Montano, Mangulabnan outlast rivals

MANILA, Philippines - Miko Erich Montano of JVT Racing and Marvin Mangulabnan bucked the odds to rule their respective events in the second leg of the Philippine Scooter Racing Championships and the Philippine Underbone King Championships at Clark International Speedway in Clark, Pampanga recently.

Montano copped the premier 180cc crown of the scooter tilt while Mangulabnan topped the premier 150cc Open title of the Underbone event sanctioned by the Underbone and Scooters Racing Association (USRA) and supported by FDR, the official tires.

Montano rallied from behind after missing the qualifying time trials, posting a blistering lap-time of 1:10.740 to move up to third in the fourth lap then challenged Raniel Resuello in the sixth.

Resuello actually appeared headed for a victory but earned the black and orange flag with a loose muffler, forcing him to return to the pit.

The race ended in a 1-2-3 finish for the JVT Racing with Benjo Mendoza finishing second and Batangas first leg champion Arlan de la Cruz placing third.

Montano completed the 12-lap event in 14 minutes, 20.101 seconds, 0.125 seconds ahead of Mendoza. De la Cruz came in 11.103 seconds behind as Ivan Santiago and Dustin Esguerra wound up fourth and fifth, respectively.

He made it a double title feat after he emerged champion in the 160cc Scooters, beating Romer Corbe and Danes Sarmiento.

Mangulabnan also overcame a tough start with Anthony Roman, Rizaldy Canare and Masato Fernando crowding him in the lead pack in the early going. Fernando later failed to keep up with the pace so did Canare, leaving Mangulabnan and Roman to battle for the crown.

Roman proved to be a tough challenger as he diced with Mangulabnan but the latter flashed his better defensive driving skills to wrest the lead before wrapping up the 12-lap final race in 14:12.380 seconds, 0.044 of a second ahead of Roman.

Canare settled for third while Fernando and Niño Fabian ended up fourth and fifth, respectively.