Santhosh, who won five races -- Bangalore, Jaipur, Baroda, Kolhapur and Pune -- out of the six held last year, fell during a training session and suffered injuries to his pelvic region on Thursday.
“I’m very disappointed with what has happened,” said Santhosh. “I really wanted to take part in the Bangalore leg as it is on my home turf. I fell during practise and the doctors have told me to rest for a couple of days. Even if I can’t win the event, I wish to take part and gather some points.”
“With me out of the race for all practical purposes, KH Pradeep and the rest of the TVS crew have the best chance to win,” he added.
Santosh will return to action at Coimbatore, the second leg. “Let’s see what happens, I still have a couple of days to recover and get on the track. I wish it (injury) didn’t happen but I guess in motor sports it’s always the case. Hopefully. you’ll see me running in Bangalore, if not I’ll get to Coimbatore and try to get things on track.”
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