Ardent driving enthusiast and business tycoon Gautam Singhania drove a customised Ferrari 458 on the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) in Greater Noida and recorded a best lap timing of 1 minute 59 seconds. With this, he beat his own lap timing record of 2 minutes 1 second, which he achieved on the previous day (12th February 2013). This makes Singhania the fastest man on this track with a non-open wheel car.
The Chairman and Managing Director of Raymond Limited created a record of sorts by driving 98 laps and 109 laps of the 5.1 km BIC on 11th February and 12th February, respectively. This driving feat amounts to an average driving of 500 km per day. After completing few laps in the monstrous Ferrari 458, he said, “It is a great experience to be on this world-class track and to be racing along with motorsport enthusiasts. India with its large base of auto lovers has the potential to be on the global motorsports map. While super cars and speed have always been my passion, I believe that such track days and achievements on the track will instil confidence in India’s youth to take to motorsports seriously in the future.”
Gautam Singhania has been a pioneering enthusiast of motorsports in India. He has been organising the Parx Supercar Show for five years now in Mumbai. He is also the co-founder of the Supercar Club (SCC), which undertakes different activities to popularise supercars in India. The SCC organised a trip to Leh-Ladakh last year, which was spearheaded by Singhania.
He also showcased the country’s first and only exclusive drifting car in December 2012. This was after Singhania's phenomenal win in the amateurs category at the All Stars European Drift Championship held in Malta during September 2012. There were 30 participants in the exciting final, which was won by Singhania with a points difference of 2.5. He was the only Asian to participate, as all others were from Europe.
The enthusiast's experience of driving is replete with events across the globe. He also has driven a Formula One car in France, a Lamborghini Gallardo in Europe's CannonBall run and a Ferrari 360 Modena on a road and track rally across Europe.
