Chennai’s MMRT race track to hold test run for night races

The Madras Motor Sports Club has earmarked funds to install floodlights, according to vice-president Vicky Chandhok.

Published : Jul 21, 2019 16:12 IST

In the long run, the club wishes to host a lot of endurance races, according to Vicky Chandhok.
In the long run, the club wishes to host a lot of endurance races, according to Vicky Chandhok.
lightbox-info

In the long run, the club wishes to host a lot of endurance races, according to Vicky Chandhok.

The Madras Motor Sports Club has earmarked funds to install floodlights at the MMRT racing track in Chennai, according to club vice-president Vicky Chandhok. For this, the club has scheduled a test run on August 7 between 6 pm and 11 pm to evaluate the possibility of full-fledged night races in the near future.

Speaking on the sidelines of the third round of the National car racing championship, Chandhok said: “A very professional lighting expert has given us a quote of ₹16 Crores do up the lights just like the Singapore circuit. But we are going for a low lighting just like they have at Le Mans (France). We are planning to install basic lighting that can help the marshals and officials see the incidents on track so that they make sure that no one is injured. Safety is one aspect which I and everyone at the club are very particular about.”

It means night night races — the first in India — are a definite possibility.

'Planning to upgrade the track'

Chandhok added: “In the long-run, we would like to host a lot of endurance races and we are also planning to upgrade the track to support racing in the anti-clockwise direction which needs about 56 changes to the track.”

“On August 7, we have night testing and once the evaluation process goes through, we will decide if we need more lighting and we will definitely have night races starting with saloon cars,” Chandhok affirmed.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment