Karun Chandhok’s infectious smile grew wider that day in 1989. His father Vicky had promised to take him to the race track he had just built, designed by Karun’s grandfather at Irungattukottai, Sriperumbudur. Karun was more than willing to undertake the 90-minute journey from his home in Chennai to that special place. That’s how his tryst with racing began — on muddy roads of the track, which was inaugurated only in 1990. And he hopes other kids in the country will find that special place too.
The Federation of Motor Sport Clubs of India (FMSCI) has promised to bring Formula One back to the Buddh International Circuit, Greater Noida. Vicky Chandhok, who stepped down from the FMSCI presidency in 2013, has accused the current regime, led by R Bharath Raj, of not doing enough for the sport. The FMSCI is now trying to get sports ministry recognition, but Karun feels it’s not enough.
“For the sport to grow, you need a lot more racetracks in the country, but you can also run them at airfields,” said Chandhok on the sidelines of the Nissan GT Academy national finals at the Madras Motor Race Track. “At the end of the day, it’s down to the federation. They have to decide how they are going to grow the sport.” Chandhok said he was pleased to be involved with the Nissan academy. “It is a non-political system and only if you are good, you are in,” he said. “I wouldn’t lend my name to a thing which would be wishy-washy on how you select the names.”
An experienced driver, Chandhok has been involved in designing the track at MMRT for the competition. He placed cones at regular intervals to test drivers’ technique, a chicane was built to test braking and change of direction at a lower speed, a roundabout to check throttle and speed rhythm, a mock pit-stop for complete braking and a hairpin bend just for the heck of it. This system, he felt, could be adopted by the federation and tried at various air strips in the country.
“Getting back F1 to the country will help as there will be more eyeballs on the sport,” Chandhok said. “But I would like to see racing at Jakkur airfield in Bengaluru and Safdarjung in Delhi. There are airports which can be utilised. Closing streets is tough in India because of the condition of the roads, but someone needs to take the initiative and do the ground work.”
Chandhok recently finished fifth at Le Mans. He also drove in the Formula E in its inaugural edition in Mahindra Racing colours. But it all started at home. For someone who learnt driving a Maruti 800 at the deserted MMRT, Chandhok feels the current generation deserves more. “I came here when there was just dirt and accompanied my grandfatherwhen he was purchasing the land. I grew up here. I was nine when I first drove because that was the first time I could reach the pedals. I had a go-kart at six. We had no tracks, no championship and no infrastructure. The sport has grown a lot today. It can be the most infuriating and painful, but also the best in the world. It’s time the federation stopped behaving like a government organisation and owned up to the sport.”
Source: bangaloremirror.com
