The debut of the Formula Regional and F4 Indian championships has been postponed once again, with organisers citing “logistical challenges” as the reason. However, the Indian Racing League will go ahead as planned and an all-new calendar has been announced for the same, featuring four rounds.
- Formula Regional, F4 India pushed to 2023
- 4 rounds in Hyderabad, Chennai for Indian Racing League
- Neel Jani, Oliver James Webb signed
Formula Regional, F4 India delayed
Plans for India’s first FIA-graded F3 championship were announced last year. Together with F4 India and the Indian Racing League, it’s meant to establish a structured ladder for young racers to break into the international racing scene.
It was big news for the Indian motorsport community, even more so because both Formula Regional and F4 India are supposed to be eligible for Super Licence points (drivers need to collect 40 Super Licence points to qualify to race in F1). However, pandemic-related delays forced the season to be pushed from its initial February 2022 debut to November 2022.
The series’ organiser, Racing Promotions, has now confirmed that Formula Regional and F4 India won’t be taking place this year. The debut of both championships has now been pushed to 2023. “Formula Regional and Formula 4 will be part of the schedule next year due to logistical challenges that came up this year,” according to an official statement.
Indian Racing League: Calendar
The Indian Racing League – essentially a revamped version of the X1 Racing League – will go ahead this year, though. The first round will see a race being held for the first time at the Hyderabad Street Circuit, which will host India’s first-ever Formula E race next year. That will be followed by two rounds at the Madras International Circuit, before the grid returns to Hyderabad for the finale.
Notably, the Buddh International Circuit and Kari Motor Speedway – which were part of the earlier calendar – don’t feature on the revised one.
Indian Racing League: Teams and driver line-up
The Indian Racing League follows a similar franchise format to the X1 Racing League. Six city-based teams will compete against each other and each team will feature a mix of international and Indian drivers. Teams will also field one female driver each. The league has learned some important lessons from its inaugural season and this time around, it will use single-seaters built by Italian constructor Wolf. ExxonMobil, meanwhile, has come on board as the league's official lubricant partner.
A number of prominent international names have been signed on, including 2016 Le Mans 24 Hours winner Neel Jani and 2014 European Le Mans Series champion Oliver James Webb. Regulars in the Indian racing scene – such as Vishnu Prasad, Shahan Ali Mohsin and Anindith Reddy – are also part of the grid, along with European GT4 racer Akhil Rabindra.
Dipan Sur
