Sakhir (Bahrain), Nov 27 (IANS): Round two of the MRF Challenge 2013 season will begin this weekend with the Indian based series heading to the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) in Sakhir, Bahrain.
The FIA sanctioned MRF Challenge will continue to mix it with the elite in international motorsport as it will serve as one of the main support races for the FIA World Endurance Championship round. This will be the first time that an Indian series, which includes race cars made in India and run on Indian tyres, will race internationally.
This weekend will see four races of the MRF Formula 2000 cars in action, India's faster single-seater cars.
The MRF Challenge also announced the addition of young Indian driver Raj Bharath who will join the championship in Round 2 at Bahrain. He will join other Indian drivers Parth Ghorpade and Vikash Anand on the grid.
The battle will resume with Formula Renault 3.5 driver Arthur Pic defending his championship lead against GP3 driver Tio Ellinas and British driver Rupert Svendsen-Cook. The weekend will have 2 free practice sessions, one qualifying session and 4 races this weekend. Other races this weekend include the FIA WEC and the Porsche GT3 Cup.
"We had a great start to the season in India and now we move on to Bahrain for Round 2 of the MRF Challenge 2013. We are proud to be the first Indian tyre manufacturer to race our tyres internationally in a single-seater series. This is a huge step not only for us, but Indian motorsport as well. The circuit is challenging for drivers and we are confident of another action packed race this weekend," Arun Mammen, managing director, MRF Tyres, said.
The MRF Challenge boasts some of the top upcoming drivers across the world with Formula Renault 3.5 driver Arthur Pic leading the charge. Both Pic and second placed Tio Ellinas were busy after Round 1 as they tested the GP2 car in Abu Dhabi.
GP2 Series and Formula Renault 3.5 both serve as the top feeder series for Formula 1 and it is a great for the MRF Challenge to have drivers of this calibre competing here.