Concerned drivers to boycott future motor racing events
The track is often watered to prevent the dust from obstructing the visibility of the competitors
Motor racing drivers of the country are contemplating pulling out from future competitions following the incident that claimed seven lives and injured many during the recent Fox Hill Super Cross, according to officials of Sri Lanka Racing Drivers’ Association (SLRDA).
The Fox Hill Super Cross 2024, organised by the Sri Lanka Automobile Sports (SLAS), the local motorsports governing body, has shocked the racing community with their silence on the incident, shifting blame onto others instead of taking responsibility for managing the race event.
“We the drivers have stayed quiet while this gross misconduct has occurred before by SLAS, the governing body,” the press release issued by SLRDA said..
“SLAS office bearers should accept the full responsibility for the negligence of the race officials appointed by them to conduct this race meet and should step down from their positions with immediate effect. This is the first step to correcting the sad loss of lives that we can never pay back. And steps must be taken to make racing safer for spectators, marshals, and racing drivers alike,” the document, signed by its President Tyronne Hendavitharana, added.
Following the incident during the 18th Fox Hill Super Cross 2024 event on April 21, where two drivers, Ranjith Uduvita and Dilan Sanjeewa, were involved in a crash, leading to their arrest, there has been significant damage to the reputation of motorsports and drivers. Despite being released from the case, the drivers faced unwarranted scrutiny and pressure. The Bandarawela Magistrate released both drivers from the case, and notified them only to appear in court when a summons is issued.
The condition of the track this year, where watering ignored
“It is indeed a relief to all of us racing drivers. But by then lot of damage has been caused to motorsports and drivers alike. With the amount of pressure and rigorous examinations they had to go through, including tests to check if they were under the influence of any sort of drugs, the general public began to brand racing drivers as virtual culprits,” Hendavitharana told the Sunday Times, when asked about the stand of SLRDA.
Hendavitharana and his team at SLRDA demand a proper clarification from SLAS, which is the parent body of many affiliated racing clubs in Sri Lanka. Despite Sri Lanka Army and SLAS forming separate committees to probe the incident, racing drivers and riders have lost faith on the country’s caretakers of motorsports, for valid reasons.
“Drivers are really scared now, because they get arrested for competing. They request the clear clarification and clearance. It’s a hard call, they (SLAS) are basically avoiding being exposed. Nobody is willing to take responsibility. Drivers are not responsible for the mishaps caused by inexperienced race officials. There have been many incidents in the past, but not as this, where drivers and spectators ended up in the receiving end,” a worried Hendavitharana added.
When observed closely, compared to the past, the present day Sri Lankan racing drivers are highly technical and fast, with some of them even competing at international level. To meet present day demands in motor racing, as much as the updated drivers and riders, race officials too need to be adoptive to latest standards.
But when previous incidents already occurred, including multiple cars colliding in the second race and the winner of the SLGT event going an additional lap in spite the chequered flag, race officials had failed to address the issues appropriately with the cause being poor visibility due to heavy dust.
“Usually the track is being watered once in three car events. Despite multiple requests made by drivers of the poor visibility, race officials ignored to heed. The race officials were totally irresponsible in handling a race of such magnitude. SLAS needs to come out with the truth and rectify the mistakes,” Hendavitharana charged.
With an event being postponed from this weekend to July, due to the mental distress caused by the chain of events that occurred two weekends ago, drivers are uncertain if they will ever be able to compete with the assurance of not being bullied or grilled for wrong reasons. The SLAS officials will have less than 30 days before they are replaced or reelected at the upcoming Annual General Meeting, but the whole of motor racing fraternity have entirely lost their faith and hope on the present set of administrators whom the SLRDA term their acts as ‘passing the buck on others to save their own backs’.