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The Right Formula
Pace ace Narain Karthikeyan’s arrival on the F-1
stage could spark off a new craze in India, especially with sponsorship dollars
coming from India Inc.
By V Krishnaswamy
The craze for Formula One is not really new in
India. For the past few years, pubs and restaurants in major cities across the
country have been having special screenings on the Race Days and the places have
been overflowing. And all that without an Indian in the F1 circuit. Now that is
set to change, with 28-year-old Narain Karthikeyan revving up his Jordan at the
start of Formula One’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on
March 6. He did not have podium finish that Sunday and he well fail to finish in
the top three the entire season—unless there is a miracle of sorts—but a new
chapter in Indian sport has been written.
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And the mandarins on the F-1 circuit are also
watching the arrival of Karthikeyan with great interest. It is now a
well-acknowledged fact that India and China are the new big markets for
everything. Both countries with their billion-plus populations present a huge
opportunity for every marketing manager.
Asia has already been on the F-1 circuit with races in Kuala Lumpur, Bahrain and
China and there is talk of India coming onto the circuit in about five years.
With a Karthikeyan on the circuit, and young drivers like Karun Chandhok waiting
in the wings, that may no longer be as far-fetched as it seemed sometime back.
Karthikeyan’s confirmation on the Jordan team for
2005 along with Portuguese Tiago Monteiro could bring in huge sponsorships for
the Disney-Murdoch backed ESPN-Star Sports channel, which beams the races in
India. Already F-1 races are packed with sponsors and an Indian interest can
only add to it. |
The first race on March 6, which clashed with the
India-Pakistan Test series, gave an indication of how the F-1 measured up. Race
Days have been hugely popular with the urban youth and young executives all
around, and it reached feverish pitch as Karthikeyan rubbed shoulders with the
likes of Michael Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya. On race day, despite the
fact that ESPN was telecasting the race live at 7 a.m., ratings of the channel
went through the roof.
Karthikeyan is billed as the “fastest Indian on
wheels” and Jordan’s new backers Midland Group—owned by Russian-born Canadian
businessman Alex Shnaider—are likely to invest in heavy industry in India over
the next few years. Karthikeyan’s presence in F-1 will give them a headstart.
Jordan, never really a premier team in terms of
news stories, has already been seeing an upsurge in interest, as the Indian
media has been hounding Karthikeyan for interviews day in and day out. This when
Karthikeyan has not even been in India. He has been at Jordan’s headquarters in
Silverstone. And then testing out in Barcelona. Karthikeyan’s three main
sponsors — the Tata Group, India’s second largest business house, Bharat
Petroleum and JK Tyres —are said to have put up close to $30 million to get
Jordan to hire him.
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A year ago, Karthikeyan had come close to a Minardi
F1 berth in 2003. But it was widely believed that he lost out to Hungarian
drivers, simply because he could not raise the kind of money that F-1 racing
demands. Son of former national rally
champion G.R. Karthikeyan, Narain grew up in the southern town of Coimbatore.
His only dream was to drive fast and he dreamt of F-1. He raced in British
Formula Three and the Nissan World Series for eight years. |
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Twice he came close to F-1, when he tested with
both Jaguar and Jordan in 2001. Then he got a test drive with Minardi in 2003,
but he could not get the sponsorship needed by the cash-strapped team to secure
his place. It must have been most crushing, but this time around the Tatas,
Bharat Petroleum and JK Tyres seem to have ensured that the opportunity did not
slip by.
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What’s more, Karthikeyan’s presence on the F-1 tour
will spur other youngsters like Karun Chandok and Armaan Ebrahim. Karun has
already raced in F-3 and will be in the Nissan World Series this year. Add to
that the possibility that plans to have an F-1 racing track may be revived, if
not in Hyderabad, then at least somewhere else. All this put together could
change the face of motor sports in India.Chandhok, considered one of the
brightest sparks in Indian motor sports, sees Karthikeyan’s achievement as a
huge fillip for the sport in India. |
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“Narain’s achievement is the biggest thing for
all us,” Chandhok was quoted as saying. “There will be a lot of corporate
interest, public awareness and media interest for this game. It will change the
whole profile of the game in India.”
Within a week of Karthikeyan’s acceptance into
F-1, Chandhok is said to have received three proposals for sponsorships from
companies, which see him as the next big name. He is already dreaming of getting
into F-1 in 2006 or 2007.
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Also enthusiastic is Armaan
Ebrahim, the first Indian to participate in the World Junior Rotax finals.
Corporate doors could soon be opening for him, too. Karthikeyan’s career began
with a podium finish on his debut race at Sriperumpudur. And from then on it was
up and up all the way. He came back to India in 1993 after training at the
prestigious ELF Winfield Racing School in France. On his return he joined the
Formula Maruti team in 1993 and soon moved to Britain to race in the Formula
Vauxhall Junior championship the same year. The following year Karthikeyan
joined the Formula Ford Zetec. |
He became the first Indian to win the
British Formula Ford Winter series, one of his many firsts. The arrival onto F-1
is came just when many had started thinking he may not be able to fulfill his
dream.Karthikeyan has performed well on some
of the most challenging circuits like the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit, Spa,
Macau, Magny Cours and has earned the reputation of being a wet-weather
specialist.
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She is being seen as a role
model for the young. Her good looks, fresh and smiling face, her gutsy
performances on the court and her down-to-earth charm make her a dream model.
She has been appointed ambassador of the ‘Save the Girl Child’ campaign of the
ministry of health and family welfare in a country where female infanticide is
common.
And at the same time, as a devout Muslim she has shown how strong Indian
foundations are as a secular society as the whole nations rises as one to
applaud her. Sania’s family is religious. The members pray five times a day,
read the Koran and observe fast during Ramzan. Imran Mirza and his wife, Naseema,
are both graduates. The
new rule changes, which stops drivers from being over aggressive could be an
advantage for a newcomer like Karthikeyan. Also the fact that the team will have
to use the same set of tyres for the entire race means they could be going at
slower speeds. So the times will slower, giving drivers like Karthikeyan a
chance to come close.Also the same engine will be used for two races, so it is
not going to all hunky-dory even for the big teams. |
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Karthikeyan is quick to put to rest any unrealistic hopes. He has said that
while teams like Ferrari have been testing since November, he and Monteiro, his
teammate at Jordan, have only tested for a few days. But he cannot hide his
pleasure at racing against Michael Schumacher. “I met him once, very briefly,
when I test drove for Jaguar (in 2001). He’s my hero. Suddenly I’m going to be
driving alongside him,” he gushed to the media.He has warned, “I just want
people to think realistically. I don’t want them thinking that I can beat the
likes of Schumacher.” Well, it’s only a matter of time, and perhaps timing.
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