Chetan Korada loves living on the fast lane and achieving extraordinary feats. He is Asia’s only race car driver with prosthetic legs and the only one in the world to have won over 10 racing competitions. The 31-year-old resident of Chennai has been scorching the track ever since he decided to pursue motorsports as a career.
After his success on the national circuit, Mr. Korada is now set to compete in the MRF International challenge 2018, which is being held in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bahrain and Chennai. During an interaction with The Hindu in the city recently, Mr. Korada said, “I have had a 10-year-long career in motorsports, my 11th year is special as I am entering the international arena. Apart from the MRF International, we are awaiting confirmation on a series scheduled to take place in Southeast Asia this year.”
Born with an abnormality, Mr. Korada had to undergo a bilateral amputation from the ankles down. He said, “My mother wanted me to be somebody; and I always wanted to be extraordinary. My fascination with cars proved to be the perfect path for realising this dream.”
Today, he is one of four differently-abled race car drivers in the world and can drive without any alterations being made to the car. Last year, he emerged second runner-up in the Formula MRF 1600 National Championship, the fastest category in motorsports in India.
Mr. Korada said his first hands-on exposure to race car driving was in 2007 at a track open-day. He said, “Anyone could rent a car and I took the LGB 1300, a single-seater, open wheel class race car for a spin. I was worried my prosthetic legs wouldn’t fit well into the car, but as I stepped into the vehicle it felt as if the car was custom-made for me. It was magic.”
However, Mr. Korada had to find ways to fund his ambitions. He said, “I was eager to try my hand at any business that would help me raise some money for the sport. Our family had always been financially challenged but my mother did everything in her power to support me.”
Mr. Korada obtained a certification in hairdressing and makeup, and worked as a professional disco jockey for eight years. He said, “After my victory in the 2010 JK Tyre National Racing Championship, I knew that I had to stop DJ-ing and focus on motorsports. In 2011, QNet decided to sponsor me, and with their financial backing there was no stopping me.”
Mr. Korada, who was the runner-up at the MRF FMSCI National Championship in 2015, had a podium finish in five of the six races at last year’s edition of the championship. Last week, he attended a training programme in the Formula Masters Asia car at Sepang in Malaysia and has now set his sights on clinching the Formula 1600 National Championship this year.
