The Asian Le Mans Series 2021 is a four-event season which will begin at the Dubai Autodrome on 13 February and end at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi on 20 February.
The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world’s oldest active sports car race in endurance racing held annually since 1923 near the town of Le Mans, France. The Asian Le Mans Series is a sports car racing endurance series based in Asia, created by the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) to attract teams and drivers from Asian countries. The winning teams of Asian Le Mans Series automatically get invited to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
It is definitely a proud moment for India as this is the first time a team bearing the tricolour will race in the 24 hour Le Mans Series. Spearheaded by Narain Karthikeyan, the debutant team, also consisting of Arjun Maini and Naveen Rao, can be described as “star-studded”. The team will the first one to have an all-Indian driver line-up, competing in international racing.
Backed by JK Tyre, Racing Team India takes its nascent yet promising step towards the 24 Hours of Le Mans this weekend when it makes its debut at the season-opening round of the Asian Le Mans Series in Dubai. The team will be competing in the LMP2 category of the 2021 Asian Le Mans Series. LMP2 is the abbreviation for Le Mans Prototype 2 and involves a high-performance car built according to prescribed standards and requirements.
The car will be built on an ORECA 07 chassis. It will be powered by the 4.2-litre, naturally-aspirated V8 engine producing about 600 hp and capable of a top speed of over 320 km/h. Gibson Technology is the exclusive engine supplier for LMP2 category motor sport. With technical support from reigning Asian Le Mans Series champion team, Algarve Pro Racing, Racing Team India has set their sights on promising results.
The drivers, in a discussion with auto journalists, commented that the track is extremely technical and that practice rounds are being used to test different set-ups of the race car. A combination of endurance, team-work and luck would now be needed for the well-performing team to pull through.
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Story: Cherry Mathew Roy
