Samuel Jacob And Ruthuparna Vivek Crowned 'King Of Hills' In Indian National Hill Climb Championship

Samuel Jacob and Ruthuparna Vivek crowned 'King of Hills' in Indian National Hill Climb Championship (Image Source: IANS)

Indian National Hill Climb Championship: Ruthuparna Vivek and Samuel Jacob won the cars and bikes category respectively in Round 3 of the MSCK fmsci Indian National Hill Climb Championship at Hampi Hills in Karnataka on Monday.

The National qualifier organised by Motorsports Academy of Vijayanagar attracted a record 113 entries and was supported by the Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports and Karnataka Tourism.

Chikmagalur’s 26-year-old Ruthuparna, a regular on the Indian National Rally Championship circuit, was in sublime form across categories, topping the 1151–1450cc Pro-Stock Petrol class with a best time of 2:20.818 and later stamping his authority again in the Unrestricted category with a blistering 2:07.623 in her Mercedes AMG for a double win.

Bijapur off-roader Kavita Desai, who won many trophies in the last few years, capped a fine weekend by taking the Ladies class wins in both two-wheelers and four-wheelers.

In the two-wheelers, Udupi’s Samuel Jacob, a multiple national champion, was equally commanding, winning the premier Unrestricted class with an impressive 2:03.529, showcasing precision and aggression on the technical Hampi ascent of 2.5km with five hairpin bends.

In the two-wheelers, Darpan Darshan enjoyed a productive outing with victories in the Group B 4S up to 165cc and the 166cc to 260cc classes, while Madhu Sudhan claimed honours in the Group B 4S 261cc and above category.

Suhail Ahmed added to his tally by winning the Group B Indian Open 4S class, and Vikas M topped the Indian Open 2S segment. In the cars, Ashwin Pugalagiri emerged on top in the 1451–1650cc Pro-Stock Petrol class, while Chetan delivered a strong double by winning both the 1651–2050cc Pro-Stock Petrol and the Indian Open categories.

Race Directors Santosh H M and Rohit Gowda from Motorsports Academy of Vijayanagara said: “record entries reflect the growing popularity of hill climb motorsport in India and as the first event set a strong tone for the 2026 racing season.” The winners were felicitated by Deputy Director of Tourism Prabhulinga.

Provisional Final Results:

Class 1: Group B 4S up to 165cc: 1. Darpan Darshan, 02:28.839; 2. Darshan D 02:40.345;

Class 2: Group B 4S 166cc to 260cc: 1. Darpan Darshan 02:18.547; 2. Trinesh V 02:22.941; 3. Aditya Venkata Dutt 02:24.926;

Class 3: Group B 4S 261cc & Above: 1. Madhu Sudhan 02:09.396; 2. Suhail Ahmed 02:09.774; 3. Chetan B Hosatti 02:17.143;

Class 5: Group B Indian Open 4S: 1. Suhail Ahmed 02:11.533; 2. Darpan Darshan 02:18.259; 3. Chetan B Hosatti 02:19.235;

Class 6 Group B Indian Open 2S: 1. Vikas M – 02:26.757; 2. Harsha 02:31.720;

Class 7 Unrestricted: 1. Samuel Jacob 02:03.529; 2. Suhail Ahmed 02:08.132; 3. Vishwas SD 02:15.228;

Class 8 Ladies: Kavita Desai 03:40.150;

Class 9: Foreign Open: 1. Samuel Jacob 02:04.563; 2. Viswas 02:10.260; 3. Suhail Ahmed 02:12.535;

Class 10: Royal Enfield Open: 1. Suhail Ahmed 02:10.065; 2. Vishwas SD 02:12.610;

4Wheeler classes:

Class 1: Up to 1150cc Pro-Stock Petrol: 1. Sawan Satyanarayan 02:36.519; 2. Lohit JM 02:48.940;

Class 2: 1151 to 1450cc Pro-Stock Petrol: 1. Ruthuparna Vivek 02:20.818; 2. Paramesh H 02:21.624; 3. Vijesh Kumar Nair 02:44.369;

Class 3: 1451 to 1650cc Pro-Stock Petrol: 1. Ashwin Pugalagiri 02:11.909; 2. Vijesh Kumar Nair 02:46.031; 3. Lalita Gowda 03:21.380;

Class 4: 1651 to 2050cc Pro-Stock Petrol: 1. Chetan 02:23.935; 2. Arvind Dheerendra 02:28.526;

Class 5: 4W Indian Open: 1. Chetan 02:05.586; 2. Ashwin Pugalagiri 02:07.460; 3. Ruthu Parna Vivel 02:07.629;

Class 4: 1651 to 2050cc Pro-Stock Petrol: 1. Chetan 02:23.935; 2. Arvind Dheerendra 02:28.526;

Class 8 – 4W Ladies: 1. Kavita Desai 02:52.616; 2. Akkshatha Kadlur 02:57.535; 3. Divya 02:58.136;

Article Source: IANS