There was a time when the nation would only eat, pray and love the Men in Blue, jubilate when Messi scored a goal or watch with bated breath for (Rafael) Nadal’s famous between the leg blind shot. Today, the nation has moved on to a new obsession. India is now geared up for Mark Webber, Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and the veteran Michael Schumacher. And, it is time for Indian Formula to rise and shine.

The big daddy of racing sports is going to be a reality from 28 to 30 October, 2011. India would be hosting the 17th race of the 2011 F1 circuit and the nation is already feeling the fever rise. In a nation, where a 1.2 billion plus population only speaks one language when it comes to sports – Cricket, the biggest challenge for this racing sport is to create that space, especially in the mind of the youth.

Ankur Grover, an entrepreneur from Delhi shares the apprehension, “I’ve seen a number of cricket matches in Delhi, I know what to expect. But with F1, I don’t know what I’m up for. It’s a feeling that I want to experience live. And that’s exactly why I am ready to spend any amount of money to watch it.”

“Formula One is coming to India because there is a huge market,” believes Sameer Gaur, MD and CEO of Jaypee Sports International Ltd (JPSI), the company in charge of bringing the Grand Prix to India. In a press interview recently, he further predicted, “There is a growing interest among the young population and the growing middle class will only ensure investment in motor sports yields better returns for future.” Several discussions with the F1 owners and teams individually were undertaken before giving final shape to the track. Their valuable inputs have gone in making the laps all the more unique and exciting.

The buzz of this mega racing event has only made the organisers and the market anticipate the “be there” feeling. They have left no stone unturned in amplifying the experiential aspect of the event. From a bar café in New Delhi, to importing an F1 car (Ferrari) for public display or Lady Gaga attending the after parties and Metallica enthralling fans, these great marketing gimmicks are solely adopted to strike a chord with the youth.

McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton expressed his eagerness of witnessing the madness and passion for F1 in India, “One thing I can see is that people in India love sports. With the Indian GP coming through, there will be a lot of sponsors coming in and that can help build a good base for youngsters,” Hamiton says. F1 baron, Bernie Eccleston expressing his excitement over the Indian Leg, in an interview said: “India has always been known for its love of cricket, but F1 has been growing hugely in popularity in recent years. The announcements of the future Grand Prix in India will only spark an explosion of further interest to rival the traditional sport.”

The Indian Grand Prix will go down in history of motor racing, as the longest racing circuit ever, with 20 races that will take place this year. 

With the final days fast nearing, aggressive marketing strategies and offers are kicking in high gear so that the nation gets a taste of the Indian Grand Prix.  Will this high voltage game of speed racing leave some tyre burns on the Indian mindscape? It’s a question that everyone is asking. The lone Indian face on the F1 racing circuit in all these years, Narayan Karthikeyan will be driving for HRT-Croosworth team. Karthikeyan will be driving in India for the very first time and will surely be bagging enough support through the track. The Indian leg is definitely what Narayan is anticipating but keeping the future in mind, he raises caution, “Solely focusing on F1 will also not be good news for motorsports in this country. One needs more Grade-II and III tracks to promote the sports at the beginners’ level. This is essential if India want a steady stream of drivers coming up.”

India has placed high hopes on Karun Chandhok who would be driving for Lotus-Renault. Although Chandhok will be only part of test driving, India will still be cheering him on. Another, young and talented driver who can benefit from such future races is – Armaan Ebrahim. He has already shown potential and is rated by the F2 website as, “Driver with the best race form.”

With F1 coming into India, the dream of seeing fast and speeding cars in your backyard becomes a reality. The weekend fantasy that just played out on their television screens is now a full blown live experience. In Hamilton’s words, “India should continue dreaming and not let anyone or anything take that away from them.” Driving the F1 Circuit in India for the very first time, Karun Chandhok too is aware that post F1, motor racing is sure to face challenging times. “It’s the other 51 weeks that need to be worked out to cover the costs,” says Chandhok. The project is set to incur loss of 35 million every year, Gaur predicts, “a break even” in “three to four years,” riding on the visibility that F1 brings for to the company.
Force India, the only Indian racing team hopes to hold the tri-colour high at the Buddha International tracks by aiming for a podium position. Being the only national team, the support base for Force India is only increasing. Force India merchandise is selling like hot cakes. A nation completely new to the concept of F1 is all charged to shower their support. Force India Chairman, Vijay Mallya is ecstatic about the progress of the event. In a recent release, he said, “Charlie Whiting’s track inspection report is very flattering. I was exceptionally proud to read his report. He said that everything is done to a very high standard.”

Although this much is true – for a country that deifies cricket probably nothing can come close to the experience of seeing their cricket heroes play, nothing can match the electric atmosphere of India winning the World Cup or the three-hour adrenalin rush one experiences in an Indian Premier League (IPL) match. But probably the pace, the sound and the excitement of Formula cars will soon replace all that at least for three days when the Indian Grand Prix will satiate machine worshippers in the country.

This particular October weekend is going to be nothing but fast and furious! So come 28 October. 2011, fasten your seat belt and sit tight.       

>>The Circuit
The US $400 million Buddh International Circuit has been designed by world-renowned German architect and racetrack designer, Herman Tilke, who has also designed other world-class race circuits in countries all across the world. BIC is a 5.14km long circuit, with 16 corners and the highest point of elevation on the circuit is 14m and the width ranges between 10-14m. Seating capacity on the circuit is about 100, 000 people. The track has been designed to provide ample opportunities for overtaking, which is what makes motor racing exciting. Top speeds for F1 cars will be in the region of 325km/h, which is the highest in the world.

>>The Impact
wWhile motor sport has been around in India for many decades and is already very popular in many parts of the country, the one area in which we were lacking was infrastructure. With Buddh International Circuit, India gets a world-class motor racing facility in the country, which should provide a significant boost to the popularity of motor sport in India.

It is also expected to become an annual attraction on international sports-lover’s calendar, boosting tourism and allied businesses. Seating capacity of Buddh International Circuit is about 120, 000 people and, in addition to all the people who will travel from various places within the country for the first F1 race here, about 15, 000 are expected to also come from abroad.

Asian countries, like Singapore, Malaysia and China, which host an F1 race, have witnessed total income generation of over US$200 million from the event. As such, F1 is expected to have a strong positive impact on the Indian economy. Firstly, the circuit is expected to result in significant employment and socio-economic development. Secondly, visitor expenditure is expected to result in income generation and foreign exchange earnings for the economy.

BIC has been built was earlier a barren piece of land – no trees were cut and no harm was caused to the environment. BIC authorities claim to have planted thousands of trees in the vicinity of the circuit and, in the future, will also develop a golf course there, which will add to the greenery.

>>All Access
Tickets for the October 28-30 weekend extravaganza can be bought online from BookMyShow.com. Tickets are also available at selected Café Coffee Day outlets and at some dealerships of our automotive partner, Mercedes-Benz. They start from R2, 500 (grass embankments) and R35, 000 (grandstand) and corporate boxes start from R35 lakh to R1 crore (R7-10 lakh per person).