Kyle Kumaran dominates Indian Racing League in Coimbatore
Coimbatore: There is a plethora of sports leagues taking place in India today. Some are big and some are small. So, for motorsports to also make a mark is important as India keeps asking when another Narain Karthikeyan will emerge and compete in Formula One. On Saturday, at the Kari Motor Speedway, Kyle Kumaran, born in Tiruchirapalli and having competed in karting at home and then raced in Chennai and Coimbatore, came into his own. He is now based in Dubai and gets more racing time. If proof was needed that he has gained in miles, it was on view on Saturday in the Indian Racing League (IRL) as he won the race for Team Kichcha’s Kings from Bangalore. The IRL car is smart and on the twisty 2.4-km track called the Kari Motor Speedway, Kyle showed speed and sense as he raced ahead and held on to the lead. This was his first big win in a powerful car, which has attracted overseas competitors as well. Imagine, at one point of time, Indians had no racing opportunity at home. The narrative is changing, slowly.
Kyle has mastered conditions, yet to win on Saturday showed he can handle the pressure, where a seasoned Neel Jani was also competing. “I am happy with the win,” said Kyle, not going overboard with celebrations. The format of the IRL is exciting, where results count for an individual driver as well as the team. There was more good news in the IRL as Akhil Rabindra, competing for Hyderabad Black Birds came in second. Action on Sunday should be even more engaging where a different set of drivers will be on view. In the Formula 4 Indian Championship as well as the Formula LGB 4 category, which is run by JK Tyre, there was excitement. For a young man from Japan, Itsuki Sato to win the Formula 4 race was interesting, since the hype was over 15-year-old Kenyan Shane Chandaria, who is of Indian origin. Sato was cool and did his job with aplomb. Just to jog the readers’ mind, two decades back, Indian speed King Narain Karthikeyan would go and race in the Nippon series in Japan. In the Formula LGB4 races, Mehul Agarwal of Dark Don Racing came out smoking at the wheels, winning two races in a row. These cars have become more reliable and faster. “Over the years, a lot of work has gone into the cars,
