Motor Racing season starts April 3
BOASTING a new surface, the South Dakota Circuit at Timehri will open it gates to local speedsters on April 2; the day before they officially begin their 2011 season.
President of the Guyana Motor Racing and Sports Club (GMR&SC), Raj Boodhoo, speaking with Chronicle Sport yesterday, said that the track was done, thanks to a $40M grant from President Bharrat Jagdeo. Drivers and riders will no longer have to complain about the bumps on the track which sometimes cost them heavily, finance-wise.
All of the big names are expected to come out in full force in what is anticipated to be one of the most exciting seasons for local motor racing.
“We have all the top drivers ready to participate, Mark Vieira, Kevin (Jeffrey) and Andrew (King), yes, all the guys are ready to come out and give us a nice day of racing on the new track. I think that is going to make it even more exciting” said Boodhoo who took over from Aaron Bethune as president of the club last year.
“Things will be more exciting with Kevin (Graham) coming home,” exclaimed Boodhoo as he noted that the Canadian Super Bike champion will be coming home to continue his rivalry with the locals, especially with the Guyanese ‘Valentino Rossi’ Stephen Vieira with whom he developed a rivalry with over the past year.
“I believe this will be one of the biggest first-meetings of the year in a long time because the drivers and riders are all very excited and ready to come out and race on the new surface,” said Boodhoo.
However, at the end of March, drivers battling in the endurance race will have a first sample of the track when the annual event is staged.
“Well, the endurance race is on next week, and that’s an annual thing; it’s far different from circuit racing, as some people might know, but on the 2nd and the 3rd everything really starts,” the GMR&SC president mentioned.
The club, according to Boodhoo in reports published in several sections of the media, did exceedingly well in 2010 and he anticipates that in 2011 it will do far better.