Philippos Matthai of Delhi epitomised the Roman god Mercury, being the fastest in the Time Attack event on day one of the Indian National Autocross Championship which was held at the Goa Engineering College in Farmagudi, Ponda, on Saturday.
The event is being organised by the Indian Automotive Racing Club (IARC) in collaboration with the All Goa Motorsports Association (AGMA) and Bangalore Motor Sports (BMS)
The 39-year-old Philippos, who has already accomplished the feat of successfully switching career paths from law to owning an automobile garage, covered the 1.2 km route in his Volkswagon 1600 cc car in an astounding super-fast time of 1:39 minutes.
He was followed by Amey Desai of Goa, who covered the track in 1:44 minutes in the open category, and Umesh Rane of Thane, who finished in 1:45 minutes.
As many as 23 drivers took part in this Time Attack event, but none could match the speed-loving Delhi resident.
Philippos, a National Autocross champion in 2019 and 2022, has been racing for the last 22 years across the road rallying and dirt track racing formats. He is of the opinion that autocross is a stepping stone for road rallying.
“Dirt track racing is relatively low cost. People are able to witness the entire race, and the winners come under the spotlight,” Philippos said.
Satisfied with the track, Philippos explained how he had experienced the race, “It was fast and flowing in some places, and technical and tight in some, keeping us on our toes.”
Motorsports lovers can expect more from the Indian National Autocross Championship (INAC) events which will be held on Sunday from 9 am at the same venue.
