The Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup 2021 has been announced today. Registrations for this race championship are open on the official Royal Enfield website.
The Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup 2021 is a unique retro track-racing initiative that has been launched to give riders a chance to participate in a one-make championship and further hone their track riding skills. Royal Enfield has also announced that after the Continental GT Cup 2021 finale, they will introduce track riding schools in India with an intent to provide easy and professional training to motorcycle enthusiasts who wish to learn the art of racing or simply want to improve their overall riding skills.
This championship is presented by JK Tyre Motorsports and organized with the support of the Federation of Motorsports Club of India (FMSCI). The Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup will debut at the JK National Racing Championship 2021, and will be conducted in accordance with the regulations of the FMSCI. The Continental GT Cup 2021 will have four rounds starting October 2021 and culminating in January 2022. Three of these rounds will take place at the Kari Motor Speedway at Coimbatore and the final round will take place at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC).
For the championship, there are modified and race-prepped Continental GT 650s being used. Royal Enfield have named the track-spec version the Continental GT-R650. The GT-R650 boasts of a stiffer race-tuned suspension, both at the front and rear. Lowered race clip-on handlebars have been added along with rear-set footpegs for the ideal race riding position. The GT-R650 has been made lighter by 24 kgs by keeping only the essentials required for racing. The stock exhaust has been replaced with a stainless steel full system exhaust that is tuned to put out 12 per cent more power. The motorcycle will come with a specially designed fairing and belly pan that will improve aerodynamics and give the GT-R650 its stunning retro racer look. The motorcycle will be equipped with soft compound race tyres by JK Tyres.
Commenting on the launch of the Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup, and speaking about Royal Enfield’s motivation to foray into motorsports, Adrian Sellers – Custom Programme Lead and Manager, Product Strategy and Industrial Design at Royal Enfield said, “Nurturing and encouraging the spirit of pure motorcycling has been the core philosophy of Royal Enfield for over a century. With a long history of rides and events that have spawned riding communities across the world, we have also actively engaged in racing, with success in top-level racing events such as 1914 Isle of Man TT, the 1960 Big Bear Run, the 2020 Daytona at the American Flat Track, and the 2021 DTRA Flat Track ‘Twins Class’ Championship, among several others. In 2019, we developed two race-ready Continental GT 650 motorcycles with Harris Performance, leveraging their 40 years of racing experience to make the most track-worthy GTs we could, all without fundamentally changing the base motorcycles. The result exceeded our expectations, and so we are excited to continue that story and launch the Continental GT Cup, an exciting and engaging entry into retro track-racing and motorsports. With the increased interest in track-racing in India, the Continental GT Cup offers aspiring racers the opportunity to show and grow their skills on the top race circuits in India. The Continental GT 650 is the most track-ready motorcycle in our portfolio, and with just a few modifications, the race-prepped Continental GT-R650 version makes it the ideal machine for the track. We are expecting a spectacular first season this year and we hope to foster the spirit of track-racing year on year.”
Commenting on this occasion, Mr. Srinivasu Allaphan, Director – Sales and Marketing, JK Tyre & Industries said, “Being the pioneers of promoting motorsport in India, JK Tyre has been at the forefront in formalizing the Indian racing programs and nurturing young talent in the country. Our National Racing Championship, which is India’s flagship racing championship, has now entered its 25th year. Over these years, the platform has not just produced world-class racers, but has also created a distinct podium for several auto manufacturers to put their machines and technologies to the ultimate test of endurance. We are ecstatic to now have Royal Enfield join us in our silver jubilee year. The Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup is definitely a step forward towards appealing to more racing aspirants and building access to the world of two-wheeler racing. We are confident that it will definitely give an added fillip to the ever-growing popularity of motorsport in India. We look forward to an exciting debut of the Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup 2021.”
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