Nashik, Feb 6 (IANS): Aishwarya Pissay, the 27-year-old queen of Indian motorsports and Petronas TVS Racing team factory rider, clinched her sixth consecutive National rally title in the Ladies' class as the six-round of FMSCI Indian National Racing Championship 2022 (INRC-2w).
Going into the Rally of Nashik, the sixth and final round with a comfortable lead, the Bengaluru rider saw her closest competitor, Fazeela, from Kerala skipping the final round. And with the National Rally Championship title virtually assured, she took it easy and salvaged a second place, which was enough to defend her title.
"My race bike TVS TR 200R, which is based on the TVS Apache RTR 200 is supremely capable and delivered a superb performance. Throughout the season, in the tough and technical terrain, I was able to take control of the situation and push it to my liking. It gives me immense joy and happiness to win six consecutive National Rally titles. I thank my mechanics, family, sponsors, and all those who supported me. My special thanks to Petronas TVS Racing, who stood by me through thick and thin," said Aishwarya Pissay.
Entering the final round with a 12-point lead, the TVS racer avoided any risk as she navigated the technical course with deft control on her TVS TR 200R, a lean machine that rounded off her 2022 campaign. She maintained a steady pace and cleverly played it easy to clock 40min, 21.597sec timing for the two special stages. The third stage was cancelled.
She won all five rounds she took part in, and kept the slate clean, to extend her winning streak that began in 2017. Apart from winning the six FMSCI National Rally Championships, she also claimed the 2W National Racing title in the Ladies' class in 2017, before moving on to higher cross-country Rally Raid events. She started in 2016 with Circuit Racing winning Honda One-Make and TVS One-Make titles. She also excelled in tougher cross-country events in India like the Himalayan Rally, the Dakshin Dare and Desert Storm paved her way to Rally Raid events abroad.
In 2017, she came under the wings of TVS Racing and made her international debut in the tough Baja Aragon rally in 2018, where she overcame a life-threatening accident and rose like a phoenix to continue her dream run in the World Cup, the next year. Apart from the seven National titles, she reached the apex winning the FIM Baja World Cup in the women's section for the ultimate prize in 2019.
The delayed 2022 season concluded with the Nashik round on Sunday but the Bengaluru rider will continue her training in pursuit of tougher Rally Raid events abroad in 2023.