PETRONAS TVS Racing factory rider Aishwarya Pissay, the only Indian female World champion in motorsports, began her quest for a record sixth consecutive National Rally Championship crown on a winning note astride her rally-tuned TVS Apache RTR 200. Pissay conquered the Rally of Chikmagalur – the first round of the MRF Mogrip FMSCI Indian National Racing Championship (INRC) for two-wheelers on Sunday.
The 2019 FIM World Cup Champion in the Ladies class, put in a commanding performance that saw her win the 56-km first round. She clocked 1 hour 7 min 23.684 seconds to win the first round with the fastest timing in all the eight Special Stages (SS). While winning this class, she finished 32nd overall among 88 riders, including 79 men.
The TVS Racing talent who made a clean sweep of all the six rounds for her fifth National title in the Ladies class of the two-wheeler Rally Nationals last year, is eager to get back to bigger cross-country events, as she recovers from a major injury from last year’s Jordan Rally.
The disciplined motorsports athlete from PETRONAS TVS Racing, co-sponsored by Ultrahuman, IIFL, Micro Labs and Surana College, who bounced back into form, said, ” I am happy with our victory at the first round. The bike is lean and powerful. I thoroughly enjoyed riding my TVS Apache RTR 200 through the beautiful coffee estates and look forward to more of it. I have trained hard for the Nationals including a trip to France under acclaimed mentor Michael Metge. I look forward to learning more from each one of these races and my immediate goal is to bring home the sixth National title.”
The 26-year-old from Bengaluru rose like a phoenix from a life-threatening injury before her World crown and silenced her critics with creditable deeds on the track with a highly successful 2021.
The versatile rider, who began her biking career in late 2016, vaulted into the record books with a Road Racing National title, the TVS One Make Championship and several cross-country rally championships at Madras Motor Racetrack and cross country rallies in 2017. Due to her exhilarating performance at the TVS One Make Championship and her achievements in rallies, her talent was noticed by PETRONAS TVS Racing after which she was inducted into India’s first factory racing team’s stable. Thereon, she started tasting success in the Rally Nationals and never looked back after winning five Rally Nationals in a row for the Hosur-based team. Looking forward to the second round in Mangalore on May 22, she is determined and is gearing up to use the Nationals as a pedestal to jump-start her international activity once again.
The second round of two-wheeler Rally Nationals organised by Ace Events will have two Special Stages and will run three times each. For a Special Stage rally distance of 54.12 km and with a liaison section, the total rally distance will be over 90 km. The terrain is all gravel and rains can make it more challenging like last year.
