by NR INDRAN / INT

Bangalore : Mahindra Racing Team and Riccardo Moretti got an amazing result at the Mugello Circuit today, by taking the victory in the Season opening race at  the 125GP Italian Championship. It was also a good race for the Sarath Kumar, who unfortunately was forced to an early retirement due to a technical issue. Moretti started therace from the pole thanks to the outstanding performance displayed in the two qualifying sessions, while Kumar got off from the 8th row and the 22nd spot on the grid. It was the first week-end for the young Indian rider on the Italian track and also the crash suffered during the wet 2nd qualifying session didn’t help, albeit it let to no injury. Moretti got a fantastic start of the race and he both mantained and quickly extended his leadership on the opponents. Kumar, on the other hand, didn’t get the best start but he was able to settle into a good rhythm and to overtake several riders ahead of him. As the race went intoits second half Moretti’s advantage on the runner-up grew to an amazing tenseconds, while Kumar kept pushing hard before pulling to an early and unlucky retirement – due to a technical problem he experienced with three laps to go, after a good battle with Luca Marini – brother of Valentino Rossi. The raceended up with an overpowering victory by Moretti, who crossed the finish linewith a big margin over the rest of the field, that means first place in the standings.

Mufaddal Choonia– Team Mahindra Racing Principal :”We feel ecstatic winning the first race of the italian championship which is one of the toughest national motor racing championships in the world. A victory in our debut race is a shot in the arm. We are now in the right frame of mind to vie for the championship title!

Riccardo Moretti : “Westarted this season in the best way possible. My start from the grid was a good one and since I was in the lead I tried to push at my best to get the best margin possible. I was able to do so and that allowed me to just manage the advantage in the second part of the race. During the course of the week-end Igot to know both bike and time much better and I can say we’re still not at100% but surely there’s  good room for improvements. I would like to thank my team that gave me a very competitive bike and I’m looking forward to the next event, that will take place atImola.”

Sarath Kumar : “It’s been a very good experience for me, despite the technical problem that didn’t allow me to finish the race. I learned a lot, though. I didn’t get the perfect start but my race pace was not so bad. Next time I will do better, I’m sure.”

www.mahindraracing.com

The Mahindra Group focuses on enabling people to rise. Mahindra operates in the key industries that drive economic growth, enjoying a leadership position in tractors, utility vehicles, information technology and vacation ownership. Mahindra has a presence in the automotive industry,agri business, aerospace, components, consulting services, defence, energy, financial services, industrial equipment, logistics, real estate, retail, steel and two wheelers.

A US $14.4 billion multinational group based in Mumbai, India, Mahindra employs more than 144,000 people in over 100 countries.

In 2011, Mahindra featured on the Forbes Global 2000list, a listing of the biggest and most powerful listed companies in the world. Dun & Bradstreet also ranked Mahindra at No. 1 in the automobile sector in its list of India’s Top 500 Companies. In 2010, Mahindra featured in the CreditSuisse Great Brands of Tomorrow.

In 2011, Mahindra acquired a majority stake in Korea’s Ssang Yong Motor Company.

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