The Hindu : Sport / Racing : Motor : I want results , says Vijay Mallya

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Thursday, Feb 28, 2008
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Sport - Racing : Motor

I want results , says Vijay Mallya

K.C. Vijaya Kumar

We have a good team in Fisi, Adrian and Liuzzi
We have decided to support talented youngsters

Barcelona: Winter night was descending on the Circuit de Catalunya on Tuesday and sitting inside the hospitality suite, Vijay Mallya, CMD of Force India, pointed to the television screen. His team driver Giancarlo Fisichella had finished at sixth position after the evening test round, clocking a best of 1:22.516.

“Isn’t that exciting? You should remember that seven F-1 drivers were tested before I opted for Fisi and look at what he has done.

“I took him in for his experience, which will be critical to the development of our car. And that was something that Adrian Sutil couldn’t often do because of his lack of experience.

“But we have a good team in Fisi, Adrian and test driver Vitantonio Liuzzi,” Mallya said.

Passion

Mallya admitted that his involvement with F-1 was something that coursed through his blood.

“I do look at what a sport can do to my company’s brands, but when it comes to F-1 it is not about brands, it is purely personal. Motor sports runs in my blood and at the beginning of the season when I had this chance of buying out Spyker I thought ‘why not?.”

“And the $122 million budget for the team is not something that I consider as just an expensive hobby. I want results,” Mallya said.

Mallya also elaborated on the benchmarks. “I want them to get consistent points. I want them to be in the top ten eventually and in 2010, I want them to be on the podium at the Delhi Grand Prix. I have given the team all that they need — engineering support, funds — and now they don’t have any excuse. They better start performing,” Mallya said.

Indian angle

Mallya also emphasised his Indian heart. “I want an Indian driver in F-1 but I also need the results that will justify the budget.

“There is talk about Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandhok missing out on this. Yes Narain has had a stint in F-1 and Karun, who is like a son to me, needs more time in GP2.

“To ensure that we do unearth an Indian F-1 talent in the coming years, we at Force India have decided to support talented youngsters for a period of five years and give them all that they need,” Mallya said.

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