Imran Majid’s Nissan GT-R and Hemanth Muddappa’s BMW S 1000 RR set the fastest times at the 12th edition of The Valley Run, held at the Aamby Valley City airstrip. This is the first time Elite Octane is hosting two editions of the event in the same year: the Summer Edition in April will be followed by the Winter Edition, which holds on to the more traditional year-end slot: November 29-December 1.
- Honda Accord (Sagar C. Dangat) fastest Indian car – 11.44secs
- Kawasaki Ninja (Shahrukh Khan) fastest Indian bike – 11.79secs
The Valley Run 2024: Fastest cars, bikes
The latest edition of The Valley Run saw approximately 500 participants; categories included two-stokes, four-strokes, superbikes, Indian modified cars and supercars. Over 6,000 spectators gathered at Aamby Valley City across two days. Although these figures are slightly lower than the 2023 event, the Summer Edition was only held across two days, rather than three.
Imran Majid set the fastest time of 9.35secs in a Nissan GT-R tuned by KIK Shift. He improved on his previous best time of 9.496secs set at the Aces of Speed in Hosur last year. Hemanth Muddappa’s BMW S 1000 RR, tuned by Mantra Racing, was the fastest bike with a time of 9.48secs.
Sagar C. Dangat’s Honda Accord and Shahrukh Khan’s Kawasaki Ninja took home the prizes for fastest Indian car and bike of the event, respectively. There was also plenty of female representation; Geeta Patil won the title of fastest female driver in a foreign car, having set a time of 16.76secs with a Mercedes-Benz C250, while Shweta Chitrode was the fastest female rider on a foreign bike, with a time of 10.07secs on a Suzuki Hayabusa.
The action wasn’t limited to just the drag races. There was also a drifting display by KS Motorsport and JK Tyre, and stunt segments featuring TVS Racing, Sachin Riderboy, Sanam Sekon and Bobbie Bhogal. A new addition this year was the Mud Drag showcase event held in association with Off-Road Junkie; organisers tell us this segment will likely become a permanent addition to The Valley Run.
“The brilliant response of the 12th edition has been the true reward for this long journey. The participants have grown in numbers and the quality of vehicles was simply mesmerising for any auto enthusiast,” said Rongom Tagore Mukerji, director of Elite Octane and promoter of The Valley Run.
“The Special Edition required special initiatives and the Mud Drag was surely one for the record books. I thank Mr Mark Hughes (NHRA) for taking the time to visit India to witness the potential, and look forward to taking steps to provide our participants the best in the world. They truly deserve that with all the passion and amazing builds.”
As the drag racing scene continues growing in India, plenty of brands showed up to support the event, including JK Tyre, Levitas Ultra, Indian National Rally Championship promoter Vamcy Merla, AMG-Driving Performance, Monster Energy, TVS Motors, Big Boy Toyz and Car Commune.
The Valley Run 2024 results
| The Valley Run 2024 results | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prize | Competitor | Vehicle | Class | Time (secs) |
| Fastest Indian Car | Sagar C. Dangat | Honda Accord | K8 | 11.44 |
| Best Tuner - Indian Car | Race Concepts | Honda Accord | K8 | 11.44 |
| Fastest Foreign Car | Imran Majid | Nissan GT-R | N1 | 9.35 |
| Best Tuner - Foreign Car | KIK Shift | Nissan GT-R | N1 | 9.35 |
| Fastest Car - Diesel | Vikram Walia | BMW X3 | L6 | 12.83 |
| Best Tuner - Diesel Car | Mod My Car India | BMW X3 | L6 | 12.83 |
| Fastest Foreign Bike | Hemanth Muddappa | BMW S 1000 RR | E3 | 9.48 |
| Best Tuner - Foreign Bike | Mantra Racing | BMW S 1000 RR | E3 | 9.48 |
| Fastest Indian Bike | Shahrukh Khan | Kawasaki Ninja | E2 | 11.79 |
| Best Tuner - Indian Bike | Mantra Racing | Kawasaki Ninja | E2 | 11.79 |
| Fastest Driver Foreign Car - Female | Geeta Patil | Mercedes-Benz C250 | L5 | 16.76 |
| Fastest Rider Foreign Bike - Female | Shweta Chitrode | Suzuki Hayabusa | E3 | 10.07 |
| Fastest Driver Indian Car - Female | Alvina Sheikh | Hyundai Getz | O2 | 20.57 |
Also see:
India ready for permanent drag strips: NHRA’s Mark Hughes