We recently reported you about Audi signing young Indian racer Aditya Patel for 2012 VLN Endurance Motorsports Series in Germany. Aditya is the first Indian to participate in this 24 hour endurance challenge with two other drivers for the team Pro-Handicap e.V. Not only Aditya became the first ever Indian racer to compete in this challenge, but also he secured victory in his debut at the endurance challenge with his team. This is a considerable achievement for a young India as he has come up and achieved a reputed place for himself as his team in his first ever attempt at this challenge. Aditya, who is 25 years of age, started his racing career at the age of 14 when he first participated in JK Tyre National Racing Championship in 2001.
Aditya driving for team Pro-Handicap e.V. together with Wolfgang Müller and Oliver Rudolph, completed a total of 126 laps of the 25 kilometer long ‘Green Hell’ track to race past the finish line first in their category. Driving a total of 3 sessions (7.5 hours), Aditya began his final run in second place and 12 laps behind the lead car. Battling stiff competition and tough weather conditions, he put in a series of consistently fast laps to cut away at the deficit, eventually taking the lead before handing the car over to Oliver Rudolph for the final half hour. Commendably, team Pro-Handicap e.V. won the race with a lead of 12 laps of over second placed Besaplast-Racing.
image – Team Pro-Handicap e.V. after victory
Speaking on the occasion, Michael Perschke, Head, Audi India said, “This is a proud victory not only for Audi but also for India. We were confident that Aditya’s talent combined with the technical capabilities of the Audi TTS put the team up as a strong contender in the challenge. With this victory we further consolidate our strong association with motorsport and will continue to nurture Aditya’s promising career.”
Reacting on his historic win, Aditya Patel, Audi race talent said, “I am ecstatic. This is a great victory for team Pro-Handicap e.V and also for Audi. This victory is very special because this is my first attempt at the 24 hours challenge. The tough weather conditions were not a concern thanks to the thorough preparations made by the team and the Audi TTS race car that I was equipped with. This result has reinforced my faith in the brand and I would like to thank Audi India and my sponsors for making this dream come true.”
This victory has also kept team Pro-Handicap’s record of finishing the race each time they have entered, intact. This was their 8th attempt and a big win as it was one of the few teams to race with only 3 drivers, while most other teams are racing with 4 drivers. Aditya recorded an average lap time of 00:10:40 (10 minutes, forty seconds) and a personal
fastest time of 00:10:23 (ten minutes, 23 seconds) while the team’s fastest lap was recorded by Oliver Rudolph, at 00:10:11 (ten minutes, 11 seconds).
Do stay tuned for more updated by liking our official Facebook Page. Check out some more Motor Sports News here.
