Kollywood star Ajith Kumar is back on the race track after a gap of five years. Clad in red overalls, the racer-turned-actor blazed the Irungattukottai circuit on Friday in a bid to stage his comeback at the Sunday's MRF Racing Challenge finale. The last time Ajith drove in a competetive event was in 2004 when he raced in the British Formula 3.

The 38-yearold, who is no stranger to the highadrenaline sport, showed no signs of nervousness as he negotiated the corners with elan.

Ajith said he was excited to sit behind the wheel of Formula car again. "I am really looking forward to the race day. I am hoping to put up a good show. Making it to the podium would be a great result given that I am racing after a long time," said Ajith, who was assisted by MRF's brand ambassador and former F1 driver Narain Karthikeyan.

Before taking a plunge in movies, Ajith was an avid racer. His motorsport career started early at an early age of 19, when he started riding bikes. In 2002, Ajit returned to the racing paddock amidst a successful film career to pursue his true passion for racing. In the 2003 Formula BMW Asia series, Ajit took part in 14 races and finished the season in the 12th place.

Ajith was forced to shift his focus to acting after he found it difficult to rope in sponsors for his international races.