Bettor Exclusive: If Lahore were to hold a Formula 1 Grand Prix – Formula 1 Special
Following the end of the 2012 F1 season, FIA recently held a promotional F1 event in Pakistan. The decision was taken in light of the success of two races in India in the last two years. F1 Boss, Bernie Ecclestone, said that if they could hold an awkward
event in India then they can also establish themselves somewhere as controversial as Pakistan. He added that he is more interested in money than what happens during the race. Obviously, Pakistan’s President, Asif Ali Zardari, offered the required money with
a bright smile to Ecclestone, who accepted it gleefully. The two shook hands and the deal was done.
The Pakistan Sports Board took it upon itself to make the right arrangements for this worldwide popular event. It was their aim to reach the standards required by the FIA. The event was to take place in Lahore, Punjab but no reasonable circuit could be found
for the race. It was finalised that the road extending from Hussain Chowk to the Liberty Market roundabout will be used for this purpose. Chief Minister Sindh, Syed Qaim Ali Shah, was very angry at this decision as he stated that according to Ecclestone, F1
was entertainment so Karachi should be hosting the event. Ecclestone replied that chief minister Punjab, Mian Shahbaz Sharif, had paid him extra money which solves all issues.
Sharif had also requested Ecclestone for his own team to compete in the event which he has aptly named as the Punjab Lions, Lion being the sign of his political party. He himself took the role of the team principal and placed his Allama Iqbal-esque pictures
all over the team garage.
The free practice sessions and the qualifying round went all right. During the qualifying, Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel secured the pole while his teammate Mark Webber was in second place. In third standing was Lewis Hamilton who decided to attend the promotional
event from McLaren’s side. His teammate Jenson Button was fourth. The drivers for the host team were fifth and sixth which turned out to be a huge surprise for the people of Lahore. Sharif had been so elated that he announced laptops for his drivers and said
if they actually won the race, he will be giving out iPhones to every team member.
However, the actual race day was the weirdest day F1 must have experienced in its history. The race began with Vettel maintaining his lead. Webber fell behind as one lion of the Punjab took his second place through some very rash driving.
The drivers were having a race of a lifetime as no race stewards were present on the premises to penalise them. They were apparently stuck in traffic somewhere due to a protest against the unavailability of CNG blocking the roads.
Moreover, drivers were having a very bad day in respect to radio communications with their teams. Rehman Malik, the interior minister of Pakistan, had blocked the signals in order to prevent any security issues surrounding the well-hyped event. Malik assured
that the signals will be opened as soon as the race is over.
Even though HRT was missing from any racing action, they were still present in the hospitality centres. An official said that they were enjoying cucumbers of Lahore. Meanwhile, Lotus F1’s Kimi Raikkonen halted his car in the middle of the Liberty Market
exiting from the race. He later confessed that he was bored seeing the closed shops; they should have been open.
The final lap towards the finish line was really exciting as the Lion of Punjab once again rashly overtook Vettel to the top position. After the race, Vettel stated that the race circuit was really challenging since they had two roundabouts to go about.
He was strictly reprimanded by Maulana Fazal-ur- Rehman for raising his finger.
Reports said that the best thing on the day was the fans on rooftops as they could not afford the tickets.
When asked about this awful race day, Ecclestone said that the day could not be called awful if he was getting the money out of it and sounded hopeful of similar events in future.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely of the writer’s and do not reflect bettor.com’s official editorial policy.
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