Kush Maini
| Kush Maini | |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  Indian |
| Born | 22 September 2000 Bangalore, India |
| Related to | Arjun Maini (brother) Chetan Maini (uncle) |
| FIA Formula 3 Championship career | |
| Debut season | 2022 |
| Current team | MP Motorsport |
| Car number | 12 |
| Best finish | TBD in 2022 |
| Previous series | |
| 2021 2021 2018, 2020 2019 2017 2016–2017 | FIA World Endurance Championship F3 Asian Championship BRDC British F3 Championship Formula Renault Eurocup ADAC Formula 4 Italian F4 Championship |
Kush Maini (born 22 September 2000) is an Indian racing driver who will race for MP Motorsport in FIA Formula 3 in 2022. He has previously competed in Formula 4, the Formula Renault Eurocup and the FIA World Endurance Championship, and is a race winner in the BRDC British Formula 3 Championship.
He is the younger brother of Arjun Maini, also a racing driver who competed in GP3 and Formula 2, and the nephew of Indian business magnate Chetan Maini.
Career[]
Lower formulae[]
2016[]
Maini started his single-seater career in 2016, competing for BVM Racing in the Italian F4 Championship.[1] His campaign started in a strong fashion, scoring points in the first six races of the year. After a difficult middle part of the year, the Indian scored his first podium in car racing, taking third place at the final race in Vallelunga. He finished the season 16th in the standings and ended up fifth in the rookies' championship.
2017[]
For 2017 Maini moved to Jenzer Motorsport, once again racing in Italian F4, partnering Giorgio Carrara, Federico Malvestiti, Giacomo Bianchi and Job van Uitert.[2] Maini's sophomore year would prove to be more successful, with two podiums at Imola and Monza, as well as a slew of top five finishes helping him finish eighth in the end results.
Progression in single-seaters[]
2018[]
In 2018 the Indian driver stepped up to the British Formula 3 Championship with Lanan Racing.[3] The season ended up being a breakthrough year, winning the reversed-grid race at Rockingham and scoring seven further podiums, which meant that Maini would end up third in the standings.
2019[]
The following year, Maini switched to the Formula Renault Eurocup with M2 Competition.[4] He hit the ground running with a podium in his first race at Monza, but was unable to replicate such result again throughout the season. He was a consistent points scorer though, and came sixth in the standings with 102 points, as the second highest placed rookie.
2020[]
Initially intending to remain in the Eurocup in 2020 with 3-time champions R-ace GP,[5] the Indian changed his plans following the COVID-19 pandemic and returned to the British F3 series, teaming up with Hitech Grand Prix.[6] Maini finished second in the standings, having won three races throughout the year.
2021[]
Maini began 2021 competing for new Indian outfit Mumbai Falcons in the F3 Asian Championship during the winter, partnering Formula 2 driver Jehan Daruvala.[7][8] He endured a tough start to the season, but a run of seven points finishes in the last nine races, including a podium at the last round in Abu Dhabi, moved him up to 11th place in the standings.
He was unable to find a full-time drive for the main season, his sole other race of the year coming at the 6 Hours of Bahrain of the 2021 FIA World Endurance Championship, as a one-off replacement in ARC Bratislava's LMP2 squad.[9]
FIA Formula 3 Championship[]
Maini progressed to the FIA Formula 3 Championship in 2022, driving alongside Caio Collet and Alexander Smolyar at MP Motorsport.[10] Maini was quoted as saying that he was "excited to join MP Motorsport for [his] first year in FIA F3", and that the team's results the previous year showed "their ability to coach rookie drivers on their way to immediately performing well in the series".
Racing record[]
Racing career summary[]
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Italian F4 Championship | BVM Racing | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 53 | 16th |
| 2017 | Italian F4 Championship | Jenzer Motorsport | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 114 | 8th |
| ADAC Formula 4 Championship | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC† | ||
| 2018 | BRDC British Formula 3 Championship | Lanan Racing | 23 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 366 | 3rd |
| 2019 | Formula Renault Eurocup | M2 Competition | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 102 | 6th |
| 2020 | BRDC British Formula 3 Championship | Hitech Grand Prix | 24 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 448 | 2nd |
| 2021 | F3 Asian Championship | Mumbai Falcons India Racing Ltd. | 14 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 55 | 11th |
| FIA World Endurance Championship - LMP2 | ARC Bratislava | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 30th | |
| 2022 | FIA Formula 3 Championship | MP Motorsport |
† As Maini was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score points.
Complete Italian F4 Championship results[]
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | BVM Racing | MIS 1 8 |
MIS 2 |
MIS 3 10 |
MIS 4 8 |
ADR 1 |
ADR 2 7 |
ADR 3 6 |
ADR 4 10 |
IMO1 1 15 |
IMO1 2 12 |
IMO1 3 13 |
MUG 1 18 |
MUG 2 Ret |
MUG 3 16 |
VLL 1 26 |
VLL 2 8 |
VLL 3 3 |
IMO2 1 6 |
IMO2 2 Ret |
IMO2 3 13 |
MNZ 1 Ret |
MNZ 2 7 |
MNZ 3 21 |
16th | 53 |
| 2017 | Jenzer Motorsport | MIS 1 Ret |
MIS 2 11 |
MIS 3 24 |
ADR 1 4 |
ADR 2 8 |
ADR 3 7 |
VLL 1 7 |
VLL 2 9 |
VLL 3 15 |
MUG1 1 5 |
MUG1 2 18 |
MUG1 3 Ret |
IMO 1 4 |
IMO 2 3 |
IMO 3 9 |
MUG2 1 9 |
MUG2 2 4 |
MUG2 3 18 |
MNZ 1 6 |
MNZ 2 7 |
MNZ 3 3 |
8th | 114 |
Complete BRDC British Formula 3 Championship results[]
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Lanan Racing | OUL 1 9 |
OUL 2 53 |
OUL 3 3 |
ROC 1 7 |
ROC 2 14 |
ROC 3 3 |
SNE 1 2 |
SNE 2 142 |
SNE 3 3 |
SIL 1 2 |
SIL 2 142 |
SIL 3 3 |
SPA 1 7 |
SPA 2 107 |
SPA 3 11 |
BRH 1 6 |
BRH 2 37 |
BRH 3 6 |
DON 1 5 |
DON 2 Ret |
DON 3 15 |
SIL 1 11 |
SIL 2 6 |
SIL 3 C |
3rd | 366 |
| 2020 | Hitech Grand Prix | OUL 1 14 |
OUL 2 2 |
OUL 3 10 |
OUL 4 2 |
DON1 1 3 |
DON1 2 610 |
DON1 3 3 |
BRH 1 2 |
BRH 2 112 |
BRH 3 3 |
BRH 4 1 |
DON2 1 3 |
DON2 2 104 |
DON2 3 1 |
SNE 1 11 |
SNE 2 12 |
SNE 3 15 |
SNE 4 7 |
DON3 1 9 |
DON3 2 49 |
DON3 3 3 |
SIL 1 3 |
SIL 2 17 |
SIL 3 6 |
2nd | 448 |
Complete Formula Renault Eurocup results[]
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | M2 Competition | MNZ 1 3 |
MNZ 2 5 |
SIL 1 18 |
SIL 2 6 |
MON 1 10 |
MON 2 11 |
LEC 1 6 |
LEC 2 21 |
SPA 1 5 |
SPA 2 9 |
NÜR 1 7 |
NÜR 2 8 |
HUN 1 15 |
HUN 2 5 |
CAT 1 Ret |
CAT 2 12 |
HOC 1 7 |
HOC 2 4 |
YMC 1 6 |
YMC 2 Ret |
6th | 102 |
Complete F3 Asian Championship results[]
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate the fastest lap of top ten finishers)
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Mumbai Falcons India Racing Ltd. | DUB 1 21 |
DUB 2 DNS |
DUB 3 20 |
ABU 1 12 |
ABU 2 11 |
ABU 3 17 |
ABU 1 8 |
ABU 2 7 |
ABU 3 8 |
DUB 1 NC |
DUB 2 Ret |
DUB 3 5 |
ABU 1 3 |
ABU 2 4 |
ABU 3 8 |
11th | 55 |
Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results[]
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | ARC Bratislava | LMP2 | Oreca 07 | Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 | SPA | ALG | MNZ | LMS | BHR 10 |
BHR | 30th | 1 |
Complete FIA Formula 3 Championship results[]
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate points for the fastest lap of top ten finishers)
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | MP Motorsport | BHR SPR |
BHR FEA |
IMO SPR |
IMO FEA |
CAT SPR |
CAT FEA |
SIL SPR |
SIL FEA |
RBR SPR |
RBR FEA |
HUN SPR |
HUN FEA |
SPA SPR |
SPA FEA |
ZAN SPR |
ZAN FEA |
MNZ SPR |
MNZ FEA |
-* | 0* |
* Season starts 18 March 2022.
References[]
- ^ "Kush Maini builds on his family's racing legacy". Red Bull. 15 May 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
- ^ "The Maini Brothers to race with Jenzer Motorsport". FMSCI. 28 February 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
- ^ "Kush Maini signs up with Lanan Racing in the 2018 British F3 season". Scroll.in. 11 January 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
- ^ Allen, Peter (22 December 2018). "Kush Maini joins M2 Competition for Formula Renault Eurocup". Formula Scout. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
- ^ Hensby, Paul (15 February 2020). "Kush Maini Switches to R-ace GP for Sophomore Eurocup Campaign". thecheckeredflag.co.uk. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
- ^ Chokhani, Darshan (30 July 2020). "KUSH MAINI RETURNS TO BRITISH F3 WITH HITECH GP". DriveTribe. Archived from the original on 30 September 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
- ^ "Daruvala set to race in F3 Asia ahead of F2 season". Motorsport.com. 11 January 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
- ^ Chaudhury, Sudipto (28 January 2021). "Mumbai Falcons' Jehan Daruvala and Kush Maini all set for the Formula 3 Asian Championship". Evo India. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ Gidithuri, Unnatee (28 October 2021). "Kush Maini to make World Endurance Championship debut at Bahrain". Autocar India. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ "Kush Maini joins MP Motorsport for 2022". FIAFormula3® - The Official F3® Website. Retrieved 2022-02-22.
External links[]
- Official website
- Kush Maini career summary at DriverDB.com
- Living people
- 2000 births
- Indian racing drivers
- Formula 4 drivers
- BRDC British Formula 3 Championship drivers
- Formula Renault Eurocup drivers
- F3 Asian Championship drivers
- Sportspeople from Bangalore