Mahindra Racing signs on Sarath Kumar
Mr Anand Mahindra had mentioned in our interview with him that they were looking to nurture Indian talent, little did we know that Mahindra Racing would be announcing the name of an Indian rider so soon.The Indian rider in question happens to be the extremely talented Sarath Kumar and together with Mahindra Racing he will contest the 2012 Italian Motor Racing Championship in the 125cc class. Sarath was the first Indian rider to participate in the MotoGP 125cc World Championship and was also the national champion of India in 2010 for the 165cc class. The team's second rider will be Riccardo Moretti, the 2009 125cc Italian champion.
When questioned about the move to the Italian Road Racing Championship and why not a step up to Moto3, team principal of Mahindra Racing, Mufaddlal Choonia said that the 125cc class and Moto3 (250cc) is closer to the Indian two wheeler market and therefore it made more sense racing in these two arenas. He also added that this is a better stepping stone for an Indian rider before moving on to the top level of two wheeled racing and a definite push towards Mahindra Racing's goal to have an Indian rider on the Moto3 Team. The Italian championship, which has had past winners like Valentino Rossi, Giacomo Agostini and Marco Melandri, is not one to be taken lightly though Sarath Kumar should be comfortable on the bike as it's the same spec bike that he rode in the 2011 MotoGP 125cc World championships.
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