There are only a handful of individuals from India who made their name in motorsports at a global level. Females are even rarer. Humaira Mushtaq, has achieved a groundbreaking milestone by becoming the first female Indian car racer to participate in the prestigious British Endurance Championship (BEC) held in London.
Hailing from Jammu & Kashmir, Mushtaq also secured the distinction of being the first woman from South Asia to obtain an ITCCC licence, granting her the opportunity to compete at this championship in London.
The official website of the BEC proudly proclaims her as the first female Indian driver to participate at the BEC with the final race held at the Donington Grand Prix on 14 October. Driving an 620 hp Aston Martin, this was Mushtaq’s first international racing experience. She is now gearing up for the next season of BEC starting from March 2024.
More about Humaira Mushtaq
A native of Bathindi area of Jammu, Humaira got the first taste of motorsports at the tender age of five when she started go-karting. Over time, Humaira diligently honed her driving skills, progressing from Rotax Karting to single-seaters Formula racing. At that time, the country only had two racing tracks— MMRT in Chennai and Kari Motor Speedway in Coimbatore.
She is also the first lady from Jammu & Kashmir to race a Formula car. Mushtaq embarked on her professional racing journey back in 2019 initially with JK Tyres and subsequently with MRF. A dentist by profession, 25-year-old Humaira gained recognition after achieving a podium finish at the Madras International Circuit in Chennai earlier this year.
“When I started, it was of course very challenging and full of struggle, I was easing into a whole new world. I felt a sense of responsibility too since I was the first Indian woman and sole representative” said Mushtaq.
She further added, “The funds was one of the factors in terms of preparation aside from how strength demanding they were, these required special intensive off track and on track training and testings as these were proper GT paddle shift cars, extremely quick and powerful. These were very physically and mentally demanding cars, I remember I would drop massive amounts of water weights after each session. These cars were exhaustive initially .I built my strength on it.”
