Abu Dhabi: The 11-year-old racing prodigy Atiqa Mir made a spectacular switch from mini to the much tougher junior S125 category as she became the first Indian to secure a top-five finish globally on debut during round seven of the IAME UAE Karting Championship at the fabled Yas Marina Circuit.
Atiqa, the first Indian to be supported by Formula 1 Academy, could have spent another season dominating championships in the mini category (age 8-12) but she has been thrown in at deep end with the move up to the junior S125 category (age 12-14) in the new year.
The karts are 30kg heavier (115kg in mini to 145kg in junior) and have three times the horse power (10 bhp with top speed 105 kmph to 29bhp with top speed of 126 kmph).
In a clear sign of her rare talent, the Akcel GP backed Atiqa thrived in the unfamiliar territory rather than getting overawed by the occasion.
By finishing fifth out of 35 drivers in a male dominated grid, Atiqa also became the first female to register a top five finish in the history of IAME UAE Championship on debut.
With only a few days of testing to get used to the junior kart, Atiqa once again proved that her fitness and dedication are second to none in a gruelling 21-lap race at the historic Formula 1 Circuit here.
She qualified 18th due to an issue with her kart but that didn’t deter her in the races.
In the heat race, she climbed up six places, and in the pre-final she went up eight places to finish fourth, displaying mature race craft and overtaking drivers with much more experience (in the category as well as age).
Starting the final fourth and on the trickier outside lane, Atiqa held her ground and got in the mix of the leading group. She put in some stunning lap times to keep up with the leading pack.
The pace in front was so fast that they came up to lap the back markers but one of them blocked Atiqa and she lost time due to that. If that was not the case. she could have finished two places higher and on the podium. In the end, she lost out on the podium by only four tenths of a second.
“That was a good debut weekend in Junior, it went better than I expected. The karts are so fast compared to the Mini and I absolutely love it. My race could have been much better if the backmarkers had not come in the way,” said Atiqa, who aims to reach Formula 1 one day.
“But nonetheless Im happy with my speed this weekend. I hope to keep learning and improving myself in this new category.”
Atiqa’s father Asif Mir said the decision to fastrack her daughter to the junior category was vindicated with the performance over the weekend.
“We decided to move Atiqa up to Juniors in a late call in December. I felt she could learn more in the higher category and improve her skill even though she is barely eligible being so young and going up against drivers who are 2-3 years older than her,” said Asif, who is also India’s first national karting champion.
“She had a stellar debut and deserved a podium for her efforts but just fell short. It is not easy going from a Mini to a Junior kart with the higher G forces and Speed. She even surprised me with her performance,” he added.
