Young turks & Mira Erda shine in JK racing

Coimbatore: Quite often, the lament in Indian sports is that very poor work is done at the grassroots level. There are a few exceptions, though, which was in full bloom over the weekend in Round 2 of the JK Tyre Racing Season 2025. The Kari Motor Speedway, which is tucked away from the noise of the city, was buzzing with activity over the weekend. For those who like the noise, from high revs of cars and bikes tearing down the flat straight, motorsports is great fun.

Watching the competitors in action in the Levitas Cup over two days, one thing is certain, at the entry level, there is a platform for drivers. How they (drivers) up their game and move to the next level is their own skill, will, and a bit of luck. Four races were gone through in the Levitas Cup on the weekend, where the stripped-down version of the Maruti Ignis is used to race. The 1200 cc engine has been tuned well, giving the drivers, both tyros and seasoned professionals, a chance to step on the gas.

At one end of the spectrum, it was good to see a kid from Gurugram, Nihal Singh show raw pace on Saturday as he teased the car on the circuit. From karting to racing, it is a big shift. Nihal, a second- generation racing guy, showed promise and speed. It was bad luck, on Sunday, his car was spluttering. This is motorsports, a few things are beyond control.

If Nihal made news on Saturday, on Sunday, local lad Jai Prashanth Venkat was fast and furious as he won the fourth race in the Levitas Cup. Who would have imagined, the Ignis, which has been ‘phased out’ from the market, could race, on Levitas tyres. At the same time, there was seasoned professional Mira Erda who also made her presence felt as a ‘guest driver.’