“Why would a company sponsor you?” was the question posed by Volkswagen Motorsports India head, Prithviraj Siddappa. It was directed towards a group of over 30 drivers from this year’s JK Tyre Polo R Cup line-up, as well as those participating in the JK Racing Asia Series and Rotax karting.
As the drivers listened intently, I too found myself in this darkened room at the Jaypee Greens Spa and Resort in Greater Noida – somewhat jacked up on endorphins. The endorphins were on account of having been invited to participate during the two-day fitness camp, of which the presentation on how to get sponsorship was a part.
“Are you a Formula 1 driver who is already in the limelight?” continued Siddappa. “You are only starting out, and you will be noticed because of your driving skills and your fitness.”
Having forces up to four or five times the force of gravity act on you is a fairly well known and a widely disseminated feature of F1, even amongst laypeople. Therefore, the importance of fitness is not overlooked and is widely accepted. It’s not necessarily the case, however, at the bottom rungs of the global motorsport ladder.
The Polo R Cup car weighs 1,195 kilos, and its engine produces 180bhp. And while it has the requisite race-ready tyres, suspension, roll-cage, etc., along with being stripped down, there is enough to remind you that it’s not too far removed from its road going counterpart – it has power windows after all! And that does make you wonder why being able to last a 50 minute game of football, followed by a weight training session, is important to a driver in the Polo R Cup.
Aarti Jadhe, a physical trainer certified by the American College of Sports Medicine, told us exactly why fitness was important even in an entry-level tin-top series like the Polo R Cup – especially when you consider the majority of the 14 new drivers this year (out of 20) have limited racing experience.
“The neck, shoulders, and core are the important areas that we focus on,” said Jhade – who was in charge of the fitness camp last year as well. “Even in these cars, due to the high temperatures and high stress while racing each other, these areas can go into mild spasm due to the stress.”
Limited experience aside, a lot of the Polo R Cup drivers have only just reached the age when their fitness and strength levels are expected to increase significantly. This made Jhade gear the fitness camp more towards familiarizing drivers with aspects of functional and strength training that would serve them well beyond their entry into the world of motorsport.
“A lot of the drivers at this camp were already familiar with working out, but concentrate more on one or two specific muscle groups,” said Jhade. “Our aim was to show the drivers how to work out their entire body, and, especially in the case of the boys, increase their flexibility and stamina.”
And it’s something that the drivers would do well to take seriously, considering what Siddappa told the group at the end of the strength training session.“There’s going to be a fitness evaluation before each round of the Polo Cup this year,” said Siddappa. “I don’t want to see you guys slacking off, because the driver who gets the Scirocco R Cup drive (post the season) won’t be chosen purely on driving skills.” A pretty big incentive for a relative racing novice to get into shape.
In my case, as I sat clutching my hamstrings two days later, I realized why I haven’t thrown my hat into the ring as yet.
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