MRF CHALLENGE 2013 FINALE IN CHENNAI THIS WEEKEND

– NARAIN KARTHIKEYAN TO BE GUEST  DRIVER IN MRF CHALLENGE 2013 FINALE

– MRF 1600 TO KICK OFF AS PART OF BIG MOTORSPORT FESTIVAL

February 12, 2014:  Motorsport fans are in for an action–packed motorsport weekend at the MRF Racing Festival at the MMRT in Chennai on February 15–16 with the finale of the MRF Challenge 2013. The MRF 1600 category will also be in action with the opener for the season along with MRF Freestyle Riders all set to entertain the crowds with their daredevil stunts. To further add to the excitement, Indian F1 driver Narain Karthikeyan and APRC Champion Gaurav Gill will also be participating in the MRF Challenge 2013 finale. GP3 runner up Tio Ellinas will battle with Formula 3 race winner, British driver Rupert Svendsen–Cook for the rights to be crowned MRF Challenge 2013 Champion.

After 3 Rounds and 9 races the MRF Challenge 2013 will head to Chennai for the final round, with 5 races set to take place. Tio Ellinas leads the Championship ahead of Arthur Pic and Rupert Svendsen–Cook. However Arthur Pic wil be unable to race this weekend due to testing responsibilities. Ellinas and Svendsen–Cook are separated by a mere 22 points with 100 points still available this weekend. The addition of Karthikeyan to the grid will be a big boost for the young drivers as they continue to use the MRF Challenge as the platform to develop their motorsport career.

Vikash Anand and Raj Bharath will continue to be the young Indians on the grid and will be looking for a strong result in front of their home crowd. APRC Champion Gaurav Gill will be the 4th Indian on the grid in what will be his second race in the MRF Challenge 2013.

Mr. Arun Mammen, Managing Director, MRF Tyres, commented, "The MRF Challenge 2013 has been a great success this year with some great action on the track. This weekend is a special for us as we continue to help grow the sport in the country. The final round of the MRF Challenge 2013 promises to be a thriller with the title going down to the wire. The MRF 1600 will also have the season opener this weekend and is a great platform for young drivers to showcase their talent. I am very pleased that Narain has agreed to race this weekend in front of his home crowd as he will be the perfect motivation for these talented upcoming drivers."

Karthikeyan participated in the 2013 Auto GP World series where he was a title contender and scored a record five wins and four pole positions during the course of the season. In 2014, he will drive in the Super Formula Series for Team Impul Hoshino Racing, which finished third in the Super Formula title standings last year. This will be Karthikeyan´s first race at the MMRT in more than a decade and will be a great opportunity for all motorsport fans to see India´s first Formula One driver in action.

Narain Karthikeyan, India´s First Formula One Driver commented, "MRF invited me to race this weekend and I could not turn down the offer to race in front of my home crowd. It has been a long time since I raced in Chennai, and am looking forward to having fun this weekend. The MRF Challenge not only have the fastest cars but also have some the fastest  young drivers on the grid from across the globe."

This weekend will also the witness Round 1 of the MRF 1600 category with a strong driver line–up. Youngest winner of the MRF 1600 category Tarun Reddy will be back in action along with double duty for last year´s runner–up Vikash Anand. 2013 LGB F4 winner Narendran earned his seat after winning the F4 title last year and will be joined by Arjun Narendran, Mihir Dharkar, Advait Deodhar and Siddharth Trivellore. The MRF 1600 is a 120bhp car using a Ford Duratec 1.6 litre engine and Hewland JFR 5–speed sequential gearbox with a top speed of 205 km/ph.

Apart from the premiere racing action this weekend will also see the hugely popular MRF Muscle Freestyle Riders Callum Shaw and Luke Smith. MRF FMX riders Callum Shaw and Luke Smith will perform their world famous stunts like the ´Superman´, ´Whip´, ´Backflip´, ´9Knack´ and many more and will ensure the crowds are kept entertained.

There will also have a group of Harley Davidson riders showcasing their motorcycles to further add to the festival atmosphere. In addition the Tamilnadu Cycling Club (TCC) will be conducting Criterium cycle race jointly with Madras Motor Sports Club (MMSC). The TCC–MMSC Criterium cycle race will be held for 4 different categories viz. Boys, Women, Men’s open & Men’s elite (by invitation only). Top cyclists from across the country are expected to participate in the Men’s elite category.

 

The MRF Challenge 2013 season started with the first round being held at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) in Greater Noida as the sole support race for the Formula One Indian Grand Prix. The series then became the first ever Indian series to go international with the next two rounds being held in Bahrain in November and December. MRF earlier confirmed prize money of Rs. 2,500,000 for the winner, Rs. 1,500,000 for the runner–up and Rs. 1,000,000 for the third placed finisher of the Championship. Another Rs. 100,000 will be awarded per race winner as well. This is by far the biggest prize money given in a single series in Indian Motorsport.