L. MathekaKNRC champion Jasmeet under no pressure heading to Guru Nanak rally
Reading Time: 2min | Sat. 04.11.23. | 11:43
Winning on Sunday would, however, be a bucket list achieved
Newly-crowned Kenya National Rally Championship (KNRC) champion Jasmeet Singh Chana is taking a relaxed approach to this weekend's SUC Guru Nanak Rally, despite the Sikh Union round being one of the events on his wish list that have remained elusive.
And despite never having started a penultimate round of the series before without pressure, he is leaving nothing to chance.
"I am under no pressure whatsoever, and this is the first rally of the year. I will be relaxed," Jasmeet offered.
Winning the fabled Guru Nanak Rally has for the longest time remained on his bucket list, but the former two-wheel drive champion hopes this year it can come to fruition.
"This is an event associated with Sikhism, so it's a rally I have always approached with vim and vigour," he explained.
Jasmeet is one of the few drivers in the history of the iconic KNRC to win virtually all titles in the lower-tier series championships.
With an apparent insatiable appetite for success, he finally got his mitts on the coveted KNRC diadem with two rounds remaining during last month’s KNRC 7 KMSC Rally.
His fairy tale achievement was a welcome relief to the Nairobi-based auto mechanic, who had lost this coveted title to Karan Patel in Voi on the homestretch last season.
Last year, he went into the season-closing fixture (Guru Nanak) at the Teita Sisal Estates with a 9-point advantage over Karan, only to miss out on the all-important podium and title much to his chagrin.
His participation at this year's penultimate Guru Nanak in Soysambu on Sunday is a mere formality, as he already has the KNRC title in his bag.
Jasmeet already has most of the KNRC titles, including Two Wheel Drive, Group S, Group N, Division One, Division Three, and a handful of podium finishes under his belt.
Leaving broken records in his wake, the Nairobi-based driver is ushering in a new era of KNRC, hoping to win more titles in the foreseeable future.
A second-generation driver who, in childhood, was inspired by his father, Kulwant Singh Chana, he has also learned the ropes from his elder brothers, Ravi and Jaswinder Chana, who competed before him.
"It takes years for rally drivers to build the skills to race at 200 kph over asphalt and gravel, but as a second-generation ace driver, one needs to be quick, and they need to understand the vehicle, read the surface, and know the route layout from recceding with the co-driver," he expounded.
