In a first of its kind for all the fast cars lovers of Nagaland the Round 4 of Blueband – Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) – Indian National Rally Championship (INRC) 2022 is set to take place in Kohima from 12 to 14 January 2023.
This was announced by the Nagaland Adventures Club (NAC) and Prem Nath, Chief Promoter, Blueband Sports in a press conference held today, here at Hotel Crescent, Kohima.
Prem Nath, Chief Promoter, Blueband Sports said the INRC has been taking place in India for the last 50 years. As a flagship event for rallying across India, the fourth leg of 2022 is going to be the ‘Rally of Nagaland’ which is the concluding round of the championship.
“The first leg took place in Chennai, second in Coimbatore, third in Bangalore and here we come Nagaland. It’s the first time happening in Nagaland. We are definitely looking forward to come out here and perform and race and bring out our fast cars here and show the public of Nagaland a fantastic race,” stated the Chief Promoter of Blueband Sports.
Peter Rutsa, Convenor stated that INRC under FMSCI is organising this event in the North east for the second time, the first being in Arunachal and now the second in Nagaland.
He said the NAC is privileged to host the event with support and Co-partnership with the Government of Nagaland.
He informed that the NAC met Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and he assured his support and participation of the state government.
Rutsa said, “NAC along with the promoters from INRC and FMSCI will be working along with the state machineries to make this event a grand success.”
He also informed that the rally will be held along the North East Council (NEC) road which is from Jotsoma to Dzuleke and the other route will be from Bypass Rutsa to Indira Gandhi Stadium and the Kohima Bypass Road covering a total of 120km in the two-day event.
The event will be flagged off by the Chief Minister of Nagaland Neiphiu Rio at Hockey Ground, Meriema village on 12 January.
The event will also witness the ‘North-East Talent Hunt series’ for Northeast riders from 8 to 9 January. This will be an opportunity for drivers from Nagaland and the Northeast to vie for the top honour to get a free drive in the 2023 first leg of the championship.
“It’s an opportunity and a great window for the budding talent from the NE to get a fully prep rally car, fully prep mechanic team and all complete sponsored drive in the National Championship,” added the Chief Promoter.
The champion of the rally will be given a wild card entry to 2023 INRC, which includes a full sponsorship of to and fro flight, lodging as well as fully prep INRC polo car.
It also informed that more than 40 drivers from all over India will be participating in this particular event for round four of the championship and the organisers are expecting some more entries.
Some of the renowned personalities and champions participating in the fourth leg are Gaurav Gill (drives for JK Tyres) a professional rally driver and the first sportsperson from Motorsports to win the coveted Arjuna Award from the President of India in 2019; Karna Kadur (drives for MRF) an Indian National Rally Champion and also the Motorsports Manager and development driver at Red Rooster Performance, who is also the Driving Instructor at Red Rooster Performance Motorsports Academy; Aditya Thakur for MRF and Fabid Ahmer.
The Chief promoter also informed that the 2022 season has been extended till January 2023 and the New season 2023 Championship will begin from 1 February to December 2023 and with much enthusiasm, Nath also informed that the 2023 championship is likely to take place in Nagaland during September and December.
“This is a great opportunity provided by the NAC to ensure that rallying in the NE is actually coming of age and we kind of find out all those budding drivers wanting to actually get to the next level,” added Nath.
On 12 January the scrutiny of all the vehicles will take place and on 13 and 14 January the two-day event will begin from 6am to 4pm.
The roads will be closed for the rally period but will open for emergencies. During the rally period the roads will be closed for a maximum of two hours.
Further, the organisers informed that there will be limited spectators with a ticket system of Rs 2000 per vehicle and the entire rally will be broadcasted in various TV channels.
