Force Gurkha RFC India 2015: Chandigarh's Gurmeet Virdi leads after Day 1

Dona Paula: After the completion of the first day of the Prologue leg of the Force Gurkha RFC India 2015, Gurmeet Virdi (co-driver Kripal Tung) of Gerrarri Offroaders Chandigarh is leading the fray with 511 points. The points are based on the team’s performance in the first six Special Stages (SS) of the challenge. Kabir Waraich (Yuvraj Tiwana), again from Gerrari Offroaders Chandigarh, is at the second position with 447 points while two Force Motors teams of Mervyn Lim (Hamizan Bin Abdul Hamid) and Tan Eng Joo (Tan Choon Hong) are at the third and fourth positions with 434 and 392 points respectively. Mervyn and Tan were the top two position holders at the inaugural edition of RFC India last year.

Force Gurkha RFC India was launched last year by Delhi-based Cougar Motorsport Pvt. Ltd. as the India Chapter of the Malaysian Rainforest Challenge, which is among the top ten toughest and the most internationally represented motor races in the World. Through 26 Special Stages (aka challenges), conducted in four competitive legs – the Prologue, the Predator, the Terminator and the Twilight Zone – RFC India 2015 will test the driving and vehicle recovery skills of the competitors under extreme off-road conditions. The competition follows a points system where teams gain certain points on successful completion of an SS and penalties are incurred for not starting or finishing an SS or for not adhering to the event rules and regulations. The team with the maximum points at the end of the 26 Special Stages will be announced as the overall winner of the event.

The Indian driver who will emerge as the top position holder at the event will get an automatic free entry in Rainforest Challenge Malaysia 2015. Last year, Kabir Waraich qualified for the competition and went to Malaysia with Gurmeet Virdi as the first Indian team to ever compete in the RFC Mother Event. As per Mr. Ashish Gupta, Founder & Director of Cougar Motorsport, “The competition is intense and the Indian team which went to Malaysia for the RFC Mother Event seems to have picked up all the tricks in the book. However, it is too early for us to come to any conclusions as it is just the first day’s results and we still have a long way to go before the final winner is announced.”

Next in line are the Special Stages 6 to 12 of the Prologue leg before the event becomes tougher with the Predator, Terminator and Twilight Zone challenges taking place at certain off-road locations across Goa. The final champion of Force Gurkha RFC India 2015 will be announced on 31st July.