Renault India is betting big on the motorsports front and now they have announced their continued partnership for the second year in a row with MRF Challenge. On a special event organised at the Buddh International Circuit, situated in Greater Noida, Renault unveiled two cars that are intended to compete in the 2013 MRF Challenge from October 25, 2013 to February 16, 2014. The cars will be piloted by Frenchman Arthur Pic, Parth Ghorpade from India and Harry Tincknell from Britain. Arthur Pic has competed in multiple motorsport competitions.
Arthur Pic won the Formula Renault 3.5 race in Russia in 2012, scoring seven pole positions, four fastest laps and four race wins. He became the highest placed rookie driver at the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 2.0 West European Cup championships in 2010. Parth Ghorpade is the second driver for Renault’s team, who has a growing motorsport record. Ghorpade has a distinguished track record in India and abroad, which includes, winning the 2012 Formula Pilota Asia, multiple top-10 finishes in the 2011 Renault F4 series in Europe, winning the Vice Champion title in the 2010 VW Polo Cup and achieving the title of National Karting Champion five times.
Harry Tincknell, the third driver has won the Formula Renault UK Winter series in 2008 and continued his foray in Formula 3 with the FIA Formula 3 European Championship. The cars are powered by the Renault Sport 2.0-litre engines. It is a 16-valve, 4-cylinder, 1998cc F4R 832 engine that can produce a maximum power of 210 BHP at 6500 RPM and peak torque of 220 Nm at 5500 RPM. Marc Nassif (Managing Director, Renault India) states that the 2.0-litre engines that will power 2013 MRF Challenge as well as the K9 engine in the Renault Scala, Pulse, Fluence and Duster share benefits from the manufacturer’s learning in Formula One. He believes that this ensures performance, reliability, responsiveness and fuel efficiency both on the track and off it.
Note – Pictures in this post are for representational purpose only.
