Coronavirus Lockdown: Impact On Indian Motorsport

Looking forward to seeing the Hero XPulse 200 Rally bike in action in the Desert Storm? Waiting with bated breath to see if Gaurav Gill could bounce back and reclaim the INRC title? So were we, but unfortunately the nationwide lockdown to fight the spread of COVID-19 means the fun has been put on hold. 

Desert Storm 2020

One of the first events to be affected was the Desert Storm, which was initially scheduled for April 25 to April 30. It was postponed to the second half of 2020. A revised date is yet to be set on when the week long romp in Rajasthan’s Thar Desert will be held.  

South India Rally

The opening round of the FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) for four-wheel vehicles, the South India Rally, was initially scheduled for March 20 to March 22. It was postponed to June 19 to June 21, but this depends on how successful the efforts to fight the spread of the virus will be. This event also doubles up as a round of the FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship..

FIM Asia Road Rracing Championship

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The opening round of the 2020 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) did go ahead in Malaysia despite many teams including Idemitsu Honda Racing India backing out of the event. However, Round Two wasn’t the same as the race event scheduled for May 9 to May 10 at the Bend Motorsport Park in Australia has been postponed due to the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19). As things stand, TVS Racing is the only Indian team in the 250cc class. It is currently 5th overall in the constructor’s standings, only one point away from ONEXOX TKKR SAG Racing Team. Vorapong Malahuan is the top TVS rider holding sixth place in the rider's championship with his teammates Jagan Kumar and KY Ahmed standing in 13th and 14th place.  

Racing action for the 2020 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship is tentatively set to resume from June 26 onwards at the Suzuka International Circuit, Japan, but that isn’t a guarantee considering the situation at hand.  

Others

Aside from these, many other motorsport series are under threat of cancellation or postponement. This includes series like the Indian Touring Car Championship, MRF 1600 National Championship as well as the JK Tyre National Racing Championship. Another Indian motorsport series under threat is the rebirth of the Volkswagen Polo Cup, where the Race Polo will make its racing debut.  This also extends towards grassroot level racing like karting where the season calendar has yet to be decided.

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