Valencia (Spain): Rivaan Dev Preetham, the only Indian to have ever won a race at the FIA Motorsport Games, once again displayed his remarkable talent at the second round of the Champions of the Future Academy Programme held in Valencia, Spain, as per an official FIA release.
Despite a difficult start, the reigning Micro Max National Champion made a strong comeback. A misjudged strategy led to a disappointing qualifying, resulting in P21 and P27 finishes in the heats. However, the determined 11-year-old bounced back strongly in the final, finishing P11.
In the second heat, Rivaan qualified fifth out of 37 drivers from across the world and clinched P5, showcasing his consistency and resilience. He then followed it up with an 11th place finish in the second final, collecting 22 valuable points from the round.
Representing India with pride, Rivaan is supported by Redbrick Constructions, Sankar Group of Companies, and Chaicup. He clocked a best lap time of 1 minute, 02.442 seconds during the event.
Backed by F1 Academy’s global karting initiative, the MSport protégé will return to India on Wednesday, only to resume training quickly. There’s little time for birthday celebrations on April 18, as he begins preparations for the upcoming Meco Meritus Cup.
A Grade 6 student at Lady Andal House of Children in Chennai, Rivaan has already clinched two National titles in 2023 and 2024. He now aims for a hat-trick this year. In 2024, he also impressed at the World Motorsport Games, winning a race and a heat, and finishing 8th overall in the Karting Mini class, among competitors from over 40 countries.
“I’m very happy to be on pace with the top guns. This is a good learning experience and I look forward to better results in the remaining rounds,”
said Rivaan, as quoted by FIA.
The next round of the Champions of the Future Academy Programme will take place in Italy from July 2 to 6, followed by rounds in Hungary, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi.