Chennai: The highly anticipated Round 2 of the Indian Racing Festival (IRF), in Chennai, set to be India’s and South Asia’s first-night street racing round, did not kick off on Saturday as expected as practice races were only conducted instead qualifying and main race.
Round 1 of the Indian Racing League, which took place at the Madras Motor Race Track in Irungattukottai, Chennai, went smoothly on both days.
However, Round 2, held at the Island Grounds in the street circuit at night, encountered speed bumps on the opening day as the much-expected Indian Racing League (IRL) did not get any main race action.
Track safety concerns
The IRF, which includes the IRL, Formula 4 Indian Championship, and JK Formula LGB4, faced unexpected delays due to technical issues related to the circuit’s licensing. Due to this, the races were postponed multiple times.
Safety concerns at several corners of the 19-turn circuit required the organizers to adjust some corner-profiles to meet the safety standards set by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA).
On Friday, Giuseppe Muscioni, a member of the FIA Circuit Commission, inspected the track and provided provisional approval recommending modifications at certain corners to enhance safety. The primary issue was the high approach speed into these corners which needed changes to reduce speed.
Despite this, a challenge was posed at the final turn leading to the start-finish straight on Marina Beach Road.
Akbar Ebrahim, President of the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI), the governing body for motorsports in India, explained to the media that track-modifications had to be made to manage speed-control of the cars.
“In turn 19, the approach speed into that left-hander was very fast, so we had to slow the cars down. This required significant adjustments, including rearranging the Tecpro barriers at that corner. Additionally, we needed to tighten the corner at turn 10 and bring the barriers in. All of these changes took some time.”
Delayed flag-off
A crucial G3 license, necessary for hosting lower-tier international events like the IRF, was finally secured from the FIA, the governing body for four-wheel motorsports, just hours after the Madras High Court extended the deadline for organizers to obtain the federation’s approval. The court granted an extension until 8 pm on Saturday, allowing the event to proceed.
However, the delay impacted the schedule significantly.
The flag-off for the F4 Indian Championship, originally slated for 3 pm, was pushed to 7 pm, resulting in the cancellation of the qualifying and main races for the IRL and F4 Indian Championship.
Following the flag-off, another delay of almost two hours occurred before the JK Formula LGB4 cars could begin their first practice session of the day, which eventually got underway at 9:10 pm.
This subsequently pushed the free practice sessions for the F4 Indian Championship and IRL to late Saturday night.
The Chennai Street Circuit, a 3.5 km track with 19 challenging turns, runs through the Island Grounds next to Marina Beach, with the start-finish line positioned along the scenic beach road.
The circuit, characterized by long straights and tight turns, presents a challenge for drivers, adding to the excitement of the event.
Provisional Schedule for F4 & IRL on Sunday
10:40 AM – 11:10 AM: Free Practice – Driver B (IRL)
11:20 AM – 11:35 AM: Free Practice 2 (F4)
12:15 PM – 12:25 PM: Qualifying – Driver B (IRL)
12:35 PM – 12:45 PM: Qualifying 1 (F4)
12:50 PM – 1:00 PM: Qualifying 2 (F4)
2:00 PM – 2:10 PM: Qualifying – Driver A (IRL)
3:30 PM – 4:00 PM: Race 1 (F4)
4:30 PM – 5:00 PM: Race1 – Driver A (IRL)
8:45 PM – 9:15 PM: Race 2 (F4)
9:45 PM – 10:15 PM: Race2 – Driver B (IRL)