Three JK Tyre Motorsport drivers in fray at Asia Pacific Rally Championship finals in Indonesia

by Samiksha Chogule 

Danau Toba (Indonesia), Nov, 2023: The final round of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship 2023 (APRC) will have a strong Indian presence at the Danau Toba Rally which gets underway here from 24^th-26^th November.

Considered as one of the toughest rallies on the circuit, the Danau Toba Rally will run on gravel and cover a distance of 433 kms, with 150.35 kms earmarked for 11 special stages and one super special stage.

On a combined grid of 63 competitive cars, out of which 18 are participating in APRC also, India’s biggest promoter of motorsport JK Tyre together with Vamcy Merla Sports Foundation have fielded three young drivers under their colours namely Jahaan Singh Gill from Chandigarh with co-driver Suraj Prasad, Coorg lad Suhem Kabeer with co-driver PVS Murthy and Lokesh Gowda from Mysore with co-driver Ashwin Naik.

Jahaan Singh Gill who has just sealed his JINRC title in the Indian National Rally Championship will be driving the N11 Subaru and Suhem Kabeer & Lokesh Gowda will be behind the wheels of N12 Subaru. These four-wheel drives producing over 300bhp, are certain to spice up things over the weekend on the tricky wet surface that the rally will offer.

The competitors had their initial brush with conditions when they tested their cars for the first time on the challenging turf. Greeted with rains, it was a new experience for them as they are used to two wheel drives back in India and it was their first outing behind the wheels of four-wheel drive cars.

Talking post the official testing session, Jahaan who has just in the last weekend sealed his Championship title back home in the JINRC and is also leading in INRC 3 category is expected to carry forward the momentum in his maiden international outing said, “We are looking forward to this rally because it is something different which we had never experienced before. Thanks to JK Tyre & Vamcy Merla for this opportunity to drive in the finals of APRC.”

“We tested the car and realised it’s a totally different ball game. These cars are much faster than what we drive back home. Braking and acceleration usage is limited as these cars don’t turn with steering input but use throttle in the corners unlike our two-wheel drive cars where we brake much later. As of now our main aim is to get used to the car and focus on completing the rally more than anything else,” he further added.  

Sharing the same sentiment, Suhem Kabeer from Bangalore said, “Stepping onto the international stage is a thrilling challenge and a new road to conquer. We are happy with the progress so far and will give it our best shot during the weekend.”

Lokesh, making his comeback into rallying after a break, knows the challenges that lie ahead but is confident of using all his experience and making it count. His seasoned co-driver Ashwin Naik has helped him get upto paces with the car and said, “It is a new learning for all of us and we want to make the most of it and have a good weekend with an aim to strive for the podium.”

The rally will officially start on Friday, 24th November, followed by Leg 1 on Saturday and Leg 2 on Sunday followed by prize giving.

About JK Tyre Motorsport: JK Tyre has been closely associated with the world of motorsports for almost three decades. The company laid down a long-term plan to popularize and promote the sport in the country. Its first target was to change the notion that this was a sport for the elite. So, it packaged and redesigned it in a spectator-friendly way, drawing the masses to the sport. JK Tyre’s efforts started paying dividends in just a few years’ time, with the likes of Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandok going all the way to the F1 rung, the highest level of single-seat racing in the world. Since then, a number of stars emerged, including Armaan Ebrahim, the Maini brothers (Kush and Arjun), Anindith Reddy Konda, amongst many others. JK Tyre Motorsports is very proud of the role it has played in bringing women into motorsports in a big way. Apart from encouraging them to get into the sport through karting as kids, the company also gave them opportunities in various national championships. With a vision to promote women in motorsports, the company has curated women-centric events such as JK Tyre WIAA Women’s Rally to Valley, JK Tyre Defence Wives Power Drive, JK Tyre-YFLO Women’s Power Drive, JK Tyre Times Women’s Drive apart from introducing an all-women’s team in the JK Tyre National Racing Championship to encourage women to take up to the sport.