Emiratis race to be first F1 driver

Organisers of the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix have never concealed their ambition. Behind the multimillion-dirham Yas Marina Circuit, which for three days each year welcomes the world to a festival of speed, lies a long-term goal born closer to home: Abu Dhabi wants to produce an Emirati Formula One driver. The objective is not solely to provide a new generation with an Arab hero. Officials also recognise that it will immensely benefit the annual race and build an interest in motorsports that goes beyond the glitz of the Paddock Club and glamour of the Amber Lounge, both elite spaces that accompany each race. As the circuit's chief executive Richard Cregan told The National after last year's race: "We believe we can have an Emirati driver in Formula One within 10 years. The Grand Prix was obviously a huge success, but imagine if there was an Emirati driver in Formula One … " The UAE and South Korea are the only countries from this year's 19-race, 18-nation calendar that have never had a national representative involved in the sport. Spain is the most obvious example of what can be achieved with a national representative. At the end of the 20th century, F1 was virtually unknown to Spaniards, but when Fernando Alonso joined the Minardi team in 2001, things started to change. The Asturias-born driver won world championships in 2005 and 2006 and since then, with the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona and the European Grand Prix in Valencia, the country features on the year-long calendar more than any other. Spain also has another local driver in Jaime Alguersuari and a Spanish-based team in Hispania Racing. The influence a local driver has is not always so obvious, however. Since Shanghai hosted the first Chinese Grand Prix in 2004, F1 has struggled to make a noticeable impact on the country. But scratch beneath the surface and progress is being made, says Tung Ho-Pin, the only Chinese driver actively involved in the sport. "China is a bit of a different story compared to Spain because it is such a big country with many different cultures and is very successful in all types of sport," said the Lotus-Renault reserve driver. "Chinese people are a bit spoilt in terms of sports, but I can definitely see from the moment I started racing up until now, there is a lot more general interest in racing." Tung, 28, recently set up an account with a Chinese service similar to Twitter and reached 25,000 followers within two days. He also says CCTV, the state-owned public service broadcaster, told him this year's race in April attracted around 40 million viewers. "You are not really aware of the growth because F1 is relatively small in China compared to the likes of basketball," he said. "Also, because China is so large, the interest is diluted, so it is not as obvious." Eric Boullier, the team principal at Renault, acknowledged that China is proving a hard market to break into, but pointed towards Russia, the home of Vitaly Petrov, his lead driver, as an example of how the relationship between racetrack and race driver can work the other way. "If you look at the example of China," Boullier said, "it is struggling to develop motor racing interest and culture, whereas the opposite is happening now in Russia. "They don't have their race yet, but because they have a driver in Formula One the interest is there. You need both and they come together." There has been an influx of Russian sponsors for the sport since Petrov joined the field in 2010, including Marussia, the title-sponsor of Virgin Racing. The country announced late last year it will host its inaugural race in 2014 on the coast of the Black Sea. "These things take time and they come in stages, but they always come hand in hand," Tung said. "Vitaly has been a Formula One driver for two years now and we are going to have a race in Sochi in three years' time. A local driver undoubtedly contributes to the popularity of motorsport in the country."