37th K1000 beckons top rally drivers for Speed INRC
Bangalore, 18 Aug 2011: Ever-popular K-1000 beckons the top rally drivers for the 37th edition, the fourth round of the Speed Indian National Rally Championship at Siddlaghatta, about 70 kms from here for high-speed action on Saturday and Sunday.
Speed demon and leading contender Gaurav Gill will be looking to consolidate his position at the top as the three stages are fast to suit his driving style. The spectator-friendly Super Special Stage would be held at 2 pm on Sunday at the Clarks Exotica, the Rally headquarters for the three-day event.
Organised by Karnataka Motor Sports Clubs, the fourth of the seven-round Speed Indian National Rally Championship will be held under the aegis of the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) and is promoted by IMG Sports and Pro-Sports Promotion (PSP). The competition is wide open as the Nationals reach the midway stage after the first three rounds at Nashik, Chennai and Coimbatore. After K-1000, the bandwagon will move to the coffee land of Chikmagalur, which stages a comeback to INRC while Bhubaneswar would debut later to put Orissa on the Indian rally map for the first time. With the Indian F1 GP getting back its original slot of October 30, the dates for Rally of Orissa will remain unaffected and the last leg at Durgapur, near Kolkata, which was postponed due to the elections in West Bengal, will see the season finale in December.
Gaurav Gill with co-driver Musa Sherif will be the stars to watch as they lead the overall table standings while it was young Karna Kadur, who is the cynosure of all eyes, as he took the lead in the 2000cc N category along with co-driver Somonita Ghosh, the only lady driver in the INRC.
The three Special Stages of Clay (13.02 kms), Blackberry (9.2 kms) and Blueberry (13.63 kms) will be run twice on Saturday and once on Sunday for nearly 110 kms of Special Stage rallying while the total distance will be 387 kms with transport section taking up a little less than 278 kms. The 2-km `Triple S’ will have two laps with the cars running in the reverse order followed by Champagne Ceremony for prize distribution and the post-even press conference with the drivers.
Bharat Raj of IMG Sports, the promoters along with Pro Sports Promotion, said: “As usual special care has been taken to tighten the safety aspects as the stages are as fast as ever. However, evacuation routes are marked, and extractors and ambulances were all in place as per the regulations.’’
