Volkswagen Polo Cup coming to India

Priyadarshan Bawikar    4 Nov 2009

Next year, Volkswagen won't just be bringing their ever-popular Polo car to India. The German automobile manufacturer will also be getting the Polo Cup, a one-make racing series based on the car, to the country.

It's time for motorsports enthusiasts in India to rejoice, as starting next year, Volkswagen will be gracing the national road racing scene with a one-make championship featuring the company's soon to be launched car - the Polo. At the finale of the DTM - the German Touring Car Championship - at the world-famous Hockenheimring race circuit in Germany, Volkswagen officially announced the signing of the Letter of Intent with JK Tyre & Industries Limited to bring the globally acclaimed Volkswagen Polo Cup to India in 2010. Prof. Dr. Jochem Heizmann, Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG who was present on the occasion commented "Volkswagen's commitment to the Polo Cup India represents a long-term initiative designed to promote the development of motor sports in India."

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It is the first time in the history of Indian Motorsports that an international automaker has launched a racing series of this kind. The format of the Polo Cup India will remain pretty much unchanged from its German counterpart, where all the cars are prepared and tuned by Volkswagen and drivers or their mechanics are allowed to tweak extremely minor aspects of the car's setup. Volkswagen Motorsport Director, Kris Nissen, explained that this was to keep all participating vehicles identical in terms of performance to provide a level playing field and only the difference in driver skill would determine who would take the top honours. One distinguishing factor that the Polo Cup India will have over the German championship is that as opposed to petrol motors, the Indian racing Polos will be powered by Volkswagen's 1.6-litre TDI diesel engine. The company is also looking to recruit engineers and mechanics from its Indian talent pool to convert the humble road-going versions of the Polo to track-racing fire breathers.

Mr. Joerg Mueller, Volkswagen Group Chief Representative India commented on the occasion, "we would like to strengthen our association with India by not just manufacturing technologically advanced products but also by taking initiatives to create a favorable environment for the development of a uniquely Indian motor sports culture. Volkswagen's motor sports activities are renowned globally and we look forward to bringing our knowledge and expertise in this direction to India." The Polo Cup serves as a touring car training school of sorts for young racing drivers and the company believes that not only will it help develop Indian motorsports culture, but might also provide a stepping-stone for young talented racing drivers who wish to graduate to international-level touring car racing championships.