Mumbai: After having got a perfect debut in Formula racing, the 2017 National Karting Champion Aaroh Ravindra has left no stone unturned, as he signaled his arrival with a strong performance in the Round 2 of the JK Tyre-FMSCI National Racing Championship (Novice Cup). His outing in this league has sounded off an alert to the others in the fray.
The youngster from Mumbai is sitting pretty with 52 points, which include 28 from Round 2 at Kari Motor Speedway in Coimbatore. He managed to finish on the podium in all three races – winning Race 1 and 3, and finishing Race 2 in 2nd place. Bangalore’s Chirag Ghorpade is trailing him with 39 points after he bagged two 2nd-place finishes over the same weekend.
Talking about the man, the machine and his prospects ahead in the race, the championship contender said that the first couple of rounds have been good but he cannot afford any complacency.
“It’s good to lead the championship, but I take it race by race. Racing is very unpredictable, one mechanical failure, and it’s over. So even though I have a good chance now, you never know what can happen in the next race.”
The championship has already witnessed some heated off-the-track action. Chirag had sailed past the chequered flag in the Round 1, only to discover that he had made a jump start. It penalised him by 10 seconds and saw him slide to the eighth position.
This moved Aaroh one step up to take the second position. The change hurt Chirag badly, taking away the overall championship lead from him and yielding it to Aaroh, who capitalised on his chance and has consolidated his position after Round 2.
“Round 1 was a big learning experience for me as it was my first time racing in a Formula car and Round 2 was all about making sure not repeating those mistakes. I hope I can continue my form into the remaining rounds and be consistently on the podium.
“After gaining a bit of experience I think I have a good chance to win it but like I said, nothing is a given in racing. I just have to keep working hard and have a positive mindset.”
After this championship, Aaroh plans on moving to touring cars and be a part in the Ameo Cup but says he will continue karting as he wants to make India proud at the upcoming Asian championships.
