KIMI Raikkonen won the 2013 Australian GP that most fans expected either a Sebastian Vettel or Fernando Alonso to win. His drive to the top step of the podium was a result of tyre management, tyre strategy and of course race pace. Stats indicate that the winner of the Australian GP usually goes on to win the Drivers’ Championship that year, however, basis a survey conducted by Money Supermarket, only 5.3% respondents believe that the Iceman will clinch his second World Championship in 2013.
While it is very early to make accurate predictions, especially given the mixed weather conditions in Australia, a few patterns did emerge. Red Bull Racing failed to showcase the menacing pace everyone expected pre-season. Ferrari, on the other hand, are faster than they’ve been at an opening round in the previous few seasons, the highlight also being Massa’s much improved form. Mercedes may be quick, but reliability does seem to be their Achilles heel. And Mclaren seem to be in trouble given their inability to deliver quicker laptimes with the 2013 challenger.
The other positive indication in Australia was Sahara Force India’s pace. Adrian Sutil, whose F1 career got a second life in 2013, led the race in two separate stints and was matching the front runners for race pace. This was the first time in the German’s Formula1 career that he led a race and the second consecutive time that the Indian-owned team led the proceedings at a Grand Prix event (Hulkenberg did so last year in Brazil). The team scored a double points finish with Sutil crossing the line in 7th, followed by team-mate Paul Di Resta in 8th. With this result the team opened their Constructors’ Championship account with a total of 10 points, ahead of Mclaren!
Sahara Force India was the only mid-field team to score points in the opening round even though there were 6 different teams in the top 10. Their result further emphasizes my point that a team needs a strong driver line-up where one pushes the other to deliver better results. Indian Formula1 fans would be keen to see what the team can do in Malaysia and be eagerly waiting for the team’s second career podium finish! And if the Money Supermarket survey is anything to go by, a few also voted ‘Sahara Force India winning a race’ as a surprise story for 2013!
The other interesting part of the Australian GP weekend was that it clashed with the proceedings of the India vs. Australia Test Match in Mohali. While TV figures wouldn’t have been divided given that both sports attract different target audiences, the Twitter audiences did make their choice explicitly known. Basis the ‘Trends’ indicated on Twitter, #AustralianGP was trending ahead of the #IndvsAus for the Indian region. More so, given Sahara Force India’s strong performance, #ForceIndia was trending worldwide along with #Sutil. While extremely raw data to analyze, this does indicate the sport preferences of Indians who follow sport on Twitter.
For TV audiences, ESPN / ESPN HD surprised (pleasantly!) the Indian and Asian audiences by changing their LIVE commentary feed to that of Sky Sports UK. The result of this change was an enhanced TV viewing experience for Indian fans, though most of them also complained about the increase in the no. of ad breaks during a live broadcast! (Is someone listening?)
Karun Chandhok, India’s second Formula1 driver who had half a season with HRT in 2010, has joined the FIA Driver’s Commission alongside former driver Emmerson Fittipaldi, Sebastian Loeb and others to represent the rights and interests of drivers in single-seaters. The Chennai-lad, who is yet to confirm his racing plans for 2013, does seem to be set for a successful innings in the management and administration of the sport, not to forget his successful stint on TV as an F1 Pundit. While it would be natural for Karun to take forward his father’s (Vicky Chandhok) good work in Indian Motorsport, in my view, Karun still has a few good years of racing left in him and potentially with a works team in the World Endurance Championship. And on the same note, Narain Karthikeyan’s plans for 2013 are unannounced as well.
For Indian motorsport fans, there were few important announcements made in the last few weeks. First, the Asian Le Mans series is attempting a comeback in 2013. Currently, the tracks are based in China, Indonesia and other Asian countries, but I am certain that in the coming years Buddh International Circuit will feature as well. Hopefully, a local race will also allow greater participation opportunities for Indian drivers. Second, the World Superbike Series, in which Mahi Racing Team (MS Dhoni’s two wheeler team) participates, is expected to race at the circuit in Greater Noida later in November this year. While the initial plan was to host the race in March, organizational issues led to the rescheduling. With the expected arrival of these international series in India in 2013, the calendar of the Indian Motorsport enthusiast is expected to get busy. And hopefully this aids the sale of tickets for the Indian Grand Prix, giving much needed respite to circuit owners, the Jaypee Group.
The Malaysian GP is to be hosted next weekend under completely different conditions from Melbourne. Heat and humidity will lead to more wear of the Pirelli tyres directly affecting race strategies. As always, the suspense that builds up to see who will come out on top is always fun! And of course, next week’s column to have further updates from Indian and International Motorsport, stay tuned!
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