Dean and Gagan Win Rally of Coimbatore as 52 Crews Reach the Classification
Dean Mascarenhas and Gagan Karumbaiah won Round 2 in Coimbatore, ahead of Karna Kadur, Jason Saldanha and Naveen Puligilla, in a rally shaped by speed, new cars and determined recovery drives.
ViPeople Motorsport DeskPublished Updated 9 min read
Photograph: Blueband Sports / official event material
Audio articleListen to this storySerena (Enhanced) · English UK
Rally of Coimbatore 2026 gave the Indian National Rally Championship the weekend it had been waiting for. Dean Mascarenhas and Gagan Karumbaiah won the Blueband Sports event in 01:36:19.777, with Karna Kadur and Musa Sherif second, Jason Saldanha and Srinivas Murthy P V third, and Naveen Puligilla and Santhosh Thomas fourth.
The result came after a long gap following Round 1 and a route that combined smooth prepared gravel with fast sections. Recce gave the crews confidence in the road. The stages then demanded accuracy at speed, because a neat surface still left little room for a late brake, a poor line or a mechanical weakness.
Dean Mascarenhas and Gagan Karumbaiah celebrate their Rally of Coimbatore victory.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Karna Kadur and Musa Sherif finished second overall.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Dean Mascarenhas and Gagan Karumbaiah after winning Rally of Coimbatore.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Karna Kadur and Musa Sherif with their overall runner-up result.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Jason Saldanha and Srinivas Murthy P V after the Peugeot 208 debut podium.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Dean and Gagan build a complete winning time
Dean and Gagan’s official stage times were 00:12:38.199, 00:11:55.070, 00:12:24.171, 00:11:39.144, 00:11:32.515, 00:12:16.273, 00:11:36.695 and 00:12:17.710. The record shows pace across the opening stages, the middle of the rally and the final loop. A lead survived because the crew kept the car moving quickly without giving the road an opportunity to take the result away.
Karna and Musa finished 23.482 seconds behind in the Arka Motorsports Polo. Their second place kept the pressure on the leaders and confirmed the pace of a crew that had been close enough to punish any mistake. Jason and Srinivas took the new Peugeot 208 to the overall podium on its Indian rally debut.
BK and Sachin receive their Rally of Coimbatore podium awards.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Naveen’s Fiesta belongs in the headline
Naveen Puligilla and Santhosh Thomas finished fourth in the Ford Fiesta with a total of 01:38:09.237. The result placed the Fiesta inside the leading technical conversation for the full route and gave the event a front-running performance from a car with a different balance and history from the Polos and the new Peugeot.
A field of new references
Coimbatore carried several important car stories. Jason and Srinivas introduced the Peugeot 208 to the Indian stage. Anushriya Gulati and Karan Aukta gave the Citroen C3 an immediate result with eighth overall and an INRC 3T win in 01:39:23.810. The C3 ran close to the INRC 2 cars in the overall order, which made the debut one of the weekend’s clearest development signals.
Jason Saldanha and Srinivas Murthy P V’s debuting Peugeot 208 in stage action at Coimbatore.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Multiple Polo INRC 1 and INRC 2 builds filled the front of the order. Dean’s Polo was prepared by Arka Motorsports, and the leading cars brought the familiar Indian formula to a higher level of execution, with the strongest builds reported above 220 bhp. Aditya Thakur and Virender Kashyap made the most of a naturally aspirated 1.6 Polo to finish fifth overall and win INRC 2 against turbocharged opposition.
The depth of the classification
Ritesh M. Guttedar and Suraj M finished tenth. Pragathi Gowda and Trisha Alonkar were eleventh. Tarushi Vikram and Athreya Kousgi placed seventeenth overall while carrying both the Women’s and Junior battles into the final order. Philippos Matthai and Harish K N finished sixth overall in car 55, while Harkrishan Wadia and Kunal Kashyap brought car 69 home seventh. Ritesh Rai and Phalguna Raghavendra were ninth.
Philippos Matthai and Harish K N drive the No. 55 Polo through the Coimbatore gravel.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Ritesh M. Guttedar and Suraj M carry the AART Motorsports Polo through a fast gravel section.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Ritesh Rai’s blue Polo in the Rally of Coimbatore field.Photograph: User-supplied Instagram reference from @riteshrai, cropped for ViPeople
Tarushi Vikram and Athreya Kousgi added one of the rally’s most useful class markers by recording the fastest INRC 3 crew time on SS08. It was a sharp piece of pace inside a seventeenth-place overall result and a strong weekend across the Women’s and Junior classifications.
A Polo-heavy field leaves the Coimbatore stages after a demanding two-day rally.Photograph: Supplied to ViPeople
Phoebe Dale and Shahid Salman finished twenty-third after gearbox trouble. Arvind Dheerendra and Naushad K M recovered to twenty-seventh after the roll that changed their rally. Daraius Shroff and Arjun Dheerendra completed the event in forty-eighth after their gearbox failure. Jeet Jhabakh and A G Somayya reached the classification in forty-ninth after the i20 driveshaft issue and restart.
Daraius Shroff and Arjun Dheerendra’s No. 11 Polo in stage action.Photograph: User-supplied photograph supplied to ViPeople
Every category, every classified car
INRC 1 finished with seven crews. Dean Mascarenhas and Gagan Karumbaiah and Karna Kadur and Musa Sherif led the category in Polos. Jason Saldanha and Srinivas Murthy P V put the Peugeot 208 on the overall podium, Naveen Puligilla and Santhosh Thomas brought the Ford Fiesta to fourth, Harkrishan Wadia and Kunal Kashyap finished seventh in another Polo, Ritesh Rai and Phalguna Raghavendra were ninth in a Polo, and Monish L and Manjunath G M completed the category in car 16.
INRC 2 had nine classified crews. Aditya Thakur and Virender Kashyap, Philippos Matthai and Harish K N, Ritesh M. Guttedar and Suraj M, Pragathi Gowda and Trisha Alonkar, and Rakshit Iyer and Chandu Shekar brought Polos home. Arjun Mavaji and Jeevarathinam J and Ramcharan C and Vignesh Mahalingam finished in Fronx cars. Daraius Shroff and Arjun Dheerendra completed the category in a Polo, while Jeet Jhabakh and A G Somayya brought the i20 to the finish after its driveshaft problem and restart.
INRC 3T brought eight different crews into the final order. Anushriya Gulati and Karan Aukta made the Citroen C3’s debut count with the class win. Arjun Rajeev and Chandra Mouli and Adith KC and Avinash C A ran Baleno RS cars. Maninder Singh and Prince Rohit Gowda, Darshan Kokkengada and Kushalappa Madapanda, and Baljinder Singh Dhillon and Goutham C P finished in Polos. Thejas S Reddy and Arjun SSB used an i20, while Vishakh B and Chiranth Jain completed the class in a Fronx.
INRC 3 was the largest classified category with 17 crews, all in Volkswagen Polos. The order included Venunath V and Sanath G, Jenu Johnson and Lenin Joseph, Abishek Gowda T C and Mahesh Nandi, Tarushi Vikram and Athreya Kousgi, Shivani Pruthvi and Vinay Manjunath, Chandan Manche Gowda and Suraj Keshava Prasad, Pradeep Ravi and Thimmanna Uppapanda, Phoebe Dale and Shahid Salman, Abhimanyu Sajeevan and Vijay Anand, Arvind Dheerendra and Naushad K M, Ramprasanth S and Sagar M, Hoshmand Elavia and Venu Rameshkumar V, Abdul Salam and Sushmith Panchajanyam, Athira Murali and Arun Chakkalayakal, MJ Amjadh and Marimanavalan A P, PS Nagendra and Akshay Rao, and Vihaan Bhatt and Vivek Bhatt. The class carried the overall win, Women’s, Junior and Masters sub-stories together.
Shivani Pruthvi’s No. 22 Polo in a supplied Coimbatore action photograph.Photograph: User-supplied photograph supplied to ViPeople
The remaining classified categories added four Masters Polos, one Classic Honda City and six Gypsy Challenge cars. Dinesh Kumar T and Lohith J M, Balakrishna J and Bopanna Nelammakkada, Ashok P John and Arun V, and Sangeeth Samuel and Vybhav Mukund Rao represented Masters. Lavan Poonacha M P and Ruthwick B H brought the City home in Classic. Kariappa Mekerira and Abhinav Ganapathy, Avin Nanjappa and Abhilash Sudhindra, Chethan Chengappa and Sujith Chengappa, Sanjay Agarwal and Dinky Varghese, Vinod Singh and Shailendra Singh, and Kavan Kariappa K G and Gaurav Aiyappa completed the Gypsy group.
The top five were Dean Mascarenhas and Gagan Karumbaiah, Karna Kadur and Musa Sherif, Jason Saldanha and Srinivas Murthy P V, Naveen Puligilla and Santhosh Thomas, and Aditya Thakur and Virender Kashyap.
The complete classified result
Rally of Coimbatore 2026 · Top ten official classification
Pos
Car
Crew
Vehicle
Class
Total
1
1
Dean Mascarenhas / Gagan Karumbaiah
Polo
INRC 1
01:36:19.777
2
2
Karna Kadur / Musa Sherif
Polo
INRC 1
01:36:43.259
3
9
Jason Saldanha / Srinivas Murthy P V
Peugeot 208
INRC 1
01:37:50.400
4
10
Naveen Puligilla / Santhosh Thomas
Ford Fiesta
INRC 1
01:38:09.237
5
4
Aditya Thakur / Virender Kashyap
Polo
INRC 2
01:38:27.655
6
55
Philippos Matthai / Harish K N
Polo
INRC 2
01:39:02.896
7
69
Harkrishan Wadia / Kunal Kashyap
Polo
INRC 1
01:39:17.719
8
24
Anushriya Gulati / Karan Aukta
Citroen C3
INRC 3T
01:39:23.810
9
14
Ritesh Rai / Phalguna Raghavendra
Polo
INRC 1
01:39:35.690
10
50
Ritesh M. Guttedar / Suraj M
Polo
INRC 2
01:40:05.152
Show places 11-52
Pos
Car
Crew
Vehicle
Class
Total
11
90
Pragathi Gowda / Trisha Alonkar
Polo
INRC 2
01:40:11.116
12
29
Arjun Rajeev / Chandra Mouli
Baleno RS
INRC 3T
01:40:34.297
13
21
Venunath V / Sanath G
Polo
INRC 3
01:40:36.798
14
12
Adith KC / Avinash C A
Baleno RS
INRC 3T
01:40:39.640
15
34
Jenu Johnson / Lenin Joseph
Polo
INRC 3
01:41:21.733
16
37
Abishek Gowda T C / Mahesh Nandi
Polo
INRC 3
01:41:27.404
17
95
Tarushi Vikram / Athreya Kousgi
Polo
INRC 3 · Women · Junior
01:42:25.254
18
22
Shivani Pruthvi / Vinay Manjunath
Polo
INRC 3 · Women
01:42:25.461
Classwise result · official timing service
INRC 17 crews
Pos
Car
Crew
Vehicle
Total
1
1
Dean Mascarenhas / Gagan Karumbaiah
Polo · INRC 1
01:36:19.777
2
2
Karna Kadur / Musa Sherif
Polo · INRC 1
01:36:43.259
3
9
Jason Saldanha / Srinivas Murthy P V
Peugeot 208 · INRC 1
01:37:50.400
4
10
Naveen Puligilla / Santhosh Thomas
Ford Fiesta · INRC 1
01:38:09.237
7
69
Harkrishan Wadia / Kunal Kashyap
Polo · INRC 1
01:39:17.719
9
14
Ritesh Rai / Phalguna Raghavendra
Polo · INRC 1
01:39:35.690
51
16
Monish L / Manjunath G M
Polo · INRC 1
02:12:41.186
INRC 29 crews
Pos
Car
Crew
Vehicle
Total
5
4
Aditya Thakur / Virender Kashyap
Polo · INRC 2
01:38:27.655
6
55
Philippos Matthai / Harish K N
Polo · INRC 2
01:39:02.896
10
50
Ritesh M. Guttedar / Suraj M
Polo · INRC 2
01:40:05.152
11
90
Pragathi Gowda / Trisha Alonkar
Polo · INRC 2
01:40:11.116
21
18
Arjun Mavaji / Jeevarathinam J
Fronx · INRC 2
01:43:09.812
24
20
Rakshit Iyer / Chandu Shekar
Polo · INRC 2
01:44:29.130
34
63
Ramcharan C / Vignesh Mahalingam
Fronx · INRC 2
01:52:01.599
48
11
Daraius Shroff / Arjun Dheerendra
Polo · INRC 2
02:04:08.220
49
5
Jeet Jhabakh / A G Somayya
i20 · INRC 2
02:08:40.051
INRC 3T8 crews
Pos
Car
Crew
Vehicle
Total
8
24
Anushriya Gulati / Karan Aukta
Citroen C3 · INRC 3T
01:39:23.810
12
29
Arjun Rajeev / Chandra Mouli
Baleno RS · INRC 3T
01:40:34.297
14
12
Adith KC / Avinash C A
Baleno RS · INRC 3T
01:40:39.640
20
30
Maninder Singh / Prince Rohit Gowda
Polo · INRC 3T
01:42:39.293
30
6
Darshan Kokkengada / Kushalappa Madapanda
Polo · INRC 3T
01:50:16.047
33
28
Baljinder Singh Dhillon / Goutham C.P
Polo · INRC 3T
01:51:43.324
38
27
Thejas S Reddy / Arjun SSB
i20 · INRC 3T
01:53:18.920
47
8
Vishakh B / Chiranth Jain
Fronx · INRC 3T
02:00:02.224
INRC 317 crews
Pos
Car
Crew
Vehicle
Total
13
21
Venunath V / Sanath G
Polo · INRC 3
01:40:36.798
15
34
Jenu Johnson / Lenin Joseph
Polo · INRC 3
01:41:21.733
16
37
Abishek Gowda T C / Mahesh Nandi
Polo · INRC 3
01:41:27.404
17
95
Tarushi Vikram / Athreya Kousgi
Polo · INRC 3 · Women · Junior
01:42:25.254
18
22
Shivani Pruthvi / Vinay Manjunath
Polo · INRC 3 · Women
01:42:25.461
19
33
Chandan Manche Gowda / Suraj Keshava Prasad
Polo · INRC 3
01:42:35.951
22
45
Pradeep Ravi / Thimmanna Uppapanda
Polo · INRC 3 · Masters
01:44:06.373
23
25
Phoebe Dale / Shahid Salman
Polo · INRC 3 · Women
01:44:11.590
25
38
Abhimanyu Sajeevan / Vijay Anand
Polo · INRC 3
01:45:19.840
27
32
Arvind Dheerendra / Naushad K M
Polo · INRC 3
01:46:39.801
28
40
Ramprasanth S / Sagar M
Polo · INRC 3
01:48:29.870
29
41
Hoshmand Elavia / Venu Rameshkumar V
Polo · INRC 3 · Junior
01:48:38.118
40
47
Abdul Salam / Sushmith Panchajanyam
Polo · INRC 3
01:54:15.843
41
35
Athira Murali / Arun Chakkalayakal
Polo · INRC 3 · Women
01:54:32.182
44
48
MJ Amjadh / Marimanavalan A P
Polo · INRC 3 · Junior
Masters4 crews
Pos
Car
Crew
Vehicle
Total
26
42
Dinesh Kumar T / Lohith J M
Polo · Masters
01:46:08.305
35
65
Balakrishna J / Bopanna Nelammakkada
Polo · Masters
01:52:37.839
43
52
Ashok P John / Arun V
Polo · Masters
02:00:58.102
45
51
Sangeeth Samuel / Vybhav Mukund Rao
Polo · Masters
02:08:00.968
Classic1 crews
Pos
Car
Crew
Vehicle
Total
31
61
Lavan Poonacha M.P / Ruthwick B.H
City · Classic
01:50:36.097
Gypsy6 crews
Pos
Car
Crew
Vehicle
Total
32
54
Kariappa Mekerira / Abhinav Ganapathy
Gypsy · Gypsy
01:51:38.540
36
59
Avin Nanjappa / Abhilash Sudhindra
Gypsy · Gypsy
01:53:02.849
37
56
Chethan Chengappa / Sujith Chengappa
Gypsy · Gypsy
01:53:13.310
39
53
Sanjay Agarwal / Dinky Varghese
Gypsy · Gypsy
01:53:29.782
42
58
Vinod Singh / Shailendra Singh
Gypsy · Gypsy
01:55:19.402
52
57
Kavan Kariappa K G / Gaurav Aiyappa
Gypsy · Gypsy
02:19:39.775
The retirements explain the pressure
The official retirement service belongs beside the classification. Fabid Ahmer and Milen George stopped on SS8 after a strong run because of a mechanical failure. Other crews lost their rallies through accidents, mechanical faults or missed final stage starts. Those withdrawals are part of the result because every classified crew had to keep the car, the notes and the service plan working until the final control.
Official retirement and non start trail
Car
Crew
Status
23
Fabid Ahmer / Milen George
DNF · SS8
7
Raguvaran Veerappan / Amanda Jia Ying Chew
DNF · SS6
36
Ashwin Pugalagiri P / Raghuram Saminathan
DNF · SS5
43
Rahul Kochar / Ravindra Kumar
DNF · SS7
46
Aneeshnath S / Amitha Aneesh
DNF · SS5
62
Neil Nain / Chirag Thakur
DNF · SS7
15
Dhruva Chandrasekhar / Srikanth GM
DNS · SS5 after SS1 to SS4
31
Siddartha Santosh / Sawan Sathyanarayan
DNF · SS3 and DNS SS5
39
Sonakshi Paranthaman / Dheeraj Salimath
DNS · SS5
44
Rajeev Kumar C / Sheraj Ahmed
DNF · SS3 and DNS SS5
64
Shafeeq Ur Rahman / Mohammed Shirajuddin
DNS · SS5
60
Sreejesh M P / Anusha N S
DNF · SS7 and SS8
Round 2 gives the season a new direction
Chennai opened the season. Coimbatore made the championship feel alive again. Dean and Gagan brought international experience into the national field. Karna kept the winner honest. Jason’s Peugeot, Anushriya’s Citroen, Naveen’s Fiesta and Aditya’s naturally aspirated Polo all added fresh reference points. Round 3 now has to show which crews can carry the lessons from this fast and demanding weekend into the next event.
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