I have opened gates for rest of drivers in India: Gaurav Gill

You became the first Indian to win the APRC Rally recently. Tell us what it means for you personally?
Well, I can only say this is because my love for the sport. I always wanted to be a world class rally driver and have been performing well over last few years, beating the best in the business. But it was not that easy to reach this far because of the money constraints for it plays an important role in rally driver’s life. This is the most expensive sport around the world. I am grateful to my team (MRF) and Skoda (Czech Republic) for providing me all that is needed.

What does your victory mean for Indian drivers?
Means a lot… I have opened up gates for rest of the drivers in India. This is the second biggest championship after the World Rally Championship and by winning it I have showed that Indian drivers have the passion and determination to excel at the most difficult terrains. Also, Esapekka Lappi,  the driver who finished second also belongs to my own team and is nine years younger to me. So, there is great future for Indian teams as well.

You have always been considered immensely talented with a mature head. You feel there is a future for you in the rally circuit?
This is just a start for me. People have been asking me so much about my next step. I always tell them to wait a bit because there is so much ahead to look for. World Rally is something that I have been targeting next. It’s not that difficult for me to compete there, since I have been beating the World Rally drivers consistently here in the APRC. The current World Rally champion and former champions were all competing and that’s somewhere makes my victory so much more special.

Then how soon can we see you participating in the WRC?
It’s just the monetary factor that been a hurdle as of now. Otherwise, I’ve been beating all the current and former World Rally champions consistently here in APRC for last two-three years in a row. It finally comes down to money factor and if some Indian house can take care of the monetary thing, I’ve absolutely no doubt in my mind that we can go there in World Rally and win there too.

If APRC is so competitive then why are we witnessing diminishing interest in it with only five or six teams now participating?
It’s only because the cost of participation has gone up quite a bit. The rally stretches from Malaysia to Japan, Indonesia to China, from Australia to New Zealand and various other parts. So the drivers prefer to compete in Europe as it is quite closely knit and cheaper. The transportation cost is also much less as it is mostly by roads. And most important thing is that almost all the European manufacturers are interested in rallying around their places because of various reasons and cost factors.

We’ve been talking about money all this while. Can you please tell our readers how much money is needed to compete in a rally like this?
Anything from Rs 3 crore to Rs 10 crore is needed by an individual rallyist to compete for a season. That’s where we need corporate sector support. I’m thankful to my team MRF for supporting me all through and hoping to muster enough monetary support to compete in the WRC soon.

Is that the main reason why no other Indian driver apart from you in the APRC?
Not really. There are few good drivers around like Narain Kumar and Arjun Balu who are very talented and doing well at different circuits. But it’s about putting two and two together before competing in a rally like APRC. I hope things will look up soon and more and more Indian drivers will be seen in the circuit.

Any message that you would like to pass on to all the hopeful drivers there?
This is the sport that everyone wants to get in and hurry their way and prove their point in their first outing. I would suggest that patience is the key. Try and learn the surrounding and situations around and don’t hurry too much. Don’t be confused about future. When I was young, I just wanted to be a rally driver. That clarity has paid me finally.

Is there a career in rally?
Of course there is a career in rally. One just needs to be focussed and keep chasing their dreams.

K-1000 Rally today
Bangalore: The 39th IMG K-1000 Rally will be run in the India Mines Group property near Tumkur about 100kms from Bangalore on Saturday and Sunday. The ceremonial start was done here on Friday evening. The three stages — Alpha (14.50Km), Beta (14.55) and the India Mines Stage (7.3Km) — will be run twice in the same direction on Saturday and once on Sunday.