Team MRF Emerges Victorious in the Second Round of the ERC

Indian brands have now started to make a mark in the international motorsports sphere. Till now, we had only Hero or TVS actively participating in international adventure motorsports, but now Indian tyre manufacturer MRF has made a mark by winning the second round of ERC.

Team MRF Tyres won round 2 of the 2022 FIA European Rally Championship on Monday, marking the Indian tyre maker’s maiden victory in the championship and a significant step forward for the Indian tyre business.

In their Skoda Fabia Rally2 Evo, Efrén Llarena and co-driver Sara Fernández won the Azores Rally by 2.7 seconds, beating home heroes Ricardo Moura and co-driver António Costa of their eponymous squad Ricardo Moura.

By the time the last power stage began, Ricardo Moura was leading the event by 6.1 seconds, which would be critical in determining the eventual victor. He appeared to be invincible after a fantastic performance in the gravel stages. Efrén Llarena, driving for Team MRF Tyres, put up a fantastic performance, smashing through the stage and winning the rally by 2.7 seconds.

This is the first time Efrén Llarena and Team MRF Tyres have won a rally in the European Rally Championship, one of the most prominent regional rallying series that serves as a feeder series to the World Rally Championship and has a tumultuous history of its own.

MRF Tyres has been competing in the series since 2020, and their performance has steadily improved, culminating in yesterday night’s win.

Efrén Llarena and Sara Fernández are presently three points behind Armindo Araujo in the title. Team MRF Tyres is also second in the manufacturer’s standings, 14 points behind Toksport WRT. The 2022 European Rally Championship is down to six races, with the Rally Islas Canarias taking place in Gran Canaria, Spain, from May 12 to 14.