“We have achieved a lot more than we had thought,” TVS Racing’s Sarthak Chavan on winning multiple national championships in the 2024 INMRC

TVS Racing’s rising star, Sarthak Chavan, opened up in an exclusive interview with evo India, reflecting on his triumphant 2024 Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship and TVS One Make Championship seasons, the challenges of competition, and his aspirations for the future. Having secured multiple national championships, Chavan’s journey through both motocross and track racing has been nothing short of remarkable. “Racing with TVS Racing was itself a dream for me,” he shared, discussing his victories in the Pro Stock 300cc and Electric RTE Championships. TVS Racing too is committed to Sarthak, with Vimal Sumbly, Head Business – Premium, TVS Motor Company commenting on Sarthak’s success, “We are thrilled to celebrate Sarthak Chavan’s historic accomplishment as the youngest National Champion in the INMRC 2024 Pro Stock 301-400cc Open Category. His journey from a passionate young rider to a National Champion showcases the growing strength of motorsports in India and reflects the dedication we hold at TVS Racing to nurture and support young talent. Sarthak’s success is a milestone for Indian racing, and we are excited to witness his journey as he continues to aspire for global excellence. TVS Racing remains committed to empowering talented young racers like Sarthak, providing them with opportunities to represent India on national and international platforms.” Despite setbacks in the 165cc class, Sarthak remains optimistic and focused on his long-term goal of competing on the world stage, continuing his racing journey with TVS Racing for years to come.

As told to Mohit Vashisth

Q: Can you walk us through your motocross journey, from winning your first championship to transitioning into track racing?

A: I started riding a motorcycle at the age of around six and my family background was into motorcycle racing and especially into motocross so the first step we took was motocross. So at the age of 12, I won my first ever championship which was the national Supercross and my career was outstanding over there. I still race sometimes in the Supercross races here in India and I still feel I am quite competitive in the premium category stages as well.

Q: You’ve had the opportunity to race internationally in various countries. Can you share your experiences?

A: In 2015, I went to the USA for a month-long training program at Millsaps training facility where I went to learn the basics of riding a motocross bike, and then over there I also competed in the Mini O’s championship where I finished last because we were not quite slow – but very slow. And after a bad result over there, we went to Dubai for the Dubai Motocross Championship where I finished third in one of the races. This was my first ever international podium. In 2019, I went to the Asia Motocross Championship in the Philippines where I finished in the top five in one of the races and also got one podium finishing 7th overall in the Asian championship. This championship was a good experience because this was my last international supercross race.

Q: How did your transition into track racing happen after your motocross career?

A: In 2019, one of the manufacturers started a talent hunt program here in India. It was the same type of program as held in other countries like Thailand, Indonesia and many others. So the manufacturer had put this in India, and I got selected in this program. I raced with this manufacturer for over four years, I raced the prototype Moto3 machine in which I won 2 championships. And so in 2022, I made a shift to TVS Racing.

Q: How would you sum up the 2024 season, including the intense fights and challenges you faced?

A: Yes, so if you would have seen the Pro Stock 300cc class, and the RTE Championship went very smoothly, with not many crashes or anything for me as well because in the Pro Stock 300cc class, I won nine out of 10 races, and in one I finished 8th due to some technical issue with my bike. And the electric as well, I finished five out of five races in first position. The difficult part was the 165cc class, where all five top TVS riders were on the same type of motorcycle and also the power was quite low, so a rider who is fast cannot make a good gap, so everybody stays together. There are a lot of contacts happening and many crashes. In this particular class, I got hit more than two or three times. But that is not a big issue. And yes, I feel it is what made me a little bit weak in the championship terms. So now we have all decided not to do this next year which is to make a lot of contacts and hopefully, we have clean races for next year.

Q: You won the Electric RTE Championship this year. Can you highlight the key differences between racing electric bikes and internal combustion engine (ICE) bikes?

A: There are a lot of differences in both of the machines. Starting with the tyres, we race on the Pirelli’s in the electric championship and MRF slicks in the national championship so there is a very big difference in terms of grip – the electric bike has so much grip on the Madras International Circuit. Another difference is the clutch, the bike has no clutch and gears so we just have to make it stop with the front brake and the rear brake. Rear brake we don’t use much but the front brake needs to be strong because it takes a lot of load. The weight distribution also is quite different, the electric bike is a bit heavier than the RR 310 and I feel the RR 310 can do similar lap times as the electric with better tyres.

Q: You've broken multiple records, won several championships in a single year, and are the youngest national champion. How does it feel to have achieved all this?

A: Racing with TVS Racing was itself a dream for me because looking into my supercross races I would always look at the pit of TVS Racing, how they work and all. So working with TVS itself was a great achievement for me and yes the championship feels great because I’ve been working hard for this to happen, I became champion at the age of 17 which nobody has ever become in India and yes I would also like some other riders to take up racing and try to beat this record of mine but yeah it will be difficult for at least more than 10 years. Till then I, for sure will keep this record.

Q: Walk me through your mental preparation for race weekends. The entire week is quite hectic. How do you handle the mental and physical demands of it all?

A: For this season, we had five days of working on the racetrack. We started practising on Wednesday with pay and practice, on Thursday with additional practice, and on Friday with the official practice session. So these three days are quite tiring because these are 25-minute sessions, four to five sessions in a day riding different bikes. Also, the bike changes because I ride three types of bikes which are completely different in terms of handling so yes it is quite difficult for the first three days. Then the race weekend comes which is quite hard mentally but not hard physically because these are just six-lap races with not a lot of fights in the 300cc class and electric championship. But the 165cc class is very mentally tough to do because we need to think a lot about what to do and how to win the race.

Q: How does a champion like yourself start the day and prepare before a race? Could you share your routine and any mental practices you follow?

A: In the morning, I do two hours of outdoor training with my coach Mr. Mihir Ternikar. Here in Pune, we do two hours of outdoor training. Sometimes we go on the hills for a run and then he also has a ground and a facility where I can train with sprints to improve my stamina. It is what I work on in the morning and in the evening, I go to the gym for about one to two hours to improve my strength. Last month, I also took up yoga to improve my flexibility and mental strength. This month, I couldn’t continue with it due to some other problems. But yes, I would also start doing yoga from now on. Mentally, I feel yoga is very helpful for me and has made me calm when I race.

Q: How has your experience been with TVS Racing over the years?

A: It has been really good. This was my second season working with the team. Last year was also not so bad because of my debut season in the national championship, I had to race in two championships last year and in the Pro Stock 300cc class I finished third in the championship with one win and a couple of second-place finishes and in the Pro Stock 165cc class, I think I finished in fourth which was not so good.

This year I had to race in three championships winning two of them and in the 165cc class I finished third, yeah, the 165cc was very difficult again this year because being a tall rider I feel difficulty in riding this bike but yes the team has been supportive towards me, we have achieved a lot more than we had thought. Two titles in one year is a good achievement I feel and they have been supporting me very well.

Q: How has the environment been within the team, especially with the title battles?

A: Sometimes it is very difficult for us as well because we are top riders from the same country. All of us race to win. So, there are many things which go on in our heads. So, yeah, sometimes we are angry about each other but most of the time it is very friendly, making fun of each other and all. So, it is not a big issue. But yeah, sometimes there is a lot of fumes going into our pits.

Q: You’ve also competed in the ARRC in Thailand with TVS. How has the experience been, especially in terms of racing against foreign riders from other countries?

A: This is the TVS Asia One Make program. I started racing this year with the first round being in Thailand where I managed to be on the podium twice. Also, the competition here is quite competitive because we have riders from Japan, Malaysia and Indonesia who are very fast and experienced. Many of them have also raced on world championship stages like Moto3 and CEV Moto2. So competing with them is tough and they only race to win, so that is what we need to learn from them. And in Thailand, it was again really good then I had a downfall in Japan and China. My performance was not so good. And then we came back to Malaysia. I had one podium finish in Malaysia and two third-place podium finishes in Indonesia. Right now, I am third in the championship so next month we have another race in Thailand which will be the championship decider and possibly I would be the first Indian to have finished third in the Asian championship stage.

Q: You’ve mentioned that working with TVS Racing has been a dream. What are your plans moving forward after this season?

A: Right now, I haven’t had any contacts from other manufacturers. But me and my dad, I have decided to stay with TVS Racing for multiple years. And with the boss of TVS Racing agreeing with us, next year we plan to race the Indian National Championship and also the TVS Asia One Make Championship. Other than that, in a couple of years, I want to participate in world championship-level races for which I need to train more and make a good mark in the Asian championship.

Q: Will we see you win the 165cc class next year?

A: Yes, for sure because I had a plan of winning three championships this year and it did not go as planned. Losing one is a big loss for me because the 165cc class is also a premium national championship class but still I am not quite sad because other riders also deserved it as I had many crashes in this championship and I would take it as a weak point for me. So yes the champion Jagan Kumar is a deserving champion. He has been doing great this season. He also has three wins and many podium finishes. So yeah next year I will try to beat him if he does not retire from racing.