Indian rider Aishwarya Pissay enjoyed a successful return to international rallying, managing to finish Round 1 of the FIM Bajas World Cup in Dubai that covered over 400km of special stages across sand dunes.
Pissay classified 31st overall after the first day of the rally. Despite receiving penalties for not reaching the refueling point on time on both days, Pissay managed to finish the event 26th overall out of the 29 competitors who managed to complete it too. This landed her the 4th place in the junior category, handing her a useful points haul.
Additionally, since she was the only female rider to complete the event, she managed to top the women’s category by default as well.
"I am thrilled to have finished the rally as it is a confidence booster. Day 2 was much better for me as I made fewer mistakes and looked to pick up my pace,” said Pissay, who made her return to international rallying at the event after recovering from an injury she suffered at Baja Aragon last year.
“All the training from the past few weeks really made a difference in the dunes. I will definitely be back next year and look to improve my performance."
The other Indian rider participating in the rally, privateer Ashish Raorane also successfully completed the event, landing 22nd place in the overall standings.