CHENNAI: On a cloudy Sunday afternoon, Mohamed Mukail, a 14-year-old racer, had a broad smile on his face. He had just emerged champion in the Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship second round in the Novice 150cc category. Riding in the CBR 150 class, Mukail clocked 13:23.224 minutes to complete six laps. Each lap is 3.6kms. He also set a record for the fastest lap, by clocking 2:11:557 minutes.
Participating in his first senior national racing event, Mukail was nervous, but his team was confident. Not off to a great start, the Chennai lad revved up in the last three laps and made clean turns as he went past his rivals. “Initially, I was a little tensed but as I picked up speed, I regained confidence. The competition was really tough, as I was approximately five seconds ahead of the second-placed Kartik Vasan Habib,” Mukail said. The teenager known as Mommo to his teammates thanked his parents. “If there has to be a happiest day in my life, that is today.
I want to be the best rider in the country. I have the support of my parents and good guidance from the Honda Ten10 Racing Academy,” said the racer, who started practising at the age of nine. Because he is a minor, Mukail can’t drive his vehicle on the road. “I have a racing licence, which the FMSCI (governing body of the sport in India) has provided after a lot of examinations.
And I do this with my parents’ consent. I don’t ride the bike on the road because I have no proper licence.” Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Ltd vice-president, Prabhu Nagaraj was delighted. “Mukail’s blockbuster show stands out. He will be going back to the academy to further hone his skills and come back stronger for the third round which starts from August 10 at Madras Motor Racing Track.” The Honda group conducted a talent hunt two weeks ago, from which Mukail was selected. They train the enthusiasts and provide them with the racing licence before the racer takes to the tracks. The next talent hunt programme starts from July 15.
nithin.kumar@newindianexpress.com