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A thriller till the tape
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It was not just `Schumi, Schumi' all the time in the Formula One circuit, which wound up in Japan this week. The others in the circuit are catching up with Michael Schumacher, which is very good news for the sport, says VIJAY GEORGE
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THE `GOD' made it appear all too simple in the end. Kimi Raikkonen and Juan Pablo Montoya can dream of becoming the World Champions sometime later. After an exciting, closely contested season, Michael Schumacher has just shown the world, why he is regarded as the `God' of Formula One racing, when he became the first driver in history to win six Championship titles.
His eighth-place finish in Suzuka was enough to overtake Argentinean Juan Manuel Fangio's feat of becoming five-time world champion, in the 50s.
Michael Schumacher, popularly known as Schumi to his fans, has been estimated by Forbes magazine to be the highest paid athlete in the world. Imagine the days when his father had to find a sponsor to support his go-kart racing! Today, racing around a track at speeds of more than 200 miles an hour for the Ferrari racing team and the lucrative product endorsements earn Schumacher in the neighbourhood of a cool $ 80 million a year. It was the United States Grand Prix in Indianapolis that turned the tide in favour of Michael in a big way this year. BMW William's Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya, second in the title chase when the day began, had stormed off back from the racing venue even before the victory champagne had been sprayed after his Formula One championship dreams were left in ruins. If he was furious about the steward's decision, which forced him for a drive through penalty after his collision with Ferrari's Rubens Barrichello, he has found support from his admirers in this part of the world too.
"Barrichello had deliberately slowed down his car at the start of the race to help his team mate Michael to go ahead of Montoya. In fact Rubens was inviting trouble," fumes Ravi Nair, a degree student and an F1 fanatic.
In Suzuka, the sudden downpour, during Saturday's qualifying session, had made it difficult for the title contenders. Schumacher, who started the race 14th in the grid, earned the vital point that sealed off Raikkonen's chances. Barrichello added to Kimi's woes by winning the race comfortably.
"The new points system made it look so close," feels Joe Joseph, an avid F1 fan in Kochi. "If it was only the Ferraris, Williams and McLarens that got the top spot in every race earlier, this season witnessed a lot of promising drivers and some nice cars," analyses Mr. Joseph.
O. G. Sunil, well-known name in the State's motor racing circuit, feels that "it is the superiority of the teams that decide the winners." But he is quick to add that it does not in any way diminish Michael Schumacher's brilliance.
"Even the tyres are playing the crucial role in crowning the champion. Though Bridgestone faced stiff challenge on that front from Michelin, the rainy track in Indianapolis had come to their rescue." He should know. Mr. Sunil has watched the F1 race `live' in Silverstone in the early 90s "when the sport was not much popular here." With Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone announcing that India could be possibly an F1 venue in the near future, speculations are rife as to which will be the venue. News has it that Hyderabad is already gearing up for that honour. But it is never so easy to bid for the coveted place in the racing map. The host city needs around 6,000 luxury hotel rooms, an airport and expressways big enough to handle F1 cargo, besides many other requirements. Hyderabad already known for its supremacy in cyber technology is on the way to become a sports hub too. "The arrival of F1 in Bahrain itself has created considerable excitement among a lot of Indians," says Balaji, an F1 fan. At least six of his friends are set to go there to watch the Grand Prix, next year.
The success of local lads Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandok in the international racing circuits has been a key factor for loads of Indians to be hooked on to the racetracks.
In the metros, F1 fans have formed clubs where they see, drink and discuss about the race, cars and the drivers. And they sincerely believe that their F1 idols will be burning their tracks in India very soon.
Keralites too have been bitten by the racing bug for quite sometime now, "but certainly not in the way others in the country have," says Sangeeth of Kerala Auto Sports Club.
Mr. Sunil believes that Malayalis like to watch racing `live' and flock at such venues, much more than perhaps others in the country do. "But the interest in F1, at least for now, is quite limited. Besides Kochi, many in Thrissur and Kozhikode have the craze for the speeding cars in a great way."
"The timing of the races is crucial too. Usually the races are shown during the Sunday afternoons when most of the families will be glued on to the movies on various channels," feels Mr. Balaji.
"Fernando Alonso, Jarno Trulli, Fisichella and Mark Webber have shown that on their day, they can give the biggies a real run for their money. But David Coulthard has been a disappointment this year," quips Ravi.
As the teams are already busy discussing the chances and strategies for 2004 season, which starts with the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park on March 7, the gossip mills have started working about the impending changes that the line up will have. Asian presence will go up with Bahrain and China as the new entrants in the F1 map. The excitement, as they say, never dies in Formula One.
Well, for now, it's party time for Schumi boy, folks.
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