Interview: TVS One Make Championship winner Saimah Baig opens up on her racing journey

When it comes to breaking barriers, Indian women are leading the charge. Be it the high-stakes corporate world or a highly competitive race track, there’s no denying that women have arrived conquering new horizons. For Pune-based Saimah Baig, the love affair with racing has been fairly recent, and at just three years young on the race track, the athlete has proven her mettle, winning the TVS One Make Championship. We caught up with Saimah recently to know more about her journey so far and what lies ahead.

HT Auto: What made you join racing in the first place?

Saimah: When I was a kid, I wanted to learn how to ride a bike, and at that time I aspired to race on a race track. Once I learned how to ride a motorcycle, I wanted to race. But I did not find a safe environment so I never got into that kind of stuff. And as a kid, I used to start to look up at what are the opportunities, what are the things, where can you professionally race? That’s when I came across the TVS One Championship. But back in those days, unlike now, there were not so many resources to check on how you can get on board. So I decided to wait. And of course that helped me as well because I could brush up my skills, become a better rider and get some more saddle time. So, in 2022 I enrolled for the TVS One Week Championship.

We had a city selection round and then the final selection round. The city selection round for me was in Bombay. And that's when I went in with a very open mindset because I had never, ever been on a race track at that point. And I was not looking or expecting anything out of it. I just went with a very I want to learn out of this day and I want to just make the most out of learning how to ride on the racetrack.But I did outperform myself, so I did get selected. That's when my journey began, and from there I never looked back.

From learning to ride a motorcycle on a friend's bike to competing professionally, Saimah has a come a long way

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From learning to ride a motorcycle on a friend's bike to competing professionally, Saimah has a come a long way

HT Auto: How has your skillset grown from the first season to now the fourth season in the championship?

Saimah: The support I got from TVS in terms of getting the race suit, the bike prep, all of those kinds of things. Basically they provided a very safe environment with trainers. So that kind of helped and groomed me into becoming a good racer, not just somebody who's going and doing running here and there.

The first season was the most challenging because by then there were goals coming from pan India; people who had more experience than me. My first season when I went the first time on my race track, it was like I was running helter-skelter. I could not figure out the corners, my braking marker, nothing, because it was like being on a big track. And there, during my first season, I've had crashes. I did not qualify for the race in the qualifying round. I literally sat down with the track map with my TVS trainer to help me.

I was fighting to get on the podium and fighting with the top bunch of girls from all over India who were there. The top racers you can say of India and everyone wanted the championship, so TVS provided me the platform and it really helped me improve my skill.

The first season is what shaped me because I did not take the setback. I wanted to come back and become a better racer and perform better. That was my mindset in every race. The first season is where in my last round, I fractured my leg. So in fact my family, everyone thought that's it. Maybe you should not get back to this. But for me, that was the position I was fighting for when I broke my leg, I was on the podium. By Round 5, if I have improved so much, I can do much better when I come back and that's what I did when I came back in Season 2.

My second season, in 2023, was a little more calm. I was a little more pre-planned for my races. I tried to work more on my fitness, I tried to get more track time before I could come for a race. I used to come and check out what my preparations are with my technician. In fact, the entire technical team at TVS is very supportive. If I come back with feedback, then they will always ask, is your bike perfect? Do you need anything to be changed?.Is your throttle fine? I was a little more confident and a little more calm before a race in 2023.

And I did secure podiums in 2023, but I could not come first in the championship. I came 4th that time. But like I said, again, even that point it sort of pushed me that if I have been able to go from sixth or seventh, to getting just one podium in my first season, I am able to now move one step higher, get second or third on the podium. That was the mindset. I knew that I had to be on my A1 game from the first race, no questions asked.

HT Auto: What was your family’s reaction about your decision to go racing?

Saimah: My family has been very, very supportive and while they were very hesitant in the beginning, they never stopped me from it. They were only scared that iif this a safe sport which for them dangerous. I made sure to take my parents with me to the track so that they can see what the environment is like and absorb all that.

To the person from the outside, it looks just like track time. But everything that goes behind also matters. Before we sit on the bike, TVS conducts all the checks including the bike, riding gear, helmet, gloves, riding suit, and boots. Everything is as per the norms.

We all know motorsport is dangerous, you can crash in a race. It's part of the sport. So while you crash, you have to make sure that you've taken precautions. Once my parents came and saw the environment, they realised what was happening. When I had my crash in front of my parents and they were scared, and they were scared to death like. But it was just a fracture. In some of my crashes, I came out with just a scratch, so that sort of helped them become more confident. Plus, I really wanted to chase this dream of mine.

HT Auto: What's the first steps, according to you, that you can take to make things easier at home when pursuing motorsport?

Saimah: You can just go Google stuff, check out the social media of the brands and you will have all the information there. Regardless of gender, anyone who wants to probably get a chance, can get an opportunity and be out there. To convince your parents, you need to probably sit down and talk to them and make them aware about the sport.

If you see something like IPL (Indian Premier League) or any cricket match, pretty much people in India know about it, even somebody who's not a fan of cricket. In the end, it is a leather ball that can still injure you. I feel you need to make your parents and people around you more aware about the sport. You need to go show them what the races are like. These are the basic mandatory stuff that we need to take care of.

HT Auto: You are now moving to the Apache RR 310 category this year? Tell us more

Saimah: You have to move one step above right every time you achieve something. It's not like you settle down and you're like, okay done. I'm enrolling for the RR 310 category, which will be an all-open grid. So I'll be racing with existing boys, champions and all the fastest riders across India and that is something I am looking forward to. I have been trying to work more on my skill set now. It will be about getting used to the new bike. Thanks to TVS, I have the bike now with me so I can brush up my skills with that.

TVS recently gifted Saimah the Apache RTR 310 streetfighter for winning the One Make Championship

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TVS recently gifted Saimah the Apache RTR 310 streetfighter for winning the One Make Championship

HT Auto: You were recently gifted the TVS Apache RTR 310 by the company. How different is riding the street bike compared to your race bike?

Saimah: Compared to the race bike, it's very different, but as a motorcycle as a whole, the first time that I wrote it here once I took the motorcycle, I was actually very surprised because the one thing which I actually personally like the most about the bike, it's an exceptionally lightweight bike. So that combination of having that much power and being so lightweight, it really enhances the entire experience of riding. Over the weekend, I could really confidently open the throttle wide open and corner or just swing through traffic. Also, it's very flickable and lightweight. I cannot wait to take something like this on the race track because that's where I can actually test the whole potential right on the road. On a race track, I think it'll be a beast.

HT Auto: What can budding women riders do who want to try out their luck in racing?

Saimah: If you are really passionate about motorcycles and you are learning now. When I started out, I did not always have a bike. I don't come from a family who's into motorsports. Leave aside being a girl and being into motorsport, none of the boys in my family are into motorsport or bikes for that matter. You need to go out there. Speak up for yourself. Don't hold back. What I did was very simple. Went up there. Told them [friends], this is what I want to learn. My friends are pretty supportive. They also hesitated a little but were supportive. They said, “we'll teach you."

But I would say that for anyone who wants to learn, or you know, you're passionate and you want to just chase something. Get a chance out of it, don't wait. Now-a-days, you can go and learn at riding schools at a small cost and expenses. If you cannot afford that, just learn the basics - learn how to ride a bike, try to get as much as time as you can - and once you have that kind of an opportunity like selections, you can just go test yourself out. That's what I did. I had not done any sort of a training programme before I went for the TVS One Make selections. I looked at the One Make selection as my one chance. This is where I can go and test myself. Am I ready or not?

HT Auto: What's the long-term goal for you? Is international motorsport space something you would like to pursue?

Saimah: I really do want to do that because every time you achieve something you want to take it one step higher, right? So for me, starting off with the TVS One Make championship, the girls category grid, I want to move up to the open category RR 310 and probably after that, if TVS has more options, I would want to explore that as well. If I am am able to improve myself in due course of time, I would look at going international as well.

I also want to explore different formats of racing. Let's say you look at any of the MotoGP riders or the top riders of the world. They do not restrict themselves to one particular format because getting into different formats, exploring all that, giving yourself the exposure of different formats is only going to improve you as a rider.

Women-friendly racing programs are the need of the hour, Saimah says, as more young girls are taking their first steps towards motorsport

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Women-friendly racing programs are the need of the hour, Saimah says, as more young girls are taking their first steps towards motorsport

HT Auto: What more can other brands do to make it more inclusive for women?

Saimah: I think the concept of getting a pure race grid just for girls, is something I give TVS credit for. Just having women sort of helps because you're not throwing someone new to the sport directly to compete with the boys or like the top bunch. You're giving them sort of a platform where they can get their basics correct. We can get an experience of what racing is like and feel inclusive. I think a lot of other brands also need to come up with things like this if they are looking at coming anywhere close to where TVS is right now.

So, if you have an all-women's grid or an all-women's championship, I think that sort of helps us. As somebody who wants to come into racing, it sort of makes you feel like this is an opportunity to not just go and try but also achieve something. Because you have a higher chance of winning, you have a higher chance of getting better in that particular discipline, one step at a time. TVS started in 2016 and it's been a good journey so far.

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