Category: Indians Abroad

News about Indians racing in different motorsports events abroad

  • Stunning 3rd for Harith Noah in SS2 at FIM Baja Aragon

    Stunning 3rd for Harith Noah in SS2 at FIM Baja Aragon

    Teruel (Spain), 24 July 2022: Sherco TVS Factory Racing rider Harith Noah recorded a stunning top-3 in one of the stages in a field of 163 riders and successfully completed the cross-country rally in Overall fifth place, in Baja Spain Aragon, the fourth round of the FIM Bajas World Cup that concluded here on Sunday. In the FIM 450cc class for bikes, Noah was placed fourth.

    Achieving a career-best third in SS2 in the FIM Bajas World Cup round, the rider from Kerala, put in excellent performance and missed the podium by a few minutes as he finished 5th overall. Astride a Sherco 450, the 29-year TVS Racing talent is taking part in the prestigious annual event that is now a round of both the FIA and FIM Bajas World Cup. Beginning the 6-km prologue cautiously trailing in 16th, Harith Noah switched up pace and moved up 13 places with a stunning ride in SS2 that launched him to P3. However, tough and dangerous terrain curtailed his further dash to the front as he had to be content with an 8th place in SS1 (02:45:56.0). “The track was a bit dangerous as the cars had passed already and that made many rocks pop out on to the track. Focus was to complete the stage safely,” said Noah, who attacked once again on the last Sector for which he preserved his best. Clocking 2:07:26.0 on the last day, he sealed the fourth place in the stage for an overall fifth.

    He finished the last day’s ‘competitive special’ of 159 km between Banon and Teruel and moved up to a brilliantly in the Overall classification in Group 1 (Category 1) of the FIM Bajas World Cup for 450cc bikes. He clocked a total time of 8hours, 07minutes and 33.0seconds. With his Sherco teammates Lorenzao Santolino and Rui Goncalves finishing second and third, Noah made it three bikes in top-5 for the Sherco-TVS combo that missed the top-spot by just about 5 minutes.

    Performing consistently on all three days, Harith Noah dished out high-standard riding to shoot into top-3 on Saturday, the Day 2. “For the first time I am back on the rally bike after the last Dakar. I felt so good to be back riding at an international event. The hard-pack tracks made it fun to slide around and I enjoyed it. It was a great experience and like always, I have learned a lot and hope to fine tune my skills from this rich experience,” said the Shoranur star. “It was a great feeling to be able to finish one of the stages with the front pack and the bike proved to be good,” the 29-year star told INDIAinF1 from Spain.

    The gruelling race that traversed over 400 km in the Selective Sector on Saturday morning with another 200 plus km in the evening presented a technically tough route but Harith Noah who thrives on routes that offer difficult navigational challenges, took to his liking and posted a stunning 5:50:09.0.

    The Kerala rider is the fastest Indian at the Dakar as he beat CS Santolsh’s record and joined KP Aravind, in the elite club of three from India, that finished Dakar successfully. Harith Noah will be back to his training for the 2023 Dakar next January.

  • Jehan’s rich haul with 2nd in Sprint & 7th in Feature race: F2

    Jehan’s rich haul with 2nd in Sprint & 7th in Feature race: F2

    The 23-year-old leaves the Paul Ricard weekend with a strong haul of points

    Le Castellet (France) 24 July 2022: Indian racer Jehan Daruvala scored his sixth podium of the season in the French round of the Formula 2 championship, as he left the Paul Ricard track with yet another strong points-scoring weekend.

    Jehan started Saturday’s Sprint race from pole position and after a lightning start led into the first corner. He was comfortably holding his own at the front when an incident involving three cars brought out the safety car.

    Jehan timed the restart to perfection, allowing him to open up a small gap to second-placed Liam Lawson. But the latter’s superior straight-line speed allowed him to close in.

    It looked like it would only be a matter of time before Lawson used his car’s superior speed down the straights to get past Jehan and sure enough the Kiwi swept around the outside into Turn 1.

    Jehan held his line but the pair touched which opened up a tear on Jehan’s front tyre. But he fortunately didn’t suffer a puncture.

    A few laps later Marcus Armstrong attempted to pass Jehan for second at the same corner but on the inside. They made contact but Jehan, forced wide across the chicane, kept his position.

    He had to slow down significantly, however, to give up any advantage he may have gained, which allowed Lawson to pull clear at the front.

    Armstrong was handed a five-second penalty for forcing Jehan off the track

    On Sunday, Jehan started the Feature race from 10th on the grid. But he fought his way up to seventh as a combination of strategy, which put Jehan in the lead before his stops, and blistering speed after his late switch to fresh tyres, saw him climb up the order. 

    Jehan said, “It’s good to be back on the podium after what happened in Silverstone and Austria. We were struggling with pace down the straights but had some good battles to finish 2nd. We would have finished even higher in the Feature race with our strategy to run a long first stint but we gambled on a safety car and stayed out a bit longer than ideal. Other than that, it was a solid weekend for us. We still have some areas to work on and I’m confident we’ll come back stronger next weekend in Hungary.”

    Jehan’s second-place finish in France was his fifth this season. The 23-year-old, who races for Italian team Prema, was robbed of a potential fourth F2 victory by a post-race penalty in the last round in Austria.

    The Red Bull-backed racer, who earlier this week completed a second Formula One test with McLaren, now heads to Hungary, the last  round of a busy month of racing before the annual summer break.

  • Sherco’s Goncalves takes lead; Harith, Aishwarya begin 6-km Prologue

    Sherco’s Goncalves takes lead; Harith, Aishwarya begin 6-km Prologue

    Teruel, 22 July 2022: Rui Gonçalves has started his participation in the Baja España Aragón AVATEL Trophy with victory in the prologue stage that has been played in the surroundings of Teruel. The pilot de Sherco was the fastest in the six timed kilometers of the special.

    The Portuguese rider has thrown in 3’6” Tosha Schareina (KTM) while Lorenzo Santolino has occupied the third position at 5’2”.

    “This Baja is very intense, it It goes very fast and physically it is very hard. Starting position for tomorrow is good and I hope I don’t have dust on a day when many things can happen,” he said. Santolino.

    In the Quads category, Jerome Connart has set the best time with 19” of advantage over Dani Vila and Kevin Giroud, second and third respectively in this prologue stage. Today, Friday, has also been the opportunity to see the premiere of the category Trail, with Iván Cervantes leading in the Trail 600cc while Joan Pedrero has led in the Maxi Trail.

    This Saturday the rest of the categories will start at 7:46 a.m. on a day that It will have two specials and 400 timed kilometers. Nasser Al-Attiyah, four-time winner will be one of the favorites in the car category along with Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Dutchman Erik Van Loon. “I am very happy to be here again and I have come to enjoy the race again. It’s a really tough ride but I’m going to fight for victory”, stated the Qatari at the official press conference held this afternoon at the Exhibition and Congress Pavilion of Teruel.

    Early report

    The 38th edition of the Baja España Aragón got underway today afternoon from 17.34 hours (9.04pm IST) with the 6-km prologue stage for only bikes where Sherco TVS factory Racing team riders from India, Aishwarya Pissay and Harith Noah took the start on Friday.

    After the teams have completed the second and final day of technical and
    administrative checks, the bike category kicks off the race with a 6-kilometre prologue stage on a route close to Teruel and the Service Park.

    From Saturday early morning, the rest of the field will join the action with a day of 402 kilometres against the clock divided into two special stages. It will be the longest day of the rally.

    On Sunday, the crews will tackle a 159-kilometre special stage, the last one of the 38th edition.

    The Baja España Aragón Trofeo AVATEL will run through 38 municipalities in the regions of Teruel, Jiloca and Albarracín. We would like to advise all spectators stay in high and safe places while following the race and respect the indications of the marshals along the track.

    Sherco TVS Racing bikes #11 of Harith Noah, #1 of Lorenzo Santolino and Rui Goncalves get ready for the Prologue on Friday evening.

    Earlier on 18 July, Monday the 38th Edition was presented:

    The 38th edition of the Baja España Aragón Trofeo AVATEL, which will take place from 22nd to 24th July, has been presented to the public. The official presentation of the event took place in the Salón de la Muralla of the Government of Aragon’s headquarters in Teruel, in the presence of Arturo Aliaga, Vice President of the Government of Aragon and Regional Minister for Industry, Competitiveness and Business Development of the Government of Aragon. “This event has been organised keeping in mind that we all have to work to project the image of being capable of organising one of the best of the eight World Cup events. We hope the Baja will live up to its reputation.”

    The presentation was also attended by Manuel Rando, President of the Provincial Council of Teruel, Manuel Aviñó, President of the Spanish Automobile Federation, Javier Domingo, Councillor for Tourism, Education and Festivities of the City Council of Teruel, Xavier Bartrolí, President of Octagon Esedos and Roche Murciano, President of the Provincial Association of Teruel Tourist Entrepreneurs.

  • Aishwarya Pissay, only woman in FIM WC Baja Aragon

    Aishwarya Pissay, only woman in FIM WC Baja Aragon

    Teruel (Spain) 21 July 2022: Petronas TVS Factory Racing’s star Aishwarya Pissay, the only World Cup winner from India in motorsports, is all set to re-launch her international campaign with the Baja Aragon, the fourth round of the FIM Bajas World Cup to be held here from Friday.

    Come July, the beautiful region of Aragón gets busy and Aishwarya Pissay, the Indian pride, is the only woman in the FIM field and being a World Cup Baja winner, adds to the competitive nature of the event as she arrived in Teruel on Tuesday. After her accident in Jordan Baja in March 2021, the talented rider, a product of TVS, worked hard on rehabilitation and bagged another National title in the last one year, before plunging into high-performance training abroad for about 90 days this year, under her acclaimed mentor Michael Metge and his team.

    On Friday, more than 70 motorcycle and quad riders will take the start of the race, including 18 motorcycles and eight quads competing for points in the FIM Bajas World Cup. Pissay will be part of Team Sherco TVS which registered four riders. Lorenzo Santolino, who was third last year, Rui Gonçalves, Harith Noah and Aishwarya Pissay, the winner of 2019 World Cup Baja winner, make up the Sherco-TVS team.

    For the 26-year old Bengaluru lass, a five-time Indian National rally champion, who became the first Indian woman to make her international debut at Baja Spain in 2018 at the age of 22 years, this will be her third Baja Aragon Spain. The Indian rider supported by Scott, Ultrahuman, IIFL and Micro Labs, looks to turn the tables astride a Sherco 450 Enduro, the same bike that she trained hard in France and Spain fine-tuning her physical fitness and riding skills. “It was a high-performance training not just focussing on physical fitness and mental conditioning but identifying and fine-tuning certain riding skills and consistently learning the terrain and the art of Road Book. Staying focussed and calm are some other interesting aspects that I enjoyed,” said Aishwarya, who continues to get support from Surana College, her alma mater.

    “I have learnt a lot in the training sessions abroad under Metge and to be able to utilise these skills and continue learning is my goal. I am not looking at World Cup right now but my focus is on the Baja for the next three days. I will take it event by event,” said the 26-year old, who rose like a phoenix after the life-threatening accident at the same Baja on the last day in 2018. “Every incident has taught me lessons and made me stronger. Now I am well-prepared and ready for the event,” the confident TVS talent, said ahead of the grueling event.

    Administrative and technical checks will take place in Teruel on Friday while the six-km Prologue will be run from 5pm (8.30 pm IST) in order to determine the starting order for the first selective section the next day.

    On Saturday, July 23rd, riders will tackle two selective sections and a third on Sunday morning for a total of 435 competitive kilometres and 342km of liaison, the transport section.

  • Aishwarya Pissay, Harith Noah set for FIM Baja Aragon

    Aishwarya Pissay, Harith Noah set for FIM Baja Aragon

    Teruel, 21 July 2022: Fastest rider at Dakar from India, Harith Noah and the only World Cup winner from Indian motorsports, Aishwarya Pissay, relaunch their international campaign after an year and are all set for the FIM Baja Spain Aragón, the fourth round of the FIM Bajas World Cup beginning here on Friday.

    The 38th edition of Baja España Aragón Trofeo AVATEL will see two of the top Indian Cross-Country enduro riders in Harith Noah and Aishwarya Pissay. While Kerala’s Harith Noah is the fastest from India at the Dakar, Aishwarya Pissay is the only Indian to win a World Cup in motorsports, men or women. Noah became the third Indian to finish Dakar after CS Santosh and KP Arvind, both from Bengaluru.

    Read the preview and archives of Aishwarya Pissay here.

    Dakar star Harith Noah exploits can be found here.

    Petronas TVS Racing’s Harith Noah will begin his 11th year with the factory team. He successfully completed his third Dakar becoming the only rider from India to fly the Tricolour at the the 44th Dakar Rally, the prestigious annual cross-country endurance rally-raid race which concluded in Jeddah on January 14 earlier this year. He also set the fastest stage time by a rider from India, 18th in Stage 11, beating his own record set in 2021 (20). He is the third rider from India to complete Dakar after CS Santosh and KP Aravind, both from Bengaluru.

    On Friday, more than 70 motorcycle and quad riders will take the start of the race, including 18 motorcycles and eight quads competing for points in the FIM Bajas World Cup.

    Team Sherco is registered with four riders who are aiming for the podium: Lorenzo Santolino 3rd las year, Rui Gonçalves, Harith Noah and Pissay Aishwarya, the only woman in the FIM field, make up the team.

    David Casteu, sporting director of Team Sherco, also has a “Team Casteu” team manager’s cap on and is supporting four private riders with crucial assistance.

    There are three riders aiming to take the top step of the podium in the Junior category: the young Pole Konrad Dabrowski, Neels Theric – whose father won one of the first editions of the Baja Spain Aragón – and Kevin Giroud, who rides a quad. Dabrowski (KTM Duust Rally) is currently leading the Junior category and holds second overall in the FIM Bajas World Cup with 50 points behind Emirati Mohammed Al-Balooshi.

    In the Veteran category, seven riders will take the start: Klyver, Gaits, Howe, Grignac, Argoud, Lardon and Vingut.

    Eight competitors will line up in the quad section and they include Alexandre Giroud, winner of the 2022 Dakar, the Spaniard Toni Vingut and the Saudi rider Abdulmajeed Al-Khulaifi.

    Administrative and technical checks will take place in Teruel on Friday, July 22nd from 08.00hrs to 13.30hrs and the six-kilometre Prologue will be played out from 17.00hrs in order to determine the starting order for the first selective section the next day

    On Saturday, July 23rd, riders will tackle two selective sections and a third on Sunday morning for a total of 435 competitive kilometres and 342km of liaison.

    The 38th edition of the Baja España Aragón-Trofeo AVATEL will once again be a record-breaking event in its ninth consecutive year in Teruel. 165 crews will line up for the start in the car category of the rally that counts towards the FIA World Cup for Cross Country Bajas. Dakar winner Nasser Al-Attiyah, reigning champion of the Baja Aragón, will be one of the main favourites.

    The Qatari will be joined by Yazeed Al-Rajhi in a Toyota Hilux, who is second overall in the World Cup behind Czech Miroslav Zapletal. A good result for the Saudi in Teruel would allow him to take the lead in the championship.

    Other big names to start in this Baja España Aragón Trofeo AVATEL include
    Dutchman Erik Van Loon and Argentinean Fernando Álvarez. Host country Spain will be represented by a huge contingent, spearheaded by Jesús Calleja, Félix Macías, José Antonio Ramos and Daniel Alonso. The latter two are the first two classified in the Spanish Cross-Country Rally Championship.
    The 38th edition of the Baja España Aragón Trofeo AVATEL will see the first
    participation of a WRC driver. Dani Sordo joins the populous field to take on yet another challenge in his sporting career. The Spaniard, who has announced hisretirement from the World Rally Championship at the end of the year, has decided totry his hand at cross-country rallies, with his current WRC co-driver, the Galician Cándido Carrera, on his side.

    Note: Courtesy FIM communications and Baja Aragon official site.

  • Shriya Lohia among 14 rising stars for ‘FIA Girls on Track’ event at Paul Ricardo

    Shriya Lohia among 14 rising stars for ‘FIA Girls on Track’ event at Paul Ricardo

    Bengaluru, 18 July 2022: Young Indian racing talent Shriya Lohia, who created ripples by bagging the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar for 2022, earlier this year, added another feather in her young career as her name was announced in the list of 14 young women selected from over 100 countries for the next stage of the “FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars” event to be held from August 17 to 21 in France.

    The FIA Women in Motorsport Commission named 14 girls from around the world on July 13 who will take part in the programme at the Circuit Paul Ricard for the next step. The worldwide selection took place after 146 National Federations (ASNs), nominated one promising young driver each with national or international racing experience. Shriya is the only Indian in the list selected for the Junior category of girls born between 31 March 2008 to 31 December 2010.

    Shriya Lohia, 14, from Mandi in Himachal Pradesh made her debut in the Meco Rotax Max National Karting Championship in 2018 and soon started to compete on equal footing with boys in Bengaluru. She soon acquired international exposure in Italy and Malaysia and continued to take occasional podiums and earned a second place in the championship in her class in the X30 Nationals. On June 15, Shriya was once again awarded for “Excellence in Motorsports” among women during the fmsci Awards gala at Chennai, the third award after similar honours in 2018 and 2019 as an “Outstanding Woman in Motorsports”. But it is time Shriya, graduates to Formula cars to gain exposure in the tough selection process ahead.

    The school girl, an avid Formula 1 fan, follows Charles Leclerc’s exploits on the speed lane and is a regular at the Meco Kartopia circuit in Bengaluru. A multi-faceted personality, Shriya is also good at scuba diving and takes parting in shooting as a relaxation sport to to train her “focusing” skills. A thinking person and a student journalist, she has her own blogging site and is known to be good at explaining the technical details of a race when called by the stewards unlike many skilled drivers of her age, who struggle to talk about their karts or a particular racing situation or incident.

    Having been assessed on track in karts as well as off the track in various workshops, just four drivers in each category will be selected to participate in the decisive Ferrari Driver Academy karting and Formula 4 Scouting Camps in November.

    At the end of the grueling training and selection process, the winning junior driver will participate in an international karting season with the financial support of the Ferrari Driver Academy. The selected senior driver will potentially become the third female to have the chance to join the Ferrari Driver Academy – following in the footsteps of Maya Weug and Laura Camps Torras, the winners of the first two editions – where she will begin development of a professional career in motor sport and compete in Formula 4 with the FIA Girls on Track main partner, the Iron Dames project.

    Deborah Mayer, FIA Women in Motorsport Commission President, said“I am pleased with this quality selection, which brings together talented young women from all over the world thanks to the essential detection and support work of our clubsI would also like to thank all our partners: Ferrari Driver Academy, Iron Dames, Pirelli, OMP, Winfield, Circuit Paul Ricard, 321 performance. Each of them contributes greatly to the uniqueness and success of FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars.  These 14 girls will have a wonderful and challenging experience that could put them on the road to professional careers. They are part of the next generation of female motor sport talent that the FIA is committed to promoting and helping make their dream possible.”

  • Jehan Daruvala to Test McLaren F1 car MCL35M for the second time

    Jehan Daruvala to Test McLaren F1 car MCL35M for the second time

    Mumbai, 16 July 2022: Indian racing ace Jehan Daruvala will take part in a second two-day Formula One (F1) test with former champions McLaren at the Portimao Circuit in Portugal next week.

    A release sadi that the test, during which Jehan would once again drive the 2021 race-winning MCL35M. The test will take place on July 18 & 19 and comes shortly after Indycar star Colton Herta and McLaren test and development driver Will Stevens ran in the car earlier this week.

    Jehan completed over 130 laps of Silverstone during his first Formula 1 outing with the British team last month during which he impressed with his fitness, how quickly he adapted to F1 machinery, his feedback and his ability to assimilate information from the engineers.

    Next week’s test in Portimao, his second time in a Formula One car, will allow Jehan to build on that strong outing and further prepare him as he bids to become only the third Indian to race at the pinnacle of the sport.

    Jehan, who currently competes with Prema Racing in feeder series Formula 2, is a part of the Red Bull Junior Team. He is now eligible for a Formula One Super License, having both the required points and mileage in last year’s F1 car. 

    The Portimao test, like the Silverstone outing, is part of McLaren’s Testing Previous Car (TPC) programme, which the team is running to evaluate young, up and coming drivers.

    The Mumbai Falcons, who are supporting Jehan’s Formula 2 title bid, said, “The second McLaren test marks yet another milestone in Jehan’s journey to Formula 1. He impressed on his F1 debut at Silverstone and we are confident that with this second test Jehan will continue to prove that he belongs on the Grand Prix grid. This is a truly gratifying moment for Indian motorsports and for us particularly. Our mission is to showcase the best of Indian motorsport talent to the world and we are proud to support Jehan as he pursues his dream of becoming only the third Indian to race in F1.”   

    Jehan said: “My first taste of Formula One machinery was surreal and I can’t wait to get back in the car again in Portimao. I came away from the Silverstone test with a lot of confidence as both from a driving and physical perspective I did well  and covered more than two race distances absolutely trouble-free. My dream has always been to race in Formula One and this test will build on what we achieved at Silverstone. I am thankful to both Red Bull and McLaren for giving me this opportunity and continuing to support my development.”

  • Harsh post-race penalty robs Daruvala of a ‘win’ in Austria

    Harsh post-race penalty robs Daruvala of a ‘win’ in Austria

    The 23-year-old was provisionally classified second but a 20-second penalty drops him down the classification

    The Red Bull-backed racer was perfectly poised to inherit victory after provisional winner Verschoor was disqualified

    SPIELBERG, 10 July 2022: Indian racer Jehan Daruvala put in a stirring drive from 11th to second in Sunday’s Formula 2 feature race in Austria but was robbed of his sixth podium of the season by a post-race penalty.

    Jehan had finished a provisional second after an inspired strategy call to start the race on slick tyres on a damp track and searing pace from the Red Bull-backed racer in the tricky conditions saw him make rapid progress up the field.

    But a 20-second time penalty, handed out after stewards deemed the Prema Racing team had attempted to dry the track surface at Jehan’s grid spot, negated his brilliant run.

    The penalty was all the more disappointing as Jehan was briefly in with a chance of inheriting the race win after provisional winner Richard Verschoor was disqualified for a fuel irregularity.

    Jehan said, “I’m absolutely gutted. All season luck has been against us and just when I thought things were finally going our way we get hit with a penalty.

    We did everything right today. I was expecting a tough race from 11th on the grid and, while it was tricky, we read the conditions perfectly today. The team made the right strategy call on the tyres and I was able to maximise it with my pace in the wet. It’s difficult to find the positives after having a result we fought hard for taken away from us in this fashion. We could have taken big points off our rivals today but I can still take encouragement from my pace today. We now have a weekend off before the next run of back-to-back races and it’s now full focus on Paul Ricard and Budapest. We just need to keep pushing and I’m sure our day will come.”

    Jehan’s pace in the changing conditions was formidable. He built up a sizeable gap and then timed his one and only pitstop to perfection, coming in on lap 13.

    The penalty in Austria was the latest in a series of Sunday misfortunes that have cost Jehan a strong result in feature races this season.

    An ill-timed safety car cost him a potential victory in Imola. In Barcelona an electrical problem sidelined Jehan on the fourth lap just when he was ideally placed to benefit from running the alternative strategy.  

  • GT4 Europe: Rabindra/Canning secure double points in class at Misano

    GT4 Europe: Rabindra/Canning secure double points in class at Misano

    Akhil Rabindra and teammate Tom Canning had a solid Round 3 in GT4 Europe series at Misano with double points.

    Rabindra and Canning were back in action in Round 3 of GT4 Europe series at Misano with Racing Spirit of Leman, driving the #19 Aston Martin Vantage in the Silver class category.

    Starting the weekend, they were second and 13th in the overall standings in FP1 and FP2 respectively, while they ended up first and seventh in the Silver class. After a goodish practice session, it was time for qualifying.

    The Qualifying 1 for Race 1 saw them finish fifth overall and second in class, while Qualifying 2 for Race 2 saw them end up 15th overall and 10th in Silver class. It was Canning starting in the first stint in Race 1.

    It was a clean start initially but he dropped to seventh after suffering some bodywork damage. He lost another place in eighth and ran there until the pit window opened up. A FCY period dropped them to 18th in the pit stop.

    Rabindra had to climb up the order but it was disruptive second half with multiple stoppages. He eventually was 15th overall and fourth in Silver class, with more points scored in the category championship.

    The Race 2 saw a good start from Rabindra who up to 12th in the opening stages. He was 10th when he pitted to hand over to Canning, who gained a place to be ninth overall but lost a place towards the end.

    He eventually finished 10th overall and sixth in Silver class. With three rounds done, Racing Spirit of Leman sit on top of the teams’ standings with 101 points, while Rabindra and Canning are third in the standings with 66.

  • DTM: Maini has a difficult Norisring weekend after Race 1 crash

    DTM: Maini has a difficult Norisring weekend after Race 1 crash

    Arjun Maini completed a difficult two weekends in DTM as he is still searching for a points finish since his last one.

    Arjun Maini had difficult two weekends in DTM in Imola and Norisring with Haupt Racing Team driving the #36 Mercedes-AMG GT3 machine. In the latter, he was seventh in FP1 and first in FP2.

    In qualifying, he was in Group A where he finished third and in overall standings he was eighth. But his Race 1 was short-lived after a rival crashed into him in a mayhem of a start in general.

    He did make up places but eventually was forced to retire. In qualifying on Sunday, he was sixth in Group A and started the race from 11th in overall standings. It wasn’t a great start as he dropped to 16th.

    He ended up 14th and out of points as he is still searching for a points finish since his fourth place finish. There has been unlucky moments for the Indian in several races since then.

    “Misfortune, bad luck and breakdowns – that’s how I can sum it up,” said Maini. “After the retirement on Saturday, which was not our fault, things didn’t go well for us on Sunday either. We just have to leave this weekend behind us.”