Odisha lad Udipta Rath, who rose to fame for his motorbike stunts on the city road here and performance at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia, is now all set to take part in world motorcycle racing championships.
After his success in inter-country competitions, the 25-year Udipta is eying to make it to top in international motorsport race in the next three to four years.
He is the only professional motorcycle racer from Odisha who made the State proud with his racing skills. He has chosen Chennai as his workplace to take forward the unconventional sport to a new height.
Even though Udipta needs a huge amount of money for his practice and preparation for the international-level motorcycle racing events, finance has never posed as a hindrance to his talents and skills.
Hailing from Dhenkanal district from a middleclass family, Udipta has continued his efforts to make the motorcycle racing recognised in the country.
Although he has three sponsors, Jyote Group, Milky Moo and Motogel, for financial aid, he also approached other companies to contribute as his motorsports sponsors.
He strongly claims that one can choose motorcycle racing and stunting as a profession, which has immense opportunity for earning.
“Valentino Rossi, an Italian professional motorcycle racer and a multiple MotoGP World Champion, is earning billion dollars per year. But one needs strong determination, dedication and physical fitness to reach that level.
You always need to check your weight and need to be physically fit,” said Udipta, who recently visited Bhubaneswar. He advised for regular exercise and healthy diet to be a motorcycle racer.
Talking about the sport, he said there is no special track or close circuit for the motorcycle racing in Odisha, which can earn popularity in motorsport if a close circuit track is constructed anywhere in the State.
Although the retirement age of motorsport is 55, Udipta is targeting to continue the racing till he is 40 or 45.