Mufaddal Choonia, Ex-Boss Mahindra Racing, On The Journey And Indian GP

At the inaugural Bharat GP, amongst the many esteemed teams and riders there was a notable name that while not being an active member of the sport was still readily welcomed. Mahindra Racing. The small outfit from India took on the juggernauts of the racing world for seven seasons, chalking up notable honours along the way. We had a deep dive with the former manager of the racing outfit, Mufaddal Choonia, as he took us through what the journey for the Indian manufacturer was like in those seven glorious years and how currently, the top guys in MotoGP have that Mahindra connect.

Q: Why did Mahindra Go Racing Two-wheelers?

MC: So, you know, if you remember in 2010, Tech Mahindra sponsored the FIFA World Cup, right? That came in through the acquisition of Satyam because actually Satyam was the sponsor and then naturally once we acquired the company, we kind of took over and that sponsorship came to us. Now, really that sponsorship made us realise what is the power of branding through global sport.

And the way that rubbed off on all the Mahindra businesses. You naturally think that, you know, when a Tech Mahindra would sponsor, naturally that would do a lot to further Tech Mahindra's interests. But not really, you know, what actually happened, obviously it did wonders for Tech Mahindra. But also, when somebody from the group went and meets someone for business, some international client, everybody says, oh yeah, you are the guy from the company that sponsored the FIFA World Cup, right? So, we were therefore on the lookout for such opportunities.

And when this opportunity came to us through a participation of one of our group companies at that time, which was called Engines Engineering. They had a team in the MotoGP 125cc World Championship which obviously needed support. And why not leverage the power of global branding through a sport like MotoGP.

Naturally, there would be some rub off on our two-wheeler business. But, you know, naturally, the idea was that we wanted to, at that time in 2010-11, there was a huge initiative happening within the group where we wanted to really take brand Mahindra global. So, we believed that this could be one of the great platforms to take the brand Mahindra global. And that was really the genesis of why we got into the sport in the first place.

Q. What Was The Journey Like?

MC: It started off with 125s and then went on to Moto3. When we took everything over, naturally, it was 125s. And in 2012, that changed to Moto3 and that's where our interest was because, you know, that was going to be a category which was going to stay for a long time.

I mean, Mahindra has left its mark on the sport in many ways. The last pole position of the 125cc class is actually credited to Mahindra, right? When Danny Webb took the pole position in Valencia. So, you know, the journey has been fantastic. It's been dotted with a lot of these milestones.

And it's been dotted with a lot of these, you know, moments of joy, as we put it. Then, it became 125 and at that time, we were a team as well as a manufacturer because, you know, we had a technical collaboration with Suter Racing from Switzerland, who were helping us develop the bike. And, you know, the team was kind of run by us because we had a factory team at that time. Mahindra Racing has its own factory team. We ran the factory team ourselves. And 2014 is actually when we started supplying the bikes to other teams as well.

I think, in hindsight, while manufacturers normally don't run their own teams, at least in the Moto3 category, I think that was a wonderful thing we did. Because we really understood our eventual objective, which was to be a manufacturer and to start supplying our own bikes to the other teams.

Q. Why Partnering Up With Aspar Racing Was Beneficial?

MC: When we entered the sport in 2011-2012, Aspar was in a way the pseudo factory team for Aprilia, right? And they were the ones who were smoking everybody left and right with Nicole Terol. But it was a very proud moment for us, I think, which is four times world champion, Aspar Racing, you know, Jorge Martinez himself, wanting to be associated with us. It just showed how long we had come, or rather how far we had come in the sport. And somebody who knows, who spent his entire life here and has been a very successful rider as well as successful team manager, team owner, right? Somebody then wants to work with us.

And really our best days have come with Aspar. So there's no taking any credit away from them, they really, really, and that's where experience counts, because then they really got the best out of our bikes, they really got the best out of our riders and the best results for us have come during those days.

I mean, we had three podiums before we got into bed with Aspar. But after that, it just took another leap.

Q: What About A Certain Rossi Connection?

MC: So, Pecco (Francesco Bagnaia, 2022 MotoGP World Champion) was obviously a VR46 rider. There was a Sky Italia team. We were with the Sky Italia team, but that was not Rossi, the Sky Italia team was the Italian Federation.

So, you know, that connection was certainly there. And as I said, you know, our best times have come with our association with the Aspara team. And it's been a wonderful, wonderful journey. I mean, talking about, again, the Rossi connection, we are very glad that it has worked both ways.

The one way was, we actually got Pecco from them, right? And we gave them one rider, which was Marco Bezzecchi. So Marco was not a VR46 rider, actually. It's only when he won the Italian Championship on our bike that his talent was noticed. And Marco is completely our fan. He was given an opportunity by the talent scouts within the Mahindra Racing team.

People who worked with us in the factory. And then naturally, he was then on boarded by Rossi and the VR46 Academy. And again, look today where he is.

Q: How Happy Does It Make You That The Top 4 In The MotoGP Championship All Said That Mahindra Was The Best School That They Had?

MC: I didn't sleep that night, if that gives you the answer. I think that was a very, very sweet gesture by them also and very humble of them. And also, for you as a team and as a group, something to be very proud of, because you are out of this sport, but still people talk about you, people still respect you, people still love you.

That's what I was talking to somebody from Dorna in the morning and I was telling her the same thing. I said, that is the beauty of MotoGP, right? That even after you've gone, you've left behind such a legacy that after six years also people remember you. And remember you so fondly, with so much of love and affection and respect. I said, which sport would give you that? Which other sport would give you that opportunity?

I think this is another thing, another illustration of that, isn't it? People in Dorna talk so highly of us, people in Irta talk so highly of us and the riders who have started their careers with the Mahindra bike today are talking so highly of it. So, I think we couldn't have asked for anything more.

I mean, if we have been able to groom some talent today, which are the four best riders in the world, are people who started their journeys with Mahindra. I think it's a true ‘Rise’ moment, right? It can't be a better rise moment or it can't be a better manifestation of our group's credo.

Q: What Were Your Emotions At The Assen GP 2016?

MC: It was emotional for me also. So in 2016 in Assen, when we won the first race, sadly they didn't play the national anthem because in MotoGP they don't play the country's anthem or the manufacturer's anthem. But still, I actually had tears in my eyes and that has been captured even in a, you know, video. So if you see the race again, the end of the podium ceremony, I actually had tears in my eyes. And you can see me wiping them off.

Yes, because, you know, while the whole world sees only the results and what is happening on track, it's only the team, people who work for the team, know the amount of sweat and blood that has gone behind, you know, putting the machine and all that performance really. The human stories around racing, which people don't know. That racing is so much more about human perseverance. It's so much more about, and it's, you know, most people think it's the efficiency or the performance of the machine, but they don't understand that there is, the machine performs only if the humans behind it are kind of performing as well.

So, you know, there were cases where I remember one of my, one of my engineers who was, who was responsible for, you know, kind of, you know, assembling at the engines and all. He, and he was into engine testing and engine assembly. He and his partner had delivered their first child and he didn't go home to see the birth of his child because he said, there's another one being born here.

Q: How Much Was Anand Mahindra Involved With The Team?

MC: I have no hesitation in saying that Anand has been the biggest fan of Mahindra Racing. He has cheered us on like a fan. He has, you know, motivated us naturally as the, you know, promoter of the group and the chairman of the group.

The reason is because he always pushed us. And we knew that we could go to him in case we needed any support: inside the group, outside the group. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, and, you know, Anand was at that time, was in an executive role in our group and was so closely involved in the day-to-day operations of the group.

And to find time for that. Actually, you know, he was... I would get on to calls with him so often. He would want to be involved in, you know, guiding us in terms of, you know, using his, you know, network to be able to, you know, give us some kind of tips, information. Some suppliers who could, you know, work with us for, you know, development of components or parts.

He was always using different social media and, you know, channels like Twitter, etc. to keep motivating us, writing about us, talking about us all the time. So, that kept the team going. I mean, that... because, see, you know, the entire team sat in Italy, right? Far, far away from India in that sense. And then you are working for an Indian company.

Anand also has made us feel very, very important. And more importantly, my team, because I was obviously in and out as I was based both in India and in Italy. But, you know, he's been a terrific supporter.

Q: What Would The Mahindra Team Have Performed At The Bharat GP If They Were Still Racing?

MC: Like that would have been a different story. I wish I had a crystal ball. Yeah, but everybody has evolved. Naturally, there would be an evolution from where we were, where we left off in 2017 to now. Well, who knows what it would be. I can't hazard a guess, but...

We would definitely be, you know, important. I don't want to go too ahead of myself and say we would be fighting for the championship. The kind of growth that you had in the first seven years. Exactly. And now you add another seven years. It makes sense.

And the kind of support for the race. Yeah. Awareness for the sport would have been even much better. Yeah, we would have. One thing, I mean, I don't know about where we would have been but I can only tell you, I can tell you one thing for sure that we would have been the happiest people in the world. Racing in front of our home crowd. There is absolutely no doubt in that.

Q: How Hard Was The Decision To Pull The Plug?

MC: Well, it was a very well thought through decision. There was a reason why we did that, right? So, as I said, we've always used sport as a branding tool. And when we decided to, you know, when Formula E was coming up. And, you know, when the opportunity to get into electric racing, electric car racing came up.

We really thought that it did not make sense to kind of run two sporting ventures, which would eventually give us the same visibility. Electric was obviously something that was the future. So, there was therefore a conscious call taken that now our energies would be focused towards that. So, you know, I think it was a very well thought through decision. It was definitely not rushed.

These decisions can't be taken in a rushed manner. But clearly there was a shift in focus and we said that it really does not make sense running two similar properties at the global stage. You don't get that incremental value. And we really wanted to then get into something which clearly is the future.

Q: Would Mahindra Want To Return Under The Jawa/Yezdi/BSA Brand Name?

MC: Well, the future is always open and we as Mahindras have always been extremely reactive to anything that makes business sense, quite frankly. So, at the moment, currently there are no plans. So, there is nothing I can talk about. But who knows in the future, what holds. One can never say that we will not do this or not do that.

But as I said, we are one of the groups which are most versatile when it comes to quickly taking decisions which are good for our business. It might be good to see the BSA name coming back to racing and Mahindra driving the charge for them. Yeah, absolutely. So, let's see. I don't know, as I said.