2010 Polo Cup starting Grid of Drivers and Debut Race
From more than 1,100 registrations received, 20 drivers have been chosen for the first single-make manufacturer-backed series in India, Polo Cup 2010.
Volkswagen India will flag-off of the first ever Polo Cup in India with the first race of the season to be held on May 30, 2010 at the Shri Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Balewadi in Pune, the hometown of Volkswagen India. The final 20 drivers will compete in a series of six races held between May and December 2010.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Joerg Mueller, President and MD, Volkswagen India P. Ltd. said, “Volkswagen India is happy and proud to announce the final 20 aspiring racers who have been short listed for the first-ever Polo Cup India 2010. These final drivers represent the best raw talent the country has to offer. Polo Cup is the boost that the young drivers in India deserve and have been waiting for. We are thrilled as this is the first year of Polo Cup in India and we are really convinced that this first single-make manufacturer-backed series in India will become a new milestone in the success story of Volkswagen India”.
Over 1,100 motor sports enthusiasts from across the country registered to compete in the Polo Cup India 2010 and become a part of Indian motor sport history. After a strict selection process 20 young talents were chosen to form the starting grid in the first race in Pune. The selection process ran from the last week of March to mid of May. The aspiring racers were divided into 2 groups – first-timers and experienced racers, and were put through two rounds of selection. The young racers were narrowed down to 45 drivers through an adrenalin-pumping go-kart selection. The short listed drivers were then placed behind the wheel of the Race Polos, for the second round of selections held in Coimbatore, to earn their place in the final 20 candidates for the races.
The candidates were selected with the support of the expert selection team. The team of selectors consisted of one driver selector & coach from Germany Polo Cup, two Indian driver coaches (experienced drivers from Volkswagen & JK Tyre) and one FMSCI representative, including some of the doyens of Indian motor sports like Akbar Ebrahim, India’s only principle instructor in racing, Farhan Vora, India’s guest F1 steward and Rayomand Banerji, six times National Champion. They personally followed the international structures and conducted the coaching camps to select the best young talent.
The 20 short listed drivers will celebrate their world debut at the Polo Cup India 2010 as part of the JK Tyre-FMSCI Indian National Racing Championship 2010. They will compete in six races across the country, the first in Pune, and then followed by five races on the race courses in Coimbatore and Chennai. Below is the starting line-up:
1 Saran Vikram 06/08/1990 Chennai
2 Parth Ghorpade 20/08/1993 Kolhapur
3 Sahil Shelar 11/02/1989 Pune
4 Karthik Shankar 20/12/1986 Hyderabad
5 Sailesh Bolisetti 28/09/1988 Vishakhapatnam
6 Vishnu Prasad 18/08/1993 Chennai
7 Alisha Abdullah 24/07/1989 Chennai
8 Mohammad Fahadkutty 27/09/1988 Mumbai
9 Samyak Shah 17/01/1992 Pune
10 Mohit Ahuja 18/11/1992 Mumbai
11 Jayprasanth Venkat 08/08/1987 Coimbatore
12 Anthony George 20/11/1985 Kochin
13 Gurniaz Mann 09/12/1987 Mumbai
14 vikash Anand 13/06/1994 Chennai
15 Gokul Krishna 01/12/1987 Chennai
16 Munjal Savla 11/09/1988 Mumbai
17 Ameya Bafana 21/12/1994 Mumbai
18 Oshan Kothadiya 27/01/1988 Pune
19 Saurav Bandopadhyaya 28/06/1989 Mumbai
20 Imran Majid 24/05/1987 Mumbai
The first race of the Polo Cup India at the Shri Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex at Balewadi in Pune will be the first major four-wheeler racing event to be held in Pune. The 20 short listed drivers, divided into two batches, will ‘burn rubber’ for the first time in a practice session at the circuit on Friday, May 28. Saturday, May 29 will witness a Free Practice session for the drivers followed by the Qualifiers. The fastest laps in the Qualifiers will determine the starting grid for the races to be held on Race Day, May 30.
Spectators will get a chance to see the final line up of the drivers in the drivers’ parade, marking the start of Race Day. This will be followed by two race sessions of 20 laps each. The final podium standings will be announced with a prize distribution the same evening. This weekend format will be followed for all the remaining races of the Polo Cup India 2010.
Like the spark that breathes life into a dormant combustion engine, the Polo Cup India was but a tiny idea conceptualised in October 2008. The journey of this thought into one of the biggest single-make touring car series in India is truly inspiring. The process of Volkswagen’s internal discussions in Germany and prospecting of Indian partners culminated in signing of the Letter of Intent with JK Tyre in October 2009. This is when the hard work truly began. Months of grease and sweat lead to unveiling of the Race Polo in the Delhi Auto Expo 2010. A fierce grill and clean lines form the perfect shell to the 1.6-liter R4 common rail diesel (CRD) engine, which can produce a top speed of 180 km/h.
hey this is rahul arora. very much intrested in moter sports & raceing.tell me plz if there is any up coming championship i can take part.i would be very greatful…