Former national racing champion Ashwin Sundar and his wife Nivedhitha died after their BMW hit a tree and caught fire in Chennai early on Saturday.

The accident occurred at the city's MRC Nagar area and a preliminary inquiry revealed that Sundar was behind the wheels of the luxury vehicle.

Sundar and his wife, a doctor by profession, were trapped inside the car as they could not open the doors. The car caught fire and both of them were charred to death, police said.

Fire and rescue services personnel from Mylapore rushed to spot but it took around half-an-hour to put out the fire.

A team of Chennai Police rushed to the spot and recovered the couple’s charred bodies. They were declared dead as per procedure at a local hospital.

Police sources said prima facie it seemed to be a case of rash driving.

Sundar won the MRF Formula 1600 International Challenge champion in 2010 and 2011. In 2012 and 2013, he won the National Champion F4.

FMSCI chief Akbar Ebrahim and former Indian F1 driver Karun Chadhok wrote condolence messages on Facebook.

Sundar had won the national title in car racing and two-wheeler events on several occasions. His wife Nivedhitha was a doctor in a private hospital in Chennai.