New Delhi: India’s ace rallyist Gaurav Gill, who has held top spot among Asian drivers in World Rally rankings but did not score high on home turf last year, is readying for his first challenge on the Indian motorsport circuit in 2013 - the 11th Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm. The six-day marathon cross-country motorsport event will run in the wild outback of Rajasthan from February 18 to 23.
The rally is the pride of Rajasthan, given the highly challenging conditions, tough stages and spectacular terrain, ranging from desert stretches and vast salt flats to deceptively simple dirt tracks. Mayank Pareek, the Managing Executive Officer of Maruti Suzuki, said that the Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm will traverse about 2,200 kilometers this year.
With a world ranking close to the top 20 and with international titles in Indonesia, Australia and the Rally of Japan, Gaurav Gill has been one of the most recognizable name in rallying. Gill, who is based at Delhi, won the Maruti Suzuki Dakshin Dare last year. But at the Desert Storm 2012, the high-speed racer was bogged down by the dunes of the Thar. At the Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm and also the 3rd J&K Bank Mughal Rally held in Kashmir in June 2012, Gill was listed as ‘DNF’ (Did Not Finish) – the category feared by all rallyists.
