The Indian Racing Festival raced on the streets for the first time for the second round in the championship. The Chennai Formula Racing Circuit (CFRC) hosted the first ever night-time street race in South Asia. Join us as DRC review the second round of the Indian Racing Festival. Read the weekend preview here.

Indian F4: Barter and Alibhai shine under the lights

While there was a hefty delay due to issues with FIA grading on Saturday resulting in last minute scheduling changes, Sunday was top notch entertainment. After a lot of delay regarding technical details around turns 10 and 19, the Chennai City Circuit, as its now officially called was awarded a Grade 3 rating by the FIA.

Hugh Barter dominated the first qualifying session, taking pole by an impressive margin of 1.5 seconds. Divy Nandan then narrowly beat Jaiden Pariat for the pole in second qualifying by half a tenth. Hugh Barter, who was the favorite, crashed on his hot lap in Q2 and had to start from the last grid slot.

Aqil Alibhai had a problem with his car and hence couldn’t start the first race. Zakariya Mohammed also could not finish the race and hence was not classified. But the star of race 1 was Hugh Barter, who managed to win with a 7 second gap to Ruhaan Alva followed by Abhay Mohan.

Alibhai didn’t let his problems stop him though. He raced brilliantly after starting third and overtook Divy and Jaden ahead. Divy was leading the race up until the very final moments, where a lock up caused Alibhai to catch up and then pass him with a brilliant overtake. Hugh Barter recorvered to an impressive fifth place after starting the second race from back in the last row.

Another positive thing was the track itself. The track proved to be wide enough to allow for very close racing. This was prove by the fact that we were able to see cars go three wide into turn 1 for the formula four practice sessions. The track was also loved by the drivers who praised the variety of corners the track threw at them.

With two rounds done and dusted, the bigger picture, i.e the championship battles are starting to fold out. The favorite is Hugh Barter, with Ruhaan Alva, Divy Nandan and Jaden Pariat emerging as his main challengers.

Indian Racing League: Goa Aces show resurgence while Parente rolls back the years to win

After a dismal showing last time out at the Madras International Circuit, Goa Aces seem to have sorted out their problems. Gabriela Jilkova took pole in the driver A pool qualifying session ahead of Raoul Hyman to lock out the front row for Goa. Meanwhile Sohail Shah would finish fourth in the pool B qualifying. Jilkova made history as she became the first ever female pole sitter in the history of the Indian Racing Festival.

Goa Aces would dominated in the drivers A race. They would finish 1-2, but swap positions as the defending champion Raoul Hyman took his first victory for the season and Jilkova would finish second to complete a Goa Aces 1-2. Alister Yoong, after his victory at the MIC, rounded out the podium as he finished third.

Sohail Shah would then race through to second on the pool B race, finishing only a second adrift of Alvaro Parente. Parente, the second oldest driver in the Indian Racing Festival behind Neel Jani impressed as he rolled back the years to his GP2 days to take the chequered flag first. Sohail Shah was the closest rival to him as Rishon Rajeev took the final place on the podium nearly eight seconds off the lead.

Speed Demons Delhi and Goa Aces look to have sorted out the problems that worried them at the MIC. Sohail Shah and Raoul Hyman, who finished 1-2 in their car, also walk away with 43 points as they look to defend their title. Goa Aces, thanks to Jilkova’s P2, also walk away with a boat load of points and are back in the mix.

Future races

The next round of the 2024 Indian Racing Festival will take place at the Kari Motor speedway from the 13th to the 15th of September.

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The second round of the Indian Racing Festival will be a historic occasion. The Chennai Formula Racing Circuit hosts the first night time street race in India. Join us as we preview this weekend.

The Track

The Chennai Formula Racing Circuit (CFRC) is a 3.5 kilometer long street circuit around the Island Grounds in Chennai. The CFRC is an anti-clock wise track, like Interlagos and boasts 19 corners. The track features a long straight and multiple chicanes. The track features a variety of low speed corners, hairpins and sharp corners along with high downforce sections. The consecutive chicanes towards the southern end of the track are inspired by the Esses at Suzuka.

According to projections, the chicanes and the hairpins allow for longer braking distances, which means racing closer than what you would expect from typical street circuits like Monaco. Another factor is the fact that this circuit was designed keeping in the mind the machinery Indian Racing Festival uses, the racing is expected to be close.

The track was designed by Driver International, the same organization that designed the Hyderabad Street Circuit which hosted a Formula E race last year. Read the track list for Indian Racing Festival here.

Formula 4 India: Quick recap, What to expect and storylines to follow

Hugh Barter was the name on everyone’s lips on last weekend. After dominating qualifying one and taking pole by nearly seven tenths of a second, he had to retire from a 15 second lead after his car car came to a halt moments before the chequered flag fell.

Saturday’s heartbreak would not stop him though, as he took pole in qualifying two by nearly a second. He would then tear through the field in race two and achieved the impossible: winning from the last row. Hugh Barter won race two from the fifteenth grid slot. He would then seal the deal on sunday with another dominating win in race 3, and secure all three fastest laps as well. Truly a majestic performance.

Congratulations are also in order for Jaiden Pariat who drove a very good races and finished in the points in all three races (first, seventh and fourth respectively). Ruhaan Alva also produced magical races and stood on the podium in both the IRL and the F4 categories, becoming the first person to do so in Indian Racing Festival.

Mira Erda also impressed in Indian F4. She was given the drive last minute and raced into the points in the first race. She would then retire from 11th second race and finish 11th for the third race, not bad considering she only had two practice sessions to get familiar with the car.

Another interesting statistic is that after the first three races, six of the eight teams have made a trip to the rostrum, showing how close racing in Indian Racing Festival truly is.

This is the first time these Mygale F4 cars have touched a street circuit, so it will be interesting to see how they perform. As this circuit is new for everyone, there is no familiarity factor involved, and so the grid will be mixed up. As this is a new circuit, it will also be somewhat down to luck: the team that nails the setup will be the one which walks away with the big points. Another point to consider will be the night time. The temperatures will be lower, as well as the track conditions. Conditioning to racing in the night will also be an issue that the drivers may face.

Keep an eye out for Hugh Barter, Ruhaan Alva and Isaac Demellweek this weekend, all three showing calm racing this weekend amidst a lot of chaos.

Indian Racing League: Quick recap, what to expect and storylines to follow

The first round of the IRL was eventful to say the least. Ruhaan Alva lapped up pole for the Rarh Bengal Tigers on Saturday ahead of Neel Jani and Jon Lancaster. Jon Lancaster then passed both Jani and Alva to win race 1, giving Chennai Turbo Riders their first home win. Alvaro Parente took home the silver medal, which Alva came third. Neel Jani unfortunately had to retire from the race. Saturday was a disappointing day for the current champions, Raoul Hyman qualifying 7th and then retiring.

Day two was filled with surprises as well. Alister Yoong took pole ahead of Akhil Rabindra and Sohail Shah for race two. The top two would remain unchanged in the race while, while Shah fell backwards through the pack. Gabriela Jilkova would then round out the podium, becoming the first female podium sitter in Indian Racing Festival this season. Shah would finish back in 8th, though bagging the fastest lap.

A lot of stories to talk about here coming into CRFC. Can Goa Aces sort out their problems and mount on a title charge? Eyes will be on Rarh Bengal Tigers, all four of their drivers have been racing well and keeping up with the pack. But the most important thing to look forward to is the resurgence of Alister Yoong. Having won for the first time since way back in the early rounds of 2022, he would love to carry forward this momentum onto the streets and score more bags of points.

All in all, this weekend of Indian Racing Festival is proving to be unpredictable, anyone can win and everyone has a shot at glory.

Weekend Schedule

This is how the weekend will play out for the second round of the Indian Racing Festival. All times are in IST. The races will be broadcasted live on Star Sports Select 2 and streamed live on Fancode.

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The 2024 Indian Racing Festival season kicks off later this month, Let us look at some of the tracks that will be visited by the championship. The Indian Racing Festival is the bigger umbrella under which the Indian Racing League and Formula 4 Indian Championship are hosted.

Pre-Season Testing & Round 1 – Madras International Circuit

The Madras International Circuit (previously known as Madras Motor Race Track and Irungattukottai Race Track) is a permanent motor racing circuit located in Irungattukottai, Chennai, India. It was built in the late 1980s and was inaugurated in 1990. It was the first permanent racing circuit in India and is owned by the Madras Motor Sports Club.

Circuit details:

Location – Irungattukottai, Chennai
Circuit Opened – 1990
FIA Grade – Grade 2
Circuit Layouts – 2

Full Circuit Layout:
Length – 3.717 km
Turns – 12
Lap record – 1:30.323 (Yuven Sundaramoorthy, Dallara Formulino Pro, 2020, MRF Challenge)

Short Circuit:
Length – 2.067 km
Turns – 8
Lap record – 0:56.257 (Cooper Webster, Mygale M21-F4, 2023, F4)

Circuit map for the Madras International Circuit

The Madras International Circuit, certified by the FIA and FIM, has a main circuit that is 3.717 km long with 12 turns and 3 straights, the longest being 250m. The club circuit is 2.067 km long with 7 turns. In 2014, the FIA granted the circuit a Grade 2 license.

In 2023, the Madras International Circuit hosted rounds for the All Indian Racing League and Formula 4 Indian Championship. The round at Buddh International Circuit was canceled due to scheduling and logistical issues. On the other hand, The season opener at Hyderabad Street circuit was also canceled because of the Election Code of Conduct during the state elections.

The final round at the newly announced Chennai Formula Racing Circuit was rescheduled due to Cyclone Michaung, which unexpectedly hit the city hard. As a result, the round was moved to the Madras International Circuit.

Round 2 – Chennai Formula Racing Circuit

Chennai Formula Racing Circuit(CFRC) is a 3.5Km street circuit around the Island Grounds in Chennai, which will host the Indian Racing League and Formula 4 Indian Championship races. The CFRC is set to be a night race, which be be the first-ever night race in India. The circuit was supposed to host its inaugural race in 2023, however the race was cancelled due toCyclone Michaung.

Circuit details:

Location – Island Grounds, Chennai
Circuit Type – Street Circuit
FIA Grade – N/A
Circuit Layouts – 1

Full Circuit Layout:
Length – 3.500 km
Turns – 19
Lap record – N/A

Round 3 – Kari Motor Speedway

The Kari Motor Speedway is a 2.100 km long track located in Chettipalayam, Coimbatore, named after the late Sundaram Karivardhan Naidu, a legendary Formula racing driver and a designer. B. Vijay Kumar, a former racer bought the land in 2002 to build a track which was inaugurated in 2003. Part of the existing track was used as a runway for power gliders as a part of an ultralight aviation manufacturing company. The stretch was also used in the late 1990s for drag racing events.

Circuit details:

Location – Chettipalayam, Coimbatore
Circuit Opened – 2003
FIA Grade – N/A
Circuit Layouts – 2

Full Circuit Layout:
Length – 2.100 km
Turns – 15
Lap record – N/A

Circuit map for the Kari Motor Speedway

Round 4 & 5 – To Be Confirmed