Amanpreet Ahluwalia has had a symbiotic relationship with the North East. The 40-year-old from Delhi has won nearly every rallying event except in Nagaland.
The second day of the JK Tyre Arunachal Festival of Speed here on Sunday saw Amanpreet’s love affair continue as he took a comfortable lead to be on course for the crown.
“I have won almost all the events that have happened in the North East in the last year. I need to win in Nagaland even though I have never taken part in any event there. If I can win the Arunachal Festival of Speed, it will be a good North East tour,” said Amanpreet.
Amanpreet, the owner of one of the largest rally car workshops in India, turned out to be the fastest in almost all the six stages. With a cushion of 28 seconds going into the third and final day, Amanpreet will win the title if he finishes without committing a major gaffe.
He has cracked the six stages so far in 34.32 minutes, conquering the uphill rides and rough terrain with a ease in his turbo-charged Maruti Gypsy.
K.M. Bopaiah from Coorg, who won the sixth and last stage of the day, is placed second.
“We have a decent lead as of now. But till the time it’s actually over, it’s never over. So fingers crossed,” Amanpreet said.
The provisional results: 1. Amanpreet Ahluwalia (navigator Ajay Kumar) 00: 34min. 32s, 2. K.M. Bopaiah & Gagan Karumbaiah 00:35min, 3. Sandeep Sharma & Pratap Thakur 00:35.24, 4. Baljit Singh & Phobe Dale Nongrum 00:36.14, 5. Shahid Khan & Phurpa Tseing 00:37.50.
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