Cavalry Supercross; Ishan & Ashan win major honours

The 6th edition of the Cavalry Supercross,  organised by Sri Lanka Armoured Corps in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Association of Racing Drivers and Riders (SLARDAR) was held at the Iron side camp in Pangolla, Kurunegala yesterday. (02nd July).

With gloomy overcast conditions prevailing through the day instead of the usual scorching heat, enthusiastic fans at the iron side camp were treated to a pleasant weather coupled with some spine tingling racing. With most of Sri Lanka’s leading drivers and riders taking part in the competitions at the 6th Cavalry Supercross, thrilling battles ensued between the competitors much to the delight of the devoted fans of the Island.

Cavalry Supercross kicked started with Group J – MX Motorcycles over 65cc to 85c (2T) and up to 150 cc (4T) under 13 years race, where young Stephen Fernando emerged as the champion. It was followed by the Nissan March event where young Devin Fernando returning from the land down under for a month long vacation, clinched a welcome win having encountered a horrible accident where his car was wrecked at Nuwara Eliya in his last race. Gihan Dheerasekara had a dream debut in gravel racing where he managed to run a controlled race after taking the lead in the first lap and managed to clinch his maiden first place finish in his debut race.

In the Group M STD / MOD Upto 125CC (2T) event which had the most number of entries in the entire race,  young Kavindu Kevitiyagala had a superb run against the veteran Nihal Wijeyratne who is a household name in the event. Both riders were neck to neck against each other until the last hoop but Wijerathne lost control of the bike with the checkered flag in sight. Kevitiyagala did very well to avoid the machine that was flying towards him, to become the winner of the event. M N Perera and Saminda Sandun finished second and third respectively to earn podium finishes.

Imal ’Incredible’ Manchanayake

The jockey sized Imal Manchanayake yet again proved why he was a class apart from the rest in the Group SM – Super Motard including 250cc up to 750cc (4T) & including 125cc up to 500cc mono/twin cylinder event. Motor racing is a sport that is unpredictable and one has to deal with many variables in order to be the first to the checkered flag. Manchanayake has been able to manage all these aspects to perfection and has been unbeaten since last season. Manchanayake won both the super motard races at Foxhill and Colombo Supercross and carried the good form to Cavalry. Manchanayake won the first race quite comfortably, Deshan Solanki securing the second place while Uddika Malavige secured the third place. In the second race of the same event, Imal took the lead from the hole shot traditional Manchanayake fashion.  However in the 6th lap of the 8 lap race, Manchanayake lost his balance in a corner and fell off his Honda CRF. But as the age old saying goes, fortune favours the brave and the brave Manchanayke was fortunate enough to get back on his ride before Solanki who finished second could catch up. Malavige again had to be satisfied with a third place finish behind Manchanayake and Solanki.

In the Group SL-N Standard cars – Ford Laser/ Mazda 1300cc event young Kushan Peiris showed his brilliance as he drove away to become the victor while Serasinghe duo of Devin and Upulwan clinched the second and third places respectively. It was a special moment when young Devin managed to get the better of the older statesman Upulwan to finish ahead of the father.

PIC 02 Shanuka Sandaruwan had a successful outing at Cavalry Supercross managing to win both races of the Group MX racing bikes over 100cc up to 125CC (2T).  Sandaruwan faced stiff competition from Evon Gurusinghe in the second race but managed to get ahead of Gurusinghe with just a couple of laps to spare and secured the double on the day.

Bhanuka Rathnayake has re discovered his form in the Group J MX over 65cc up to 85cc (2T) and up to 150cc (4T) – Under 16 event as he managed to continue his good form from Fox hill to finish the race as the victor. Rathnayake’s decision to not compete in the MX 250cc race is paying him good dividends as he is performing much better in the U-16 category and will be gaining much required experience before graduating to the big league.

Dassanayake Master Class

The National MX champion and the holder of the best rider award at the Cavalry Supercross Ishan Dassanayake put on a riding master class at Pangolla, sending out a clear message to all other competitors. Dassnaayake started off his campaign with a win in the Group MX racing over 100cc upto 125 cc (2T). He was given stiff opposition by Buddhila Silva of Sri Lanka Army breathing down his neck but managed to see off Silva’s challenge to clinch his first pole position of the day. In the MX – Over 175cc up to 250 cc competition Dassanayake was quick to get out of the blocks and maneuvered his machine to perfection and gained a supreme lead over the rest of the contestants. In both races of the event the veteran Gayan Sandaruwan did not have a great start but as always is the case rode beautifully to claw his way back to the second position. Evon Gurusinghe was placed third in both the races. Ishan Dassanayke was adjudged the best rider at Cavalry for the second year in a row having clean sweptall the events that he participated last year’s as well.

Mouthwatering ‘Super Car’ event

Dubbed the fastest race of the gravel racing track SL-GT – Cars up to 3500cc event commonly known as the ’Super car event’  proved to be a thrilling contest that captivated everyone who had gathered to witness the races.  Kushan Peiris ‘The new kid on the block ’ in the event had turned a lot of heads having qualified with the best time and secured the pole positions in a grid that had the likes of Ushan Perera , Ashan Silva , Pasindu Peiris, Janaka Dias placed behind him. Peiris who secured podium finishes at foxhill in his EVO 7 was driving his new EVO 9 for the first time and had a great start to the first race with Ashan Silva right behind him from the get go. As the race progressed Silva miscued a turn on lap for paving way for Ushan Perera and Pasindu Peiris to get ahead of him and was unable to get in front of them until the conclusion of the race.  At the checkered flag Kushan Peiris had won his first super car event while Ushan Perea , Pasindu Peiris, Ashan Silva and Janaka Dias made up the Podium finish respectively identical to the start grid positioning prior to the race.

The second event of the same race was always going to be an even more interesting affair with the drivers, the experienced and the seasoned campaigners to be precise, itching to make a mark. Entering the first corner Kushan , Ushan and Pasindu were battling to take the inside lane while Ashan Silva showed his experience and drove outside all three of them to take the lead. Silva displayed his brilliance and never looked back as he managed to seal the victory finishing the race comfortably. Kushan faced mechanical difficulties and had to pull out of the race while Ushan Perera was involved in a crash and had his front wheel punctured. Perera showed real guts and continued the race with only three functioning wheels and finished fourth behind Pasindu Peiris and Sajaad Zuhair who finished 02nd and 3rd respectively.