Podium for Gautam Singhania at the Monza round of the 2015 Ferrari Challenge Europe Championship
The 2015 Ferrari Challenge Europe Championship's round at the historic Monza Circuit in Italy was a scene of intense racing. Gautam Singhania, chairman and managing director, Raymond Limited started on P4 and quickly sprang to the third position in the opening stages of the race. The Indian driver is debuting in the Coppa Shell category.
Ericha Prinoth of Ineco-MP Racing began on pole and led the pack into the first corner, with Jacques Duvyer chasing him in second. Gautam Singhania, who drives for the Swiss team Kessel Racing, joined the lead pair as they began to open a gap to the rest.
Ericha Prinoth drove a great race and managed to stay out in front, but misfortune struck him on the final corner of the last lap. The Italian driver came up on a slow backmarker and had to lift off the throttle at the exit of the Parabolica. Jacques Duvyer, who drives for Motor Piacenza, who had a better drive out of the corner, raced past Prinoth to cross the finish line in P1.
The Indian tri-colour swathed Ferrari 458 crossed the finish line in third with an ecstatic Gautam Singhania at its helm. Speaking on his win, Gautam Hari Singhania said, "It is a proud moment for me to secure a podium finish at the first race of this prestigious Ferrari event. This was a big challenge for me and (I) have set my sights on the Championship and World Finals 2015."
First Indian to get the Podium in Ferrari Challenge EU
| Monza, ITALY / Mumbai, 19th April, 2015: - Gautam Hari Singhania, Chairman and Managing Director, Raymond Limited and Founder Chairman, Super Car Club, kick started his participation at the prestigious Ferrari event Ferrari Challenge Europe Championship 2015 by securing a historic podium finish at Monza, ITALY. He finished 3rd in his category Coppa Shell and had qualified 4th for this race. The Ferrari Challenge Europe Championship 2015 started this month and is also endorsed by the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI). Commenting on his historic win, Gautam Hari Singhania said "It is a proud moment for me to secure a podium finish at the first race of this prestigious Ferrari event. This was a big challenge for me and have set my sights on the Championship and World Finals 2015." The Coppa Shell category delivered on drama in the first lap with Ericha Prinoth (Ineco Mp Racing) making use of his pole position, managed to keep his lead ahead of Belgian Jacques Duvyer, while the only Indian driver - Gautam Hari Singhania almost immediately moved up into third. 2014 Coppa Gentlemen winner Fons Scheltema, however, was pranged by another driver, while Rick Lovat spun at the Variante della Roggia and ended up retiring. Out in front, Prinoth and the two Kessel Racing drivers quickly pulled away from the rest of the field along with Thomas Lindroth (Baron Service) and Eric Cheung (AF Corse). Tension rose several notches at the last corner of the last lap, however, as halfway through the Parabolica, Prinoth found a slower car right in his line and had to slow. Duyver, who'd got fastest out of the corner, quickly took advantage of Prinoth's misfortune. He had an easy time of it on the straight, going on to win with a 1"624 lead over Prinoth and a 6"118 over Singhania, author of the fastest lap of the race. The entire season comprises in total of 15 races with two races a weekend, spread over six weekends mainly at Monza (ITALY), Imola (ITALY), Mugello (ITALY), Le Castellet (FRANCE), Valencia (SPAIN) and Budapest (HUNGARY). This culminates into to the world finals, consisting of three races in December 2015, where one race is together with the other two regions of Asia and North America. The gird will consist of about 40-50 cars like last year and there's sure to be some competitive racing that promises to be a great experience. Gautam Hari Singhania raced with the renowned Swiss Team named Kessel Racing that has registered numerous wins and an exhaustive experience under its belt. Former F1 driver and current GT driver Andrea Motermini is his coach for the entire season. 2014 has been a great year for Gautam Singhania as he participated in various prestigious racing tournaments across the world, most recently being the Ferrari Finali Mondiali in Abu Dhabi where he secured a podium finish in the Coppa Shell EU Race 2 category and NGK Racing Series at the Yas Marina Circuit wherein he bagged a double win. Since 1993, Ferrari has been celebrating the end of its racing season with its now-legendary 'Finali Mondiali' that will witness competitors from United States, Asia-Pacific, and Europe series coming together. The Ferrari Challenge is a single-marque sport championship, and was earlier created for owners of the Ferrari 348 Berlinetta, who wanted to be involved in racing. (The Ferrari 348 (Type F119) is a mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive V8-powered 2-seat sports car). The Ferrari458 challenge series is a racing tournament that is a real treat for Ferrari fans, as this occasion is all set to showcase over 250 exotic and limited series Ferrari cars, thus providing four extraordinary days of excitement and spectacle. Gautam Hari Singhania is a pioneering enthusiast in the Indian motorsport landscape. He is the co-founder of the Super Car Club (SCC), which has launched various activities to promote the popularity of these super machines including Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, Bentley, Rolls-Royce, BMW and Mercedes in India. He has been successfully organizing the Parx Super Car Show for six years now, bringing together numerous super cars from across the country to a single venue for the city of Mumbai to view. The Club undertook a thrilling expedition to Leh-Ladakh in 2013 and Rajasthan Desert Escape in 2014. SCC, under the leadership of Gautam Singhania, is promoting drifting as an auto sports in the country. He also unveiled India's first and only exclusive drifting car towards the end of 2013. The unveiling ceremony happened a few months after he emerged as the winner in the amateur category of the All Stars European Drift Championship held at Malta in September 2012. The event saw over 30 participants competing in an intense final which he won by the point difference of 2.5. Mr. Singhania also holds the record for being the only Asian and Indian to have participated and won. Not that he is content with driving luxury cars on Indian soil. Among other things, Mr. Singhania won the 2014 Ferrari Pirelli Open held at Brands Hatch in Great Britain becoming the first and the only Indian to achieve this feat and scored a podium finish at the Britcar Championship at Oulton Park. Mr. Singhania recently also secured a podium finish in the Coppa Shell EU Race 2 category at the World Ferrari Finali (Finali Mondiali) and a double win in the NGK racing series at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi. | |
