With motorsport on halt across the globe owing to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, racers have taken to virtual simulation racing. The first-ever Indian Sim Racing Championship (ISRL) took place amidst the nationwide lockdown in which 14 racers from across the country participated. After garnering 252 points over five rounds, Chennai’s Sai Prithvi emerged as a champion.
Coming in second was Abdul Fattah from Thrissur collecting 191 points. And Mumbai’s Raiden Samervel managed 172 points to finish third on the virtual podium. The final race was held on simulation of Laguna Seca racetrack, where Amith Kutti grabbed pole, a mere eight-thousandth of a second ahead of leader, Sai Prithvi. However, after a tough fight with Prithvi, Kutti tragically hit a back-marker and retired after the resulting suspension damage. Meanwhile, title challenger Abdul Fattah crashed and pitted, losing his hopes of winning the title. The star of the final race was Jessie Jakhar who climbed from seventeenth in the start grid to finish fourth.
In the end, Sai Prithvi’s four victories in the five rounds crowned him this season’s champion. He earned a testing session in a Volkswagen Motorsport race car. And Abdul Fattah bagged himself kart training with Rayo Racing. Meanwhile, Raiden Samervel will get a free race entry, courtesy IndiKarting.
The Sim Racing Championship was organised by eight-time national karting champion Rayomand Banajee and his IR eSports, in association with Volkswagen Motorsport India. The championship pits India’s best online racers against real world racers on the popular online iRacing platform. Each driver competes in an FIA homologated Dallara Formula 3 racecar, with identical setups, using his/her own simulator.The ISRL follows all the racing norms, with a proper rule book and experienced officials overseeing the conduct of the racers. Points are awarded as per the Volkswagen India Championship, with additional points for pole position and fastest lap. This season, the five rounds saw the competitors racing on some of the world’s most iconic circuits like Silverstone, Daytona and Laguna Seca.
Commenting on the occasion, Sirish Vissa, head of motorsports at Volkswagen India, said, “This gives a different dimension to our motorsport program in India. With this association we look forward to expanding our footprint in terms of accessibility to the sport.”
Adding to it, Rayomand Banajee said, “We have always been looking at growing motorsport at the grassroots level. We gained a lot of knowledge organising India’s largest eSports Racing Championship last year. The lockdown created a perfect opportunity for the sport to grow and we are happy to create a competitive avenue in India”.
The next season of ISRL will begin on 8 May, registration for which has already commenced.
