K1000 flagged off
Bengaluru, March 11: The Karnataka-1000 Rally organised by Karnataka Motor Sports Club was flagged off by Karnataka Minister for Youth Empowerment and Sports Narayana Gowda, here on Friday. The 45th edition of the iconic rally that began in 1975 is the second round of the delayed FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship 2021.
With MRF Tyres as associate sponsor, the stage-rally attracted 53 entries from all over the country in all categories. While the top class, INRC, has five entries with strong contenders Gaurav Gill and Musa Sherif, leading the pack with Karna Kadur behind them in a Volkswagen Polo 1.6, along with senior navigator Nikhil Pai. The two INRC cars will open the stages in that order followed by 2019 champion brothers Chetan Shivram and Dilip Sharan, who spearhead the INRC2 bunch, followed by current INRC2 leader, Fabid Ahmer (co-driver Sanath G) and Sahil Khanna and co-driver Harish KN.
There are 10 INRC2 cars while the number in INRC3 reduced from 23 in the first round in Coimbatore to 19 here. INRC4 will be with 9 entries while the FMSCI Gypsy Challenge will witness 10 competitors. Five of these drivers are eligible for the Junior INRC title-fight and the number of lady drivers reduced from 10 in Coimbatore to seven here. The fastest lady driver Athira Murali has skipped the event as her co-dirver George is not well and the popular Malayalam vlogger could not find a replacement in time.
The competitors who tasted the terrain finishing the reccee on Friday headed back for tedious drive to Bengaluru again for the ill-conceived schedule pitted the important Driver’s briefing and Ceremonial start in a star hotel in the Garden city. Ideally, the show should have been completed on Thursday in Bengaluru. That would have allowed some breathing space for the competitors. The now have the Special Stages for two days of competition near the town of Gubbi, about 100 Kms from Bengaluru on Saturday and Sunday. The first Special Stage is scheduled to start at 9:15 am on Saturday.
At a pre-event Press Conference, seven times National champion Gaurav Gill, along with co-driver Musa Sherif who is participating in his 300th Rally, described the Special Stages after this morning’s reccee as “super-fast and technical”, a view shared by all competitors.
“There are some fast tarmac stretches where the speeds can touch 180kmph and there are some rough and tricky bits too. So, it is important to get the right speeds. For me, the mantra is controlled aggression to maximise the points,” Gill, a three times FIA Asia Pacific Rally champion, said.
Sherif, 50, from Kasargod, in response to felicitations on reaching a milestone of 300 rallies, said: “It started as a hobby in 1993 but soon became a full-time passion and I never thought I would do so many rallies without a break. I thank all the drivers, sponsors, crews, teammates, and my fans, for this wonderful moment. It is they who gave me these opportunities.”
Musa Sherif, will be starting his 300th rally. Starting as a rider in 1993, he shifted to cars in 1995. These 300 include bike rallies, four-wheeler rallies and also the TSD . rallies, both in India and abroad, for an overall triple century. He read pace notes and “called” for 49 different drivers and competed in 69 international events. Some of the top drivers who he ably assisted were Gaurav Gill, Karamjit Singh and Naren Kumar. He was nominated for Khel Ratna by the federation last year. He won 35 INRC 4W rounds out of which 33 victories came with Arjuna Awardee Gaurav Gill, the longest and greatest partnership ever in the history of Indian National Rally Championship.
Leader in the INRC-2 category after a class win in the first round at Coimbatore a fortnight back, Palakkad’s Fabid Ahmer said: “The terrain is very technical, rough and bumpy. It is a challenge to understand the car at these speeds, but I have made good pace notes with my co-driver and am looking forward to a fast rally.”
Echoing the sentiments, Mujeeb Rehman, winner of the INRC-4 class in Coimbatore, said: “The terrain is super. I like the fast stages and as they are technically tough, co-ordination with co-driver is very important.”
Special invitees to the press conference were two top female drivers, Dr. Shivani Pruthvi from Davangere and Pragati Gowda (Bengaluru) who recently represented India in the Formula Woman McLaren (GT) trials in England. Both concurred that the Special Stages are “fast with flowing corners”, but the terrain called for a bit of caution.
Dr. Shivani Pruthvi:
“First stage has fast and flowing corners while there are rough, narrow and tight corners that will challenge us in the second stage. So it is very technical and it is important to keep the basics right,” said the Doctor from Davangere, who is also competing in the Junior INRC.
Pragathi Gowda, who just represented India in the Formula Woman selections in England for a seat in the McLaren Customer Racing drive in the GT said: “Bringing the car home will be our primary goal as the stages are quite tricky compared to Coimbatore. There are uphill and downhill sections with fast-moving corners. We are game for it and looking forward to a good rally.”
“The iconic K1000 is the mother of all rallies as it is the only rally in India which is active from 1975. The stages for the 45th edition are a re-visit to the 2014 stages and will challenge the drivers’ skills. All safety aspects are taken care of and I wish all the drivers a safe rally,” said Praneeth Perumal, Clerk of the Course, and a veteran administrator of KMSC.
Pragathi Gowda said: “Bringing the car home will be our primary goal as the stages are quite tricky compared to Coimbatore. There are uphill and downhill sections with fast corners. We are game for it and looking forward to a good rally.”
About the FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship 2021The Indian National Rally Championship 2021, promoted by The Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India, comprises three rounds – Rally of Coimbatore (Feb 25-27), Karnataka-1000 (March 11-13) and the South India Rally (Chennai, March 25-27). The grid is segregated into five categories based on various specifications – the INRC, INRC-2, INRC-3, INRC-4 and Junior INRC (26 years and below, and without a win). Competitors are eligible for Overall classification and also separately in their respective categories. The top 15 finishers are eligible for points ranging from 30 to 1. The five quickest on each of the two days (Leg-1 and Leg-2) and in each category receive bonus points (5 to 1) in the respective Legs provided they complete the Rally. The maximum points that can be won in each round is 40. A stand-alone sixth category, the FMSCI Gypsy Challenge, restricted to Maruti Gypsy, and not eligible for championship points or classification, completes the grid.
