A conundrum that should be solved

The Formula Ford 1600 championship and the F2000 MRF Challenge offer a start point for racers and excitement but lack of visibility is limiting their potential

Sitting in the media room of the Madras Motor Sport Track, as day turned to night, waiting for race stewards to rule on a championship-deciding appeal, and susequnetly turning up at the post-event award ceremony where neither of the top-two in the points table of the MRF Challenge were acknowledged, it was clear that something was amiss.At least with how the MRF Challenge for Indian assembled and maintained, carbon-fibre monocoque Formula 2000 cars was concerned.

Thankfully the Formula Ford 1600 championship – heldat what was the final round of the MRF Challenge, and opening round of the FF1600 at the Irungattukotai circuit near Chennai – is doing its job by providing a way for aspiring young racers to get their first taste of single-seat, wings and slicks racing.

From established young racers like Tarun Reddy, Vikash Anand, and Raj Bharath, to newcomers who’ve come from outside India’s tight-knit, but limited, motorsport circle like Advait Deodhar and New Delhi’s Lee Keshav, the interest in the championship seems high. The tubular-frame chassis cars have often been faster than even the monocoque Formula BMW cars used in the JK Tyre Racing FB02 series over the last year on tracks where both championships held races.

So, it’s been seen as a good preparation for both the FB02, and ultimately the F2000 series. The latter’s grid, since its inception, has been choc-a-block with racers from Europe, America, and Australasia – who see it as a way to keep their racing skills sharp while winter forces inactivity in their countries.

A TREE IN THE FOREST
However, not too many people know about the efforts of both MRF and JK Tyre to establish championships that claim to raise the profile of both their brands, and those who participant in them. So, what is it all for?

Narain Karthikeyan – who along with Gaurav Gill was guest driving in the MRF Challenge – is of the opinion that both MRF and JK Tyre need to quit going at it and revive the Sidvin Festival of Speed that was held in December 2012.

It’s an idea with much merit, as a joint card event can draw willing spectators wherever it’s held. To the point that event organizers can even start charging for tickets at around Rs. 150 per head. With the main draw being a proper Indian touring car championship with manufacturer-supported teams fielding the latest models from high-volume carmakers.

Then, maybe, there will be a spectacle that television executives eager for programming would consider broadcasting closer to the date of the event. Maybe even a live broadcast for the season opener and finale, but let’s not get too ahead of ourselves.

But a joint effort can, at least, make it easier to set up a live stream of events that hardcore fans can enjoy and share with their curious mainstream friends.
Whether or not one agrees with how the MRF Challenge title was decided, at least dramatic events like that – taking place right here in India – would make for compelling viewing.

Not to mention being able to follow Reddy’s development from a racer who totalled cars when he made his FF1600 debut last year to one who wins races after being forced to the back of the grid.

There certainly are people willing to get creative with how to deliver live motorsport content to not only fans, but those who cover it in magazines and newspapers too – whose work is not confined to just the pages of their respective publications. It ends up on the worldwide (people tend to forget that) web.