BENGALURU : The sixth and final round of the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship will be held in the coffee producing town of Chikkamagaluru, near here, from December 3 to 5. India has hosted APRC rounds before, but not in the recent past.
Team MRF’s Gaurav Gill (co-driver Glenn Macneall) may have wrapped up the title in the fifth round in Malaysia, but India hosting a round is big. It is a momentous occasion for motorsport in the country, because another big international event is being hosted. F1 came and went, but did not create the desired effect of kick-starting and taking motorsport to the next level. Hopefully, the Coffee Day India Rally will.
The fourth and penultimate round of the Indian Rally Championship will be run simultaneously. There are 10 entries in the APRC, and 40 for the IRC.
There are a few reasons that a big rallying event could set the tone for bigger things. India is a burgeoning car market. The big automobile manufacturers, and car models, that take part in world rallying and continental rallies are all present in India.
More manufacturers coming to rallying will popularise the sport, because the machines used are modified versions of road cars. People can relate to a Skoda Fabia or Mitsubishi Evolution more than a F1 car. That is where the potential for growth is. It is sad that despite having a two-time APRC champion in Gill, rallying is not where it should be. It is also sad that Gill has not been able to move up to bigger events like the WRC3 and WRC2.
Gill, nevertheless, is excited about the event. “It’s great heading to Chikkamagaluru. It’s a small town, but full of enthusiastic people. The APRC will thrill them with fast cars, and there’ll be lots of action,” he said. “It’s good to wrap up the championship, but I want to win the event. There’ll be no pressure on me this time.”
New Zealanders Mike Young and Malcolm Read are third in the APRC. The other Team MRF car will be with Germans Fabian Kreim and Frank Christian.
vivekphadnis@newindianexpress.com