Brit Jake Preston Signs Up for Indian Supercross Racing League – Full Rider List Announced

The Motocross World Championship, and more recently the World Supercross Championship, have both dipped their toes in the Asian continent with more increasing regularity over the last decade or so.  With races at Indonesia, and now returning to China in 2024, MXGP has tried to tap into this growing off-road motorcycle market for the good of its sponsors and partners.  Now there is a whole new series being set up, with the backing of the FIM, and it’s something completely different – Welcome to the CEAT Indian Supercross Racing League or ISRL!

Words: Ben Rumbold / ISRL. Featured Image: Insight Media

The official line from the ISRL website goes as follows:

“We are the world’s first franchise-based Supercross league, a groundbreaking initiative that is set to revolutionize the way sports are perceived in India. We are here to create a global extravaganza, an awe-inspiring spectacle that will captivate Indian spectators like never before. We have signed up with athletes around the world to compete in a variety of formats and categories, pushing the limits of their skills and inspiring the Indian riders to reach new heights. Prepare to be amazed as our stage performers break records of charismatic engagement, adding an extra layer of excitement to this premier motorsport event.

“We have created a premier high-intensity off-road motorcycle racing league, where athletes defy gravity, soaring through the air with their motorcycles, racing handle to handle in front of an electrifying crowd. Get ready to be thrilled, entertained, and left in awe at the CEAT Indian Supercross Racing League.

“We want to introduce the world of Supercross racing to India and Bharat. The country’s two-wheeler population is among the largest in the world, and we believe that there is a huge potential for Supercross racing in India. We, racers ourselves, decided to give wings to the aspirations of this young India and help them achieve global stardom in the world of Supercross racing.”

So the term “Franchise-based” means that it fits the model of something like the NFL, where teams are directly linked to the series itself, and as such, in true Indian style, the six teams begun their season with an Auction to get their hands on the top riders in each class – that’s the 450cc International, 250cc International, 250cc India & Asia, and even 85cc India & Asia Youth riders!

The six teams are as follows:

• BigRock Motorsports – Owned by multiple Indian Champ CS Santosh, who runs BigRock Dirt Park, branded as “India’s finest odd-road training centre.”
• Gujarat Trailblazers – Led by entrepeneur Dhrumil Patel and 3-time Asia-Pacific Rally Champion Guarav Gill, “an icon of Indian Motorsports”.
• Mohite’s Racing Team – Helmed by Abhishek Mohite, whose Mohite Group has diverse business interests across Infrastructure, Real Estate, Automobiles, etc.
• Panchshil Racing – Owned by Panchshil Realty, based in the city of Pune, where one of the races will be held.
• Reise MotoSports – Part of the Reise Moto brand, who “manufacture European performance tyres”and is owned by the Mahansaria Group.
• SG Speed Racers – Driven by the sports arm of APL Apollo Group, India’s “number 1 structural steel tubing brand.”

Note that none of the teams have stated any commitment to a manufacturer, so it is currently a mystery as to what bikes they will ride, but after the auction, here are the teams in the two International classes:

So although you have a plethora of French specialists in there – 10 from the 24 racers in total – there are also a handful of World Supercross riders present, such as 2014 MX2 World Champion Jordi Tixier, Italian star Lorenzo Camparese, former American Arenacross Champ Tyler Bowers – who rode for team USA at the 2023 VMXdN Foxhill event – three-time Arenacross UK Champion Thomas Ramette, Aussie star Matt Moss, and Britain’s own Jake Preston, who gave us these thoughts on the series:

“It’s kinda crazy how it’s all come about. They did a rider auction on Sunday and I was picked up by one of the teams to go and race. I’m going to be riding a KTM 450 over there which should be good as I’m comfortable on the Austrian group bikes. As of right now I’ll be going straight from Belfast to the first round, as we need to be there the week prior for press but the following rounds I’ll be making the commute as I still need to help my team out at SpiralGFX, we are pretty busy at the minute which is nice. There seems to be some pretty big names racing the series and for me to be able to keep riding more Supercross is amazing but will also help me to keep improving. A new adventure and amazing opportunity all whilst I still can, I really can’t complain I’m excited for it. I want to also say a massive thank you to Mike Keenan and the whole FUS Marsh Powersports Racing team for allowing me to take this opportunity.”

There are currently no dates announced for the races, just that it will be a three-round series starting in the capital Delhi, then moving to Ahmedabad in the central Western corner of the country (and home to Jake’s team the Gujarat Trailblazers), before finishing in Pune, about 100 miles south of Mumbai on the coast of the Arabian Sea.

It’s an intriguing new venture in the region and with supporting classes for Asian riders in both 250cc and 85cc classes, it will be interesting to see how it develops the talent in the local area. Maybe in a few years those “local no-hopers” at Asian MXGP rounds won’t be quite so clueless after all…