MAHINDRA RACING CREATES HISTORY
23092013
MAHINDRA RACING CREATES HISTORY AT ITALIAN NATIONAL MOTORCYCLE RACING CHAMPIONSHIP (CIV) 2013
WINS ‘CONSTRUCTORS TITLE’ FOR SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR
Mumbai, September 23, 2013 - Mahindra Racing – the first and only Indian manufacturer to enter the world of international motorcycle grand prix racing – created history by winning the prestigious ‘Constructors Title’ in the Moto3 class (250cc) at the Italian National Motorcycle Racing Championship (CIV) in Italy. The exciting final race of the 2013 season concluded at the Mugello Circuit yesterday, where the team won the prestigious title. Last year, Mahindra had won the title in the 125 cc class.
Mahindra Racing riders, Andrea Locatelli and Michael Rinaldi also wrapped up the 2013 season with an incredible 1st and 2nd place finish in the Riders’ Championship.
“This historic victory at the CIV marks a new high for Mahindra Racing in its journey towards becoming a global motorsports brand. Winning the Constructors Title for the second year in a row in this highly competitive series is also a remarkable achievement for Indian motorsport and we are very proud to have played our part in making it happen,” said Mr. Anand Mahindra, Chairman, Mahindra Group.
“Hearty congratulations to the riders, technicians and support staff of Mahindra Racing. They have demonstrated remarkable team spirit and worked very hard to win the Constructors Title at the CIV Championship, which is among the most competitive in the world. This win motivates us to work even harder during the next year”, added Mr. S. P. Shukla, President, Group Strategy and Defence Sector and Chief Brand Officer, Mahindra Group.
Commenting on the win, Mr. Mufaddal Choonia, CEO of Mahindra Racing said, “Last year, we created history by winning the Constructors Title at the Italian National Motorcycle Racing Championship for the very first time. Today, we have won the competition for the second year in a row and are thrilled with our success. This is a significant achievement for Mahindra Racing, considering that our MGP3O bike is still in its first year of development. We hope to continue to do well and rise to greater heights in the seasons to come.”
Championship winner Andrea Locatelli said, “We fought all the way through the season and finally we can say we’re the Italian Champions! Today’s race was all about getting it done, I really didn’t want to waste my chances with a silly mistake. I want to thank my family and Team Mahindra Racing. They have done an incredible job and gave me the perfect bike. I hope to keep working with them in the future.”
Wrapping up the championship in second place, Michael Ruben Rinaldi said, “What a fantastic race! It’s a shame I missed winning the last race by just 0.017 seconds, but I’m happy because I gave my best and rode my Mahindra as hard as I could. I tried to pull away in the early stages but once I saw it was not possible, I tried to keep myself in the mix up front. It’s been an amazing season and I would like to thank Mahindra Racing and everyone who has supported me. I would like also to congratulate my team mate for the well-deserved title.”
In the 2013 season of Italy’s leading national track competition, the team entered the Moto3 (250cc – 4 stroke) class with two very talented riders, Andrea Locatelli (16, from Alzano Lombardo) and Michael Rinaldi (17, from Rimini, Emilia-Romagna). Throughout the championship, the riders pulled off a number of hard-fought podium finishes in 10 gruelling rounds, with some fantastic double podiums and top two finishes.
Demonstrating its expertise on a stage where Italy’s best young riders compete, the Indian team led the Constructor’s standings with a good margin throughout the season. Both riders demonstrated just why their names are included in the list of Italy’s most promising young racing talent. While Andrea Locatelli won the Riders Championship with 167 well earned points, teammate Michael Rinaldi finished the season in second place with 145 points.
Mahindra Racing is one among a handful of entrants, which has chosen to develop its own technology for chassis and engine, while at the same time challenging the might of established racing factories that fill the rest of the grid at the CIV. This win is significant, considering that the MGP3O is still in its first year of development and was assembled for the first time only in January 2013.
CIV Moto3 Final Standing
Constructors’ Standing Points:
1) Mahindra – 201
2) Honda – 187
3) Oral – 72
Riders’ Standing:
1) Locatelli 167 (Mahindra)
2) Rinaldi 145 (Mahindra)
3) Coletti 144 (Honda)
About Mahindra Racing
Mahindra Racing became the first Indian team to participate in the FIM MotoGP™ World Motorcycle Racing Championship in 2011 and the Italian National Motorcycle Racing Championship (CIV) in 2012.
Racing in the Moto3™ class in MotoGP, Mahindra Racing entered the 2013 season with its own new 4-stroke, single-cylinder, 250cc motorcycle: the Mahindra MGP3O, developed with experienced Swiss firm Suter Racing Technology AG. Experienced Spanish rider Efrén Vázquez (26, from Bilbao) is teamed with exciting Portuguese teenager Miguel Oliveira (18, from Pragal near Lisbon). The team has been recording consistent Top 5 finishes and has already achieved a pole position and two circuit lap records in the first 12 rounds of the World Championship.
At the opening round in Qatar, the Mahindra duo had a dream debut with a double Top 10 result for the only Indian team in Grand Prix motorcycle racing. In the Catalunya round, Vázquez crossed the line in fifth and Oliveira was sixth; this double Top 6 being the best result for Mahindra Racing so far, as a pair. Riding to perfection at the Assen Round, Oliveira was just inches from scoring the team’s historic first podium, when he crossed the line in fourth place just 0.096 seconds from third, and 0.378 behind the leader. In Sachsenring, the team scored another double top six finish. The team continues to be in the Top 3 in the Constructor’s rankings.
In the 2012 CIV season, Mahindra Racing competed in the 125 GP Class and became the first team from India to win an international motorsport event, eventually recording six victories from eight races and securing the Constructors’ Title. In the 2013 CIV season, the team has entered the Moto3 (250cc – 4 stroke) class with talented riders Andrea Locatelli (16, from Alzano Lombardo) and Michael Rinaldi (17, Rimini, Emilia-Romagna). The Mahindra riders have already achieved 7 podium finishes in 8 Rounds so far in this season, with the best results being the double podiums with 1st and 2nd finishes at Round 5 in Misano and Round 7 in Imola. Mahindra Racing currently leads the Constructor’s standings with a wide margin.
Breaking new ground as an Indian Constructor, Mahindra Racing created history for Indian automotive engineering, when Ambrogio Racing – a team in the Moto3TM World Championship decided to switch to the Mahindra MGP3O racing bikes, becoming Mahindra Racing’s first customer.
Mahindra’s bold decision to take on the world’s best at the highest level of motorcycle racing won the team prestigious awards such as the ‘ZigWheels Motorsport Award of the Year, 2012’, and the NDTV Car and Bike Awards ‘Mobil 1 Motorsport Award of the Year, 2012’.
For further information please visit: www.mahindraracing.com.
About Mahindra
The Mahindra Group focuses on enabling people to rise through solutions that power mobility, drive rural prosperity, enhance urban lifestyles and increase business efficiency.
A USD 16.2 billion multinational group based in Mumbai, India, Mahindra employs more than 155,000 people in over 100 countries. Mahindra operates in the key industries that drive economic growth, enjoying a leadership position in tractors, utility vehicles, after-market, information technology and vacation ownership. In addition, Mahindra enjoys a strong presence in the agribusiness, aerospace, components, consulting services, defence, energy, financial services, industrial equipment, logistics, real estate, retail, steel, commercial vehicles and two wheeler industries.
In 2012, Mahindra featured on the Forbes Global 2000 list, a listing of the biggest and most powerful listed companies in the world. In 2013, the Mahindra Group received the Financial Times ‘Boldness in Business’ Award in the ‘Emerging Markets’ category.
Visit us at www.mahindra.com.
| For further enquiries | ||
| Ms. Roma Balwani
Senior Vice President
Group Communications
Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.
Phone: +91-22 24975176
| Mr. Carlo Baldi
Mahindra CIV consultant
Phone: +39 0564071367
Mobile: +39 3351312708
| Ms. Camilla Truzzoli
Team Coordinator, CIV Team
Mahindra Racing
Mobile: +39 3497448971
|
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