Rally of Coimbatore: Arjun Rao determined to do well

A. Arjun Rao (co-driver R. Satish) take off on a confident note in the Rally of Coimbatore at the Jenney’s Club in Coimbatore on Friday.
| Photo Credit: M. PERIASAMY

A. Arjun Rao and his co-driver Rajagopal Satish of Mandovi Racing aims to finish on top yet again in the Rally of Coimbatore, the third round of the Blueband FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship for four-wheelers, which was flagged off from the Jenney’s Club here on Friday.

With two top finishes in two rounds (Chennai & Itanagar) and with the big guns like Gaurav Gill, defending champion Karna Kadur, and Amittrajit Ghosh ready to fire, it may not be easy for Arjun, the overall championship leader.

“I understand, but we are determined to do well here. We have worked hard for it and put in our time and effort as much as the best of the rest in fray,” said Arjun.

“Now that we have a good lead, we want to consolidate our standings in the championship points table. It’s always good to be on a winning streak as it helps us learn a lot from what we did and did not in the first two rounds,” he added.

The drivers did the race earlier today and most of them said it would be tough as the stages, ten in all, are tight and challenging.

On Saturday, the challenge begins at the SM Agro stage on the L&T bypass in the city followed by the Kethanur stages, near Palladam, the next day.

“The Kethanur stage is fantastic. It’s a proper drivers’ stage, fast and flowing,” said Arjun, who has rallied the stages on many an occasion.

But with a record 76 cars in fray, a first in Indian rallying, the stages are expected to turn rough, as the participants drive through, on Sunday. It does not matter as the experienced stars have had a feel of these stages before and are eager to attack it from the word go.