[shrivz]

Parth Ghorpade, the 17 year old racing driver from Kolhapur made his international single seater debut last month in the 2011 French Renault F4 Championship organized by the Autosport academy based in Le Mans. Parth had a very impressive performance in Round-3 last weekend at the Grand Prix of Pau in the South of France. He started 15th and finished 8th overall in both races and while doing so he also clocked the 5th quickest race lap, only 2/10th of a second off the best timing. The race was won by Matthieu Vaxivière who transformed his pole position into victory! Cyril Raymond and Pierre Gasly accompanied him on the podium.

Parth’s father says, “The Pau GP is a narrow street circuit with steep elevation changes. Parth was amongst a handful of drivers who went through the weekend without a single incident and at the same time consistently maintained quality race pace. The reward was two top-10 finishes which was better than expected from a 15th place start on a difficult street circuit.”

Parth is supported by Amaron & Karvy while Pune based BigFoot Racing is handling his talent management & endorsements. When asked about his expectations for the rest of the season, the 2010 National Rotax Karting Champion & Volkswagen PoloCup Vice Champion says, “It was a very challenging circuit and it felt good to be fighting for the top 5 places so early in the season as we had no opportunity for pre-season testing. The race pace gives me confidence that I can target bigger points in the next round.”

[shrivz]

Here's a video:

YouTube - ‪GP de Pau edition2011 FFSA F4‬‏

[nitrous]

Pretty good for a very competitive series.
So, you're into racing talent management now, heh, Shrivz?

[shrivz]

Another set of pictures just came in from France.

Photo Credit: Daniel Delien

[shrivz]

Originally Posted by nitrous

Pretty good for a very competitive series.
So, you're into racing talent management now, heh, Shrivz?

Yes nitrous. He's being recognized in the international arena and all I can say is that there are quite a few top teams which are eying him like a hawk.

He will soon be posting a first hand review about his experience in France.

[Stratos]

Excerpts from the official press release:

17 year old Parth Ghorpade had an exhilarating driving experience at the legendary F1 circuit of Spa in Belgium at Rd 5 of the FFSA Renault F4 series on the 29th & 30th of July 2011.

During Free Practice, Parth got hit from the rear and had to retire just as the track started drying out. The damage caused by this
influenced handling problems led to a bad Qualifying position of P18. With some major setup changes for Race 1, Parth had moved from P18 to P15.

However, just as he was lining up the next driver for a pass at the “Les Combes” – chicane on lap 3, the car in front lost control and in slowing to avoid it the Indian was hit from behind by Spanish driver Suarez, losing his rear wing again which led to his first DNF in the series.

Heavy overnight showers meant a changeover to wet tyres for Race 2. This was Parth's first wet race in a Formula car. He moved up the order but after spending a few laps in P15 behind a slower car, the midfield pack was out of reach and he chose to close out the race without taking undue risks while gaining experience in the wet.

The last 2 races have been problematic and the car allotted for the 2nd half of the season is proving difficult to set up. However, if it continues to perform like it did in Race 1, you can expect him to be running alongwith the front runners. Round 6 is at the 70 year old Circuit d'Albi, in the South of France on 3rd & 4th September.

[sudev]

Keeping the Indian spirit alive. Thanks for bringing this to attention.

[scuderiamania]

+1 to Sudev. As the daily papers don't give a damn as to how well the Indians are doing around different tracks in the world, I hope members of Team-bhp keep me updated on such news.

[shrivz]

A few pictures from SPA.









Also to be noted was a standout double overtaking maneuver in Race 1 on Turn #1.

[shrivz]

Parth at Renault F4, Round 6, Circuit d’Albi.
4th September 2011, CIRCUIT D’ALBI (France):



Parth Ghorpade, the young racing driver from Kolhapur supported by Amaron and Karvy, enjoyed a post 18th birthday weekend as he finished in the points with a P9 in Round 6 of the French F4 Championship at the Circuit d'Albi on the 4th of September.

Starting P15 in Race 2 on a damp track with slicks, Parth moved up the order quickly and settled into a quick and consistent race pace that saw him running comfortably in the top 10 midway through the race. Parth's own race pace was only 5/10ths off Mathieu Vaxivierre, fastest driver through the weekend and also the championship leader, and one of amongst 3 drivers who had experience driving at Albi in the past.

The weekend began with some difficulties. A series of yellow flags through qualifying just when the tyres were at optimum upset his rhythm and put him at P17 for Race 1 and P15 for Race 2. The subsequent pace in both races confirmed he could have qualified in the top 10 under normal circumstances. Race 1 saw a continuation of a streak of bad luck as the engine cover worked itself loose soon after the start and started flapping around furiously.



The disturbance to the aerodynamics limited the top speed and made the handling unpredictable. Despite this he moved up a few places early in the race before being forced to drive off the track slowly to avoid a spinning car and rejoined at the end of the field. Then followed a series of quick laps to catch up with the back markers and he pulled off a last lap move on Belgian driver Balthazar by going around the outside at the end of the fastest part of the circuit. Given the condition of the car this gritty drive deserves as much credit as the top 10 finish. It must also be noted that the teenager adapted very well to the unpredictable car and pulled off consistent lap times within one tenth of a second in the last few laps.

Commenting on the race weekend, the Amaron and Karvy supported driver had this to say:

“Its good to be back in the points again after a streak of bad luck at Val De Vienne due to mechanical issues and then the accident
at Spa . The track conditions were tricky in Race 2 but the car was performing well. Just a better qualifying position would have
seen me challenging for the top 5. Race 1 was very challenging as the loose engine cover was affecting the handling and top
speed. It was satisfying to finish the race at a decent race pace inspite of these problems.”

[jalsa777]

Upcoming Indian driver, Parth Ghorpade has finished 7th at the final round of the Renault F4 Championship.

Renault F4 is an entry level single seater series in France. It is run by the Auto Sport Academy. It sports single seater formula cars with 1600cc engines. As with every single make series, this series is extremely competitive with the full grid covered by a couple of seconds.

The final round was held at the Paul Ricard circuit in France. Parth qualified 18th due to a wrong set-up choice. But carved his way up the grid to eventually finish 7th in Race 2. He also set the 4th fastest time.

This is a commendable achievement considering he lacks practice compared to other drivers in the series due to lack of budget. Over this season, Parth has shown great racing skill and moved up the grid on numerous occasions impressing watchers and his peers.

The guest driver for the weekend was World Rally Championship star Sebastian Ogier.
The results sheet of the weekend is attached.

With his exceptional performance in his debut season in this series, Parth is all set to go into a higher and even more competitive series next year.
But as with all racing drivers, sponsorship is the limiting factor to which series he can take part in.
We wish Parth luck for his selections at the FIA Young Driver Academy and for his next racing season.