Proenca-a-Nova: India’s Aishwarya Pissay will resume her campaign in the FIM Bajas World Cup, here on Friday, when the Baja do Pinhal gets underway with a ceremonial start followed by a Prologue run of 9.57 kms.
Looking ahead to the Portuguese Baja, which also doubles up as the second round of the World Cup, Bengaluru-based 23-year old Aishwarya said: “The Portugal rally will be a fantastic learning experience for me as the stages will have more enduro than fast sections. I have been training with BigRock Spain team for the past couple of weeks in similar terrain and have improved my riding technique.
“I am here to learn and develop my skills as a racer and the more rallies I participate in, the better I get. I am thankful to my sponsors TVS Racing, Mountain Dew, BigRock Dirt Park (Bengaluru) and Scott Motorsports India for supporting and believing in me.”
After Friday’s Prologue, the riders head out on Saturday for the 191.27 kms special stage-1. The event concludes on Sunday at the end of the 173.42 kms special stage-2.
Aishwarya picked up full complement of 25 points after completing the course in the first round in Dubai earlier this month astride a 450cc bike and she is hoping to add to her tally here in Portugal.
“I am hoping to perform much better here in Portugal where, unlike in Dubai, navigation is not a major issue. I am focused on securing as many World Cup points as possible by completing the course,” said Aishwarya, set to compete in only her third international event following debut in Baja Aragon (Spain) last year, and Dubai earlier this month.
