Meet 7 national autocross racers picked to drive Mahindra's XUV 400 @ Formula E race

Hyderabad: Mahindra & Mahindra showcased a special 'Formula E' Edition of the XUV400 electric SUV ahead of the Round 4 of the 2022/23 Formula E Championship in Hyderabad. This was the first time that a Formula E-Prix had been held in India, also being Mahindra Racing team's home race.

The XUV400 Formula E Edition was showcased alongside the company's Gen3 Formula E race car M9Electro. It features a unique livery inspired by the Formula E car, with copper and red accents on the outside and the Mahindra Racing logo on the headrests of the seats.

Mahindra unveiled the XUV 40 Formula Edition with a special livery inspired by the racing spirit of Formula E. The Mahindra Formula E and M.A.D.E. teams collaborated on the livery design, which brings alive the thrill of the sport.

Seven Young drivers were chosen from Hyderabad and different parts of India to drive these cars on the Formula E tracks as part of the launch. Mazdayar Vatcha, Ashad Bakhtiar Choudary, Giridhar Chintamaneni, Sachin Singh, Achintya Mehrotra, Garima Avtar, and Nikita Takale were the chosen 7.

“It was a promotional event by Mahindra in which we did electric laps in the Mahindra XUV400 on the EPrix track. All seven of us are Autocross Racers and are very experienced. We also took a lot of celebrities like Sachin Tendulkar and Ram Charan Tej on a drive right before the main race started and took about 6 laps to showcase the performance of the car. It was a great opportunity to be on the Formula E track with the fellow racers. The race being held for the first time in India's Hyderabad, I was honored to be able to drive XUV 400 EVs on the Greenko E-prix track', said Ashad Bakhtiar Choudary.

Another driver Mazdayar Vatcha added, “This started off with me having done a lot of events for Mahindra earlier as well so I happened to be their go-to person for the launch of the XUV400. Their requirement was 7-8 drivers, all having the minimum status of having won some races at the national level so I brought in Ashad, Giridhar, and Sachin from Hyderabad, Achintya, and Garima from Delhi, and Nikita from Pune and put together a proper team”.