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MUMBAI:
A little over three months after Dr Vijay Mallya entered the
Formula One arena, the liquor (and aviation) baron today unveiled
the team list of the men who would be driving his F1 machines.
They
are Iralian driver Giancarlo Fisichella and German Adrian
Sutil. Giancarlo has 12 years of F1 experience. Adrian is
in his second F1 year. Stepping into the test and reserve
driver role is Vitantonio Luizzi. Mallya
says that the aim is to have a podium finish in 2010 which
is when India will hold its first Formula One race, in all
probability in Delhi.
Mallya's
announcement was preceded by a massive multimedia campaign
to which Bollywood badshah Shah Rukh Khan lent his presence.
King Khan, who declined taking any remuneration for the promotional
work he did for the campaign, is seen as a key connect with
the youth constituency that is Force India’s target.
Along
with the media briefing this evening at a suburban five star
hotel here, the Force India team simultaneously launched the
new car live on the net as well.
"While
Formula One has been telecast over the past few years in India
my impression has been that average Indians saw the sport
as being inaccessible. My involvement with it will bring the
glitz and glamour of the sport closer to a country where the
middle class is 300 million strong. They are aspirational
and have a propensity to spend. Force India is just one manifestation
of the potential of this country. Last year the budget for
team was $ 70 million. This year it will be $ 120 million.
Having said that, spending millions of dollars does not necessarily
guarantee a strong performance. I do not promise miracles
this year but we will pave the roadmap for the growth of this
team. In choosing the drivers I wanted to make sure that they
could be of assistance to the Silverstone team of engineers."
He
adds that putting India on the F1 circuit is meant to symbolise
the opportunities that this country offers. While there is
poverty, economic growth will go a long way towards eradicating
it, he says.
The
drivers were chosen after two tests were conducted in Barcelona
and Jerez in Spain. Seven drivers took part and Mallya says
that there were many leanings that came from it. He also made
the point that this year traction control has been removed
and so there is more hard work for the drivers.
Mallya
says that test of the team's mettle will come when the season
visits Europe, in particular Barcelona.
In
terms of the challenges of organizing an F1 event in India
in 2010, he says that the JP Group is in charge of developing
the circuit. They have identified land in Noida on the outskirts
of the capital and received the approval.
MALLYA
HAS BIG AMBITIONS IN SPORTS
From
a sports business perspective however, it is not for his interest
in Formula One alone that the flamboyant 'King of Good Times'
is worth watching. A much larger play is the way he is encircling
sports, both through ownership and sponsorship.
Mallya's
longest association has been with horse racing and stud farming.
Mallya owns horses in a big way at Mumbai and Bangalore, the
premier racing centers in the country. Live telecast of racing
in India, owes a lot to his efforts. Another ambition Mallya
has is to make night fixtures an integral part of Indian racing.
Last
July, Mallya signed a new five-year Rs 150 million sponsorship
deal with the Royal Western India Turf Club for the Indian
Derby, the country's most famous racing event. UB has been
sponsoring the Indian derby for over 20 years but faced a
serious challenge from liquor business rival Diageo India.
The
agreement, which kept the high-profile race within the United
Breweries fold, came just months after Mallya lost a bruising
turf war to become the club's chairman to an equally big name
in Indian racing - Cyrus Poonawala.
Mallya's
reach extends to the soccer field as well through his ownership
of Kolkata's (and India's) most celebrated clubs - Mohan Bagan
and East Bengal.
Not
surprisingly, Mallya has turned his attention to cricket as
well. Not satisfied with merely supporting the Mysore Royal
family scion Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wodeyar, in last
year's Karnataka State Cricket Association elections, Mallya
decided to contest as well. While Wodeyar won the presidentship
of the KSCA, the Mallya-headed Select Cricket Club was one
of the Institutional Life Members from the Bangalore Zone
to win.
Expectations
now are that when the BCCI's Indian Premier League (IPL) kicks
off in April 2008, he will have bought a slice of that pie
as well through ownership of a team franchise.
Mallya,
an avowed motorsport enthusiast, became the first Indian owner
of an F1 team when he joined hands with the Mol family and
bought Spyker for $ 109 million last October.
Mallya
insisted on rechristening the team with the country's name
in it and International Motorsports Association (FIA) approved
the changing the name of the outfit to Force India.
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