History Of F1 Race Track In India

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[size=4]As early as 1997, there have been plans to host an Indian Grand Prix at Calcutta.[6] In 2003, India had only two permanent raceways, one in Chennai (Irungattukottai), and Kari Memorial Speedway in Coimbatore.[7] At that time two 600 acres (2.4 km2) sites in the vicinity of the Bangalore airport were examined. [color=#ff0000]Also, in the state Andhra Pradesh, chief minister Chandrababu Naidu reserved 1,500 acres (6.1 km2) of land near the airport at Hyderabad. Vicky Chandhok, father of Karun Chandhok, stated in an interview that "Andhra Pradesh is really pushing it like no other state! It is great to see a chief minister pushing so hard. Bangalore is a great location mainly because of the weather".[6] In December 2003, a seven-year pre-agreement to host the GP in Hyderabad in 2007 was signed. The track was to be build near Gopanapally village, near the outskirts of Hyderabad, and consisted of 1,367 acres (5.53 km2) of land.However, in 2004 there came competition from Mumbai, to shift the track from Hyderabad to Mumbai instead. F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone expected India to host a Grand Prix within three years, aiming for locating at either Hyderabad or Mumbai. But in the end these projects never realised, possibly due to anti-tobacco legislation,[8] and a change in government policy. Both projects then were declared 'dead' in the second half of 2004, when Mumbai's government decided "not to waste money on car fumes while there are more serious issues", and the Hyderabad location was converted to an IT park for technology companies. [/color]However sites at Mumbai were still being investigated (Gorai and Navi Mumbai). In 2005, Narain Karthikeyan was to perform in Mumbai in the Jordan F1, but the road proved to be too bumpy.[/size]


[size=4]As of 2007, five locations remained in the running for hosting the Indian Grand Prix: Bangalore, the Gurgaon district in the state Haryana, a permanent track somewhere near New Delhi, a street circuit in New Delhi, as proposed by Vijay Mallya, and a site in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.[/size]

[size=4]Following months of negotiations, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and Bernie Ecclestone announced in June 2007 a provisional agreement for India to host its first Grand Prix in the 2009 F1 season. The track would be built in the Gurgaon, on recommendation by architect Hermann Tilke.[/size]

[size=4]However, in September 2007 the IOA announced that the debut race would take place in 2010 on the Buddh International Circuit in Greater Noida.[23][24] After further assessments of the timeframe involved, Bernie Ecclestone announced in September 2008 that the Indian Grand Prix has been delayed to 2011.[25][/size]

[size=4]In October 2008, the Renault F1 team showcased their car on a tour across all sites that were previously linked to an F1 circuit in India (except Mumbai): Gurgaon, Lucknow, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Calcutta,[26] and in November 2008 they also performed a street demonstration on Rajpath at the India Gate end, New Delhi, the car being driven by Nelson Piquet, Jr..[27][28] In August 2009, the McLaren F1 team showcased their car in Lucknow.[29] On October 11, 2009, the Red Bull F1 team gave a demonstration in Mumbai. David Coulthard drove the Red Bull F1 car across Mumbai's Bandra Worli Sealink.[30] The Indian F1 Race will occur as the 17th round of the 2011 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.[/size]

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