Chennai, 18 July 2019: With a clutch of innovative initiatives on the horizon, the third round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Car Racing Championship gets underway, featuring 14 races, at the MMRT here on Friday.
The programme includes races in the two single-seater categories, the MRF F1600 and the Formula LGB 1300, besides the popular saloon cars which figure in both the premium Indian Touring Cars class and the Super Stock class, besides the Volkswagen Ameo Class which has been accorded National Championship status this year. The four Formula 4 SEA races will also run concurrently.
Even as the National Championship season is in full swing, the promoters Madras Motor Sports Club (MMSC) are planning to initiate a slew of long-term plans that include night racing, the first of its kind in India.
Taking an overview of this weekend’s races, Chairman of the Championship Vicky Chandhok said: “We are offering a racing menu with a variety this weekend. Beginning with the junior level Formula LGB 1300 leading up to the MRF F1600 which is the first step towards Formula racing, besides of course the saloon cars. We will see a galaxy of foreign and Indian racers this unique weekend when MMSC hosts both international and National racing championship at our very own circuit. So, plenty of action for sure.
“Going forward, we at the MMSC, in keeping with our efforts to move with the changing times, plan to introduce night events with racing under lights. With a view to evaluating the possibilities of night racing, we have planned a test session on Wednesday, August 7, from 18:00 hrs. to 23:00 hrs Primarily, this first session will be only for saloons with mandatory headlights. Depending on the testing, we will expand it to the 1300cc single-seater cars as well. Further, for the next round (August 16-18), we plan to run the races in the anti-clockwise direction. The response, thus far, has been tremendous.”
The MRF F1600, a proven platform for young aspirants looking to break into the international arena, will be running to the full grid with four races scheduled, while the Formula LGB 1300, an excellent option for those graduating to single-seater racing, has again attracted 20-plus entries.
The two categories in the saloon cars, ITC and Super Stock, will be run on the combined grid, and as in the previous round in Coimbatore last month, competition is expected to fierce with the factory-supported turbo-powered Volkswagen Vento cars likely to extend their domination.
