Motorsport in India – 2018 Top five!
Motorsport Highlights 2018
There’s more action happening in the Indian Motorsport scenario than ever before. Youngsters are leaping forward in making India a significant and a promising new contender in international motorsports. And established performers are displaying world class performances and setting a great example for the budding talent. While each and every motorsport event is special to us, here are a few of them that made it big amongst the crowd.
Gaurav Gill at WRC2 and INRC
India’s rally prodigy was on a spree in 2018. Gaurav Gill upped his own game by making a debut at the WRC2 and boy did he look promising. After finishing at a commendable 12th position in the Rally Italia Sardegna, he went on to overcome all the hurdles at the four-rally campaign of the WRC2 class. He finished the Neste Rally Finland and Dayinsure Wales Rally GB in the 12th position while securing a 5th position at the Kennards Hire Rally Australia. That apart, Gill also bagged his sixth INRC trophy after winning the final round for Team Mahindra Adventure in Cochin.
Jehan Daruvala’s Formula 3 victory
Sahara Force India’s 20-year-old racer Jehan Daruvala took his maiden victory in the 2018 FIA Formula 3 European Championship at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium. Even though he had a few imperfect finishes in the races following the one at Spa, Jehan showed great potential of being India’s next F1 racer. The young driver has now been signed by Italy’s Prema Racing to compete in the 2019 FIA F3 Championship that begins on May 10, 2019 in Barcelona.
X1 Racing League’s new pact with FMSCI
The formation of Xtreme 1 Racing League or X1 Racing League was announced by Aditya Patel and Armaan Ebrahim, India’s top international drivers. League has inked a pact with Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) for exclusive rights including sponsorship, broadcasting, advertising, intellectual property, franchising and new league rights. India’s premier F1 racing track – Buddh International Ciruit in Noida, along with MMRT in Chennai will be hosting the circuit races while the street races are being planned at in Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, and Mumbai, like the layout of the Monaco and Singapore F1 races. It aims to develop motorsports in India and it gives a great platform for experienced racing drivers to sharpen their wheelsmanship, while also unearthing new racing talent in the country.
Champions group to promote INRC from 2019
As we bid farewell to an adventurous year that 2018 has been, a bright new chapter opened up for FMSCI INRC to end the year on a great note. Champions Group won the bid to promote the FMSCI INRC events from 2019-21 and the group has ambitious plans to rocket the standards of INRC to international levels. That includes hiking the prize money for all categories and promoting new-comers to the world of motorsports. Plan to enter motorsports in the near future? 2019 might be the best year to do so.
Podium finish for Mahindra Racing in Formula E
The season opener of the Formula E marked the first race of the Generation 2 cars and a podium finish for Jerome D’Ambrosio’s debut race with Mahindra Racing. Antonio Felix Da Costa and Jose Mario Lopez were in a close duel for the top spot. Jerome however, managed to overtake Lopez until the Safety Car hit the track. On the 30th lap, Jean-Éric Vergne flew past Jerome bringing him down to the third position. Jerome crossed the checkered flag in his debut race, which earned them 15 points.
Mahindra Racing’s new car for 2019
Mahindra Racing unveiled their second-gen electric race car called M5Electro which features an improved EV powertrain technology that has been developed through the learning gathered during the four seasons of Formula E racing. The M5Electro will be capable of sprinting to 100kmph in just 2.8 seconds and will boast a top speed of 280kmph. The team also announced the signing of two new drivers, Belgian professional racing driver, Jérôme d’Ambrosio and former F1 driver Pascal Wehrlein who will race the 2019 ABB FIA Formula E Championship.
