SEBASTIAN Vettel now leads the Drivers’ Championship by 6 points from Fernando Alonso. For a driver who is defending his title this year it would be surprising if I were to tell you that this is only the first time this season that he has topped the table!
How did he do that? The answer is quite simple, by winning! The young German driver has won the last three races on the trot and has scored more points than any of his Championship rivals. Red Bull Racing has the fastest car on the grid and the onus is now on Ferrari to develop the F2012 and give Alonso a chance to chase his much deserved title.
The Korean Grand Prix was a bore! The race was almost a procession of Formula1 cars with the exception of Kobayashi’s opening lap crash with Button and Rosberg and Hulkenberg’s great overtaking moves on Hamilton and Grosjean. However, there are talks on to extend the Korean Grand Prix contract till 2016 even though the circuit owners are unable to attract spectators and have been incurring massive losses. Going purely by social media talk, most Formula1 fans would be happy to see Korea off the calendar! And which circuit would replace it? My pick would be the historic circuits like Magny Cours in France, A1 Ring in Austria and the likes that should make a comeback! And it would be a bold statement, but the sport of Formula1 is struggling to attract attention outside of its core target market – Europe!
Away from the boredom, Karthikeyan had a weekend to forget in Korea. While he finished the race in 20th position, he was one of the two drivers to attempt a one-stop strategy in the race. The strategy backfired as he finished two laps down on the leader and nearly 80 seconds off his nearest rival Charles Pic in the Marussia. In qualifying, Karthikeyan suffered a brake disc failure and was unable to set a time. However, basis times set in the practice session the FIA Stewards gave him permission to race.
Keeping his finishing positions aside, Karthikeyan has been consistently outpacing his more experienced team-mate Pedro de la Rosa in the last few races. With the Indian Grand Prix coming up next, I am certain that Karthikeyan will put up a spirited drive for his Indian Formula1 fans!
India’s only Formula1 team, Sahara Force India managed a decent performance this weekend. Nico Hulkenberg, the German driver who is strongly rumoured to switch to Sauber next season, drove a splendid race to finish 6th. His dual overtaking maneuver on Hamilton and Grosjean was the biggest highlight of the race. Paul Di Resta finished 12th and outside the points after reverse tyre strategy as compared to his team-mate. The team’s Constructors’ Championship total is up to 89 points and only 27 points behind Sauber.
As a build up to the Indian Grand Prix, the team has also launched their ‘Raise The Flag’ campaign which is a multi-city activity where fans can participate in pit-stop challenges and race in the team’s state-of-art simulators. Lucky fans would get a chance to be the team’s guests at the second edition of the Indian Grand Prix. The team has built solid momentum in the last few races it would be good to see them score a podium finish in front of their Indian fans!
The Indian Grand Prix organisers have converted their GP weekend into a mix of sports and entertainment. Illustrious Indian singers like Shaan, Vishal and Shekhar will be performing on the day of the race and hopefully will help boost ticket sales for the organisers. If you are still in two minds to book, let me assure you that the tickets for the Indian Grand Prix are probably the cheapest for any Formula1 race in the world. And the music concerts are free for all fans who have purchased tickets for the race!
Apart from Formula1, the Buddh International Circuit has already shown interest in hosting MotoGP, GT1 and the WSBK championships from next year. While Formula1 is taking its time to attract the masses, it is important that the Jaypee Group diversifies its income for the track and attracts other motorsport events. And if I were the JPSI, my first interest would be to ensure that the Buddh International Circuit is listed as a confirmed event on the WSBK calendar for 2013. Why? Because Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s team races in the championship! When cricket will meet motorsport, there is bound to be more than enough buzz to fill up seats!
And lastly, the kudos to Mahindra Racing for clinching their first ever Constructors’ Championship in the 125cc class of the Italian National Motorcyle Racing Championship. The Indian-owned team won six out of the eight races in the championship and I hope that such performances create a wave of interest in two-wheeler racing in the world’s largest two wheeler market!
