Four girls, 11 boys all set for FIM MiniGP India Series

Bengaluru, 22 July 2022: The inaugural FIM MiniGP World Series India 2022 will kickstart at the Meco Kartopia track here on Saturday with a full grid of 15 riders, including four girls, and all aged between 10-14 years, taking the start. A card of two races has been scheduled for the event.

The riders, who were shortlisted after a couple of rounds of trials earlier this month, are: Darshit Chetan Chavan (10 years), Sahil Vaibhav Shelukar (11) and Yash Shinde (12), all from Pune; Rehbar Baktoo (11) from New Delhi; Shreyas Hareesh (11), Dev Agastya (11), Nithila Das (12), Aleena Mansur Sheikh (11) and Anastya Pol (12), all from Bengaluru; Nandanan Mahendran (11), KR Kabilesh (12), Rakshith S Dave (13) and Rakshitha S Dave (13), all from Chennai; Jinendra Kiran Sangave (13), from Kolhapur; and Muhammed Zain Correya (13), from Kochi.

Quite a few of these riders have been taking part in various categories of the National Championships with some of them even achieving podium finishes. As such, keen competition is expected in the FIM MiniGP World Series India.

Free practice and qualifying sessions will be held on Saturday between 10.40 am and 3.25 pm. Two races of 15 laps each have also been scheduled.

The series will be held on karting tracks that meet minimum standards set by the FIM or the national federation, with Bengaluru (3 rounds) and Hyderabad (2 rounds) being the venues. The top two riders, classified by total points scored after 10 races, will participate in the World Finals to be held in Valencia, Spain, during the final round of the FIM MotoGP World Championship in November.

All riders will compete on equal Ohvale GP-0 160 machinery (Mini bikes), manufactured in Italy, while Pirelli is the official single tyre supplier for all the FIM MiniGP World Series.

The FIM MiniGP World Series India is part of the global programme, comprising a total of 15 countries, and initiated by the FIM, the World governing body for two-wheeler racing, in conjunction with Dorna Sports, promoters of the FIM MotoGP.

The FIM launched the MiniGP Series in 2021, as part of the Road To MotoGP programme, aiming to create an equal platform for young riders around the World to begin their motorcycle racing careers.

Fmsci president Akbar Ebrahim said: “We begin a new journey this weekend with the FIM MiniGP World Series India 2022. It is a programme designed to help young riders take first steps towards achieving their short and long-term racing goals. There is no dearth of talent in India and we are sure that the youngsters will take advantage of this platform to showcase their talent and skill.”

Marco Rossetto, Product Manager, Ohvale, India, said: “We are happy to present a full grid of 15 riders for the FIM MiniGP World Series India. Four of these riders are girls. Hopefully, for next year, the girls will fill up all the five spots that we have reserved for them in the grid of 15. Through this series, we provide a platform for talented young riders and it is our earnest hope that one day in future, we will see an Indian rider in the FIM MotoGP World Championships.”