With the development of a world-class racing facility in India, and the interest and possibilities of motor sports on the rise ever since the Indian F1 Grand Prix races were held at the Buddh International Circuit, multiple companies have been looking to develop Indian racing talent to further promote the sport.
So, it came as no surprise that Mercedes India has decided to introduce the second season of their Mercedes Young Star Driver program. Having received decent response for the first season held last year, this year the response for the program doubled, with the competition receiving 5,970 entries from across the country. An interesting fact revealed by the manufacturer was that amongst the total entries received for the program, nearly 60% of the entries were from Tier-II and smaller towns such as Indore, Bhiwandi, Kottayam, Jodhpur, Jalandhar, Kota, Nashik, Bokaro, Mohali etc. This clearly shows that the interest amongst aspiring drivers is not limited to any region of the country and that it is also not a big city phenomena.
The top 24 finalists selected from the nearly six thousand entries were then assembled at the Buddh International Circuit, where they competed against each other in the recently introduced CLA45 AMG performance sedan in a battle to see who was the fastest amongst them. After two days of intense competition, Bangalore boy Raj Bharath clocked the fastest time at the BIC with a lap time of 2 min 26.7 seconds, while second placed G Vikash Anand clocked a 2 min 28.6 seconds, whereas third placed Ali Yawar Hayat managed a 2 min 29.2 second lap.
And the rewards for winning the competition are very promising, as Raj Bharath will now receive Basic and Advanced AMG Driver Training in India, and will undergo Pro training in Germany with AMG driver training experts. Second placed Vikash will also receive the Basic and Advanced training in India, while third place Ali will only receive the Basic training. And as an added prize, the winner will also get to meet and interact with Mercedes AMG Formula 1 team drivers – Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg – at the 2014 Singapore Grand Prix.
Needless to say, encouraging programs like the Mercedes Young Star Driver will encourage more youngsters in India to consider motor sports as a career option, and give them opportunities to not only train with world-class experts, but also serve as an effective program to give them the required exposure and opportunities to excel in this ultra competitive field.
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