“It's a big step in the right direction,” says Kush Maini on his win at the Monaco Grand Prix

Kush Maini recently etched his name into racing history after winning the Formula 2 Sprint race at the Monaco Grand Prix and becoming the first Indian to bag a win at the iconic circuit. This was also Maini’s first Formula 2 victory of the season and his first first podium with the DAMS Lucas Oil team. In celebration of this milestone, the Raymond Group held a felicitation for Maini at JK House in Mumbai and the event was hosted by Gautam Singhania, chairman and managing director of Raymond. Singhania is a motorsport enthusiast himself, with a successful racing career which includes podium finishes in the Ferrari Challenge Series.

In our conversation with Maini on the sidelines of the event, the Formula 2 driver reiterated that Monaco is one of the toughest tracks on the race calendar and that the circuit requires you to focus. “At Monaco it is very easy to get trapped in the future, where you're thinking about winning and everything that's going to come after it. So it was very difficult to stay in the moment. But obviously, with the issue I had with the brakes, it definitely kept me in the moment because I had to focus so much. But I remember just coming out of the last corner and just breathing and just relaxing and knowing that it was all over. It was a very stressful race. But yeah, just crossing the line and knowing that we made history as a country was a very special feeling. And then all I could think about was the national anthem was going to be played on the way back,” Maini said. When asked about the significance of this win, both personally and professionally, Maini said, “It's huge. Forever you're going to be called a Formula 2 Monaco Grand Prix winner. That's something that will live with you forever. And for our country, it's huge. In some way it helps bring more eyes to motorsport and the kids that love racing and love watching racing have a way to start in an easier way than I did. It's a big step in the right direction for not just me, not just my family, but for India and for Indian motorsport, which is a very big long-term goal of mine.”

Speaking about the race itself, Maini recalls it being stressful due to an issue with his rear brakes. “I remember one lap, I locked up in the second to last corner in Rascasse and I nearly went into the wall alone. That's when I was like that could have been it. But there was a safety car, so managing the restart there, managing the pace. It was definitely a stressful race. I know from outside it probably looked like I led the whole way or whatever. But from inside, it was very stressful and I really had to keep my focus till the end.” When asked about how it feels to represent India on a global stage in motorsport, Maini said, “It's the thing that excites me the most. I've always been very proud to be Indian. I faced a lot of negativity when I was young in karting, especially going to Europe. There were not very many Indians there, so it was very tough. After all that, I was a very anxious kid when it came to travelling and being abroad. Now when I look back at it and I've overcome all of those insecurities, knowing that I raced for my country makes me the proudest.”