engine problems but came back to make amends by winning the motor cycle open event in his Honda MC Pride Special 125cc competing against more powerful machines of 750cc and 1000cc.

The first race for the day which was the Standard Modified for Novices upto 125cc went to Dinesh Manjula Aponsu on a Yamaha TZR. The second event for Standard Modified upto 125cc went to Susil Wanniarachchi also on a Yamaha TZR. Up and coming rider Mohamed Manaf took the third event for Standard Modified 4 Stroke upto 250cc on a Honda CBR. The fifth event for Racing Bikes upto 125cc went to Prabath Peiris on a Honda RS.

Tuan Ossen on a Honda carried away the Super Moto 800cc event. While Dharshana Epaarachchi on a Honda CBR won the Standard Modified 4 Stroke upto 400cc event. The Standard Modified 4 Stroke upto 600cc event went to Maduranga Caldera who rode a Honda CBR. Krishan Dias on a Honda NSR lifted the same category for 250cc and was unfortunate when he met with a mishap and had to be taken to hospital. The Automatic Scooters 50cc event for ladies went to Kalpani Perera on a Honda.

The races were not without confusion as the Group A cars 6-8 Bhp event which was won by veteran Sumanapala Mannapperuma by a huge margin had some doubts. After the race was completed the cars of Mannapperuma, Bri Ponnambalam and Javid Wahab the first three to finish the race were brought in for impounding as they had agreed to clear any doubts over the engines.

Before the race began some drivers had requested for a thorough check on the cars once the race was finished. But an official had informed that no request are entertained but that only a protest could be lodged and organisers had wanted them to protest against each other. Bri stated that at the previous days trials Mannapperuma's vehicle finished extraordinarily fast which was impossible as all are having the same Honda V-Tec and thats why we made a request.

But later in the day the three had agreed to come to an understanding and Mannapperuma was awarded the race. Mannapperuma said I dont want to win by cheating and thats why I agreed to have my car impounded, I am sorry that this incident took place anyway we have no hard feelings he concluded.

The motor car event which got off to a late start began with A.D.S. Ajith Keerthi winning the Mini Minor Saloon upto 1050cc. Followed by the Group 'A' over 14 bhp being taken by Dhammika Peiris on a Ford Laser. Sajad Zuhair also on a Ford Laser won the Group 'A' 12-14 Bhp event. The Group 'A' 10-12 Bhp event went to Sumanapala Mannapperuma giving him a double. Zakie Ismail in his Honda Civic proved too good for others in the Group 'A' 8-10 Bhp event. Zakie has been winning races at both the hill climbs and tarmac tracks.

Purna Perera won the Group 'A' Novices event driving a Ford Laser. The Formula Ford pre -85 and post -85 event were won by S.A. Harsha and Dinesh Jayawardena respectively. A.D.S. Ajith Keerthi too scored a double when he won the Group M & T upto 1050cc event. Nilanga Dela in his powerful Austin KAD won the Group M & T 1350cc event. Lt Col Ravi Mayadunne on a Honda V-Tec continued his winning streak taking the Group M & T 1350cc-1665 event with ease. The event for Special Cars was won by Joachim Johansson.

Hemaka Amarasuriya, Chairman, Singer Sri Lanka who were the main sponsors of the Pannala Motor Races said that this is the second time they have been involved with motor racing, the earlier instance being the Mihintale races which was two years ago. Looking at the beautiful racing track he was optimistic and stressed that we may get involved with motor races more in the future and may field a racing team. It is left to my officials who handled this event to decide on that he concluded.

Upali Dassanayake, the owner of the Pannala racing track fulfilled some of his ambitions like providing insurance coverage, accommodation to the participants, plus having a helicopter for emergency. But he seems hungry to improve and give more facilities to the people involved in the racing fraternity, which he says I will achieve these surely but with patience. At present I am satisfied with the progress I have made so far.

Mahagastota to roar on April 13
The Mahagastota Hill Climb regarded as the oldest hill climb event in Sri Lanka which started on October 28, 1934 will get underway on April 13. This is a much looked forward to event in the festive season among the other motor racing events that take place during the April season.

At the inception the competitors mainly consisted of young european planters of the area. The best timing on this track which was gravel terrain at that time was 69.8 secs returned by Phil Fowke in a Austin while in the motorcycle category the best timing was by Glen Dickson who clocked 64 secs flat.

With several improvements done to the track since then, with a 635 metre track that consists of a slight 'S' bend to the cemetery corner and a notorious Wakefield corner nearing the finish. New records have been established with Suranjith Premadasa in a Formula Ford clocking the fastest in the car category with a timing of 35.84 secs and Shanaka Ambrose clocking a record time in the motorcycle category with a timing of 38.73 secs.

This year the event will be a one day affair with no trials and racing fans would be able to see the cream of the riders and drivers racing at great speed up the steep inclines of the Mahagastota estate. This year the event is being sponsored by Brown & Company Ltd sole agents for Exide batteries and agents for Citroen and Suzuki cars.
They have signed a three year sponsorship with Ceylon Motor Sports Club who have been conducting this event since its inception.-MSA

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