Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and actor C. Joseph Vijay will wave the green flag to start the Michelin Le Mans Cup race at Silverstone in the United Kingdom on Saturday. Vijay will attend the fifth round of the 2026 championship as a special guest and support the Indian drivers competing during the weekend.
“A special guest will be waving the green flag at Silverstone this weekend! C. Joseph VIJAY. The Indian actor and Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu @actorvijay, will be joining us to support our Indian drivers in the UK and officially start the #SilverstoneRound in front of the 44-car grid. We can’t wait to go racing this Saturday!” read the statement from Le Mans Cup on X.
Indian actor and racer Ajith Kumar will compete in the LMP3 Pro/Am category for Ajith RedAnt by Virage alongside France’s Romain Vozniak. Former Formula One driver Narain Karthikeyan and Aditya Patel form an all-Indian pairing for Ajith RedAnt Racing in the LMP3 class.
The Michelin Le Mans Cup, launched in 2016, is an endurance racing championship designed as a pathway for drivers aiming to progress towards competitions such as the European Le Mans Series and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The two-hour Silverstone race will be held on the 5.891km Grand Prix circuit on September 12, with the season concluding at Portimao in October.
CM VIJAY SHOWS SUPPORT TO MOTORSPORTS
The Tamil Nadu CM recently unveiled an ambitious development roadmap for Chennai, featuring plans for a new Secretariat complex along with dedicated Olympic and motor sports cities in the state capital.
The aim of the motorsport cities is to bring Formula One to the state in the future and the initiative was welcomed by Ajith.
“My heartfelt thank you to the Honourable Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Thiru C Joseph Vijay Avl, for giving every discipline of sports, including motorsport, the much-needed attention by announcing Tamil Nadu government’s initiatives to develop infrastructure. Me being currently involved in motorsports, I would like to rephrase a quote by astronaut Mr Neil Armstrong ‘One small step by the Tamil Nadu government, one giant leap for motorsports in India!’ Wishing The Honourable Chief Minister Thiru C Joseph Vijay Avl the very best in all his endeavours,” said Ajith to India Today.
The proposed facility will cater to Formula 1 through Formula 4 racing, while also featuring training infrastructure aimed at developing the next generation of professional drivers.
The project is also expected to give Tamil Nadu’s motorsport ecosystem a major boost, attracting sports tourism and generating wider economic activity.
– Ends
Source link
[ad_3]
