Who is Atiqa Mir? Meet the Indian racing prodigy who nearly secured a historic podium in COFTA Karting Series

Atiqa Mir, India’s newest motorsport sensation, nearly made history in Slovakia over the weekend after finishing fourth in the fourth event of the Champions of the Future Academy (COFTA) karting series. The 10-year-old prodigy put up a superb performance in Round 4.1 in Slovakia’s Orechova, and was in contention for victory for much of the race, only to miss out on a podium finish by a mere 0.32 seconds.

Not only did Atiqa produce the best result by an Indian driver in the Championship’s history, it’s also the highest finish by a female driver in the mini category (Mini 60) this season.

“I was so close to the win and the podium but happy at the same time with my progress and performance against this top European grid. It’s nice to see all the hard work and training paying off,” Atiqa, who represents AKCEL GP, said after the race.

It’s not just in Slovakia where Atiqa has left her mark this month; she had become the first woman in UAE Karting to win a race in the Minimax category, pulling off a commanding victory from pole position in the opening race of the DAMC Championship in Dubai.

Who is Atiqa Mir, the rising Indian racing sensation? 

Atiqa hails from Jammu and Kashmir, having been born and raised in Srinagar, and has racing in her blood, with her father Asif Nazir Mir being a former Formula Asia Vice Champion and was India’s first National Karting Champion in 2000. Asif continues to support his daughter’s dream of becoming a world-class racer by travelling with her to events across the globe.

And in an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corportation, Atiqa revealed her introduction to the sport at the age of six.

“My dad was India’s first national karting champion and that really inspired me to start karting as well because I loved cars since… I don’t know… since I was born! I would always play with cars and when I saw my dad’s racing trophies, I knew I wanted to race and win too,” said Atiqa, who began her racing journey by driving electrical cars in malls.

“I got good at that and moved to indoor karting. My dad gave me a lap time to beat, 59.1 seconds, which was not too easy but not too difficult either at that stage — and I did beat that. So, I was really happy with that,” she added.

Atiqa would later join the National Karting Championship in UAE and would later become the first Indian female driver to win an FIA International Karting Championship.

She also happens to be the first Asian to be signed by F1 Academy – an all-female racing series launched by the Formula One Group for the promotion and development of young female drivers. That certainly puts Atiqa in a league of her own.