Here’s TVS Racing’s 2017 Indian Baja Team

After a satisfying result at the 2017 Dakar rally, the Chennai-based motorcycle racing giant TVS Racing is back in action for the 2017 Indian Baja rally. TVS Racing has announced a four-member team for the rally – a part of Dakar Challenge for 2018 – which is slated to kick off on April 8, 2017, from Jaisalmer. The team consists of Aravind KP, who’s back on his bike with a quick recovery from the injuries he sustained during his debut Dakar run, along with his Dakar comrade Adrien Metge. The other two riders, the 2017 Desert Storm rally winner R Nataraj and last year’s National Rally Champion Abdul Wahid Tanveer, are also prominent faces in the Indian rallying scene. 

If the Indian Baja Rally is a new name for you, don’t be surprised. Reason being, the rally is only in its second season, but thanks to its nomination as part of the Dakar Challenge event, it sure is an elite one now. If you are still wondering why, well, the winner of the rally will get a free participation ticket for the 2017 Merzouga Rally followed by the 40th edition of the 2018 Dakar Rally. Cool, no? 

Coming back to TVS Racing, the riders will be using the RTR 450 motorcycles for the rally raid. Yes, the same machine that TVS Sherco rally team used in Dakar 2017, however, with some tweaks to suit the changed conditions. The bike uses a 450cc single-cylinder liquid-cooled unit that produces around 60PS of power and is built to last long, very long. The kingpin of the bike development was the weight and the task to keep it as low as possible with the use of carbon fibre. The bike also matches ultra low levels of friction and uses a modified valve port cross section, redesigned camshaft, a higher compression ratio along with a retuned ECM, which are bound to give the machine a better performance grit. The suspension has also been tinkered with and both the wheels are upgraded with thicker spokes. 

B Selvaraj, TVS Racing team boss, commented, “We are thrilled to see our star rider Aravind KP back in the game along with Tanveer and Nataraj who are in top form. The addition of Adrien Metge from Sherco is a big boost to the team as he brings considerable experience to the table and our young racers will be inspired by his presence. Look forward to the challenge. We are happy that the event organisers have taken the rally raid to the next level so that it is now considered to be a part of the Dakar challenge. We expect the route and terrain to be challenging as per international standards and we look forward to the challenge.”

Speaking of past achievements of the riders, Adrien Metge has the best record among the team. If you have been following our Dakar stories, you would know that the rider showcased exceptional skill at his debut Dakar 2017 and finished 22nd overall, climbing up the order throughout the challenge. He has also been Brazilian Enduro and rally winner in 2014 and 2015.

Next up is star rider Aravind KP, who was also the first Indian TVS Sherco rider to participate in the Dakar rally. Moreover, he has won 17 championships in domestic and international events.

R Nataraj, apart from the Desert storm win mentioned earlier, has won eight national championships across dirt tracks, rallies and motocross racing.

Get latest updates on
the automobile community

Login Now

Last but not the least, Abdul Wahid Tanveer has left his mark on the Indian rallying scene with three national championship wins under his belt. He also clinched victories in the National Supercross and National Rally in 2016. Tanveer was also crowned as the supercross champion in Group A category and rally champion in superbikes up to 600cc category by FMSCI.

We will be bringing you the latest updates on the Indian Baja 2017, so do watch this space.