Drivers laud “awesome”, “fantastic” Buddh circuit

2011 Indian Grand Prix

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Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso, Buddh International Circuit, 2011

The F1 drivers had many words of praise for the Buddh International Circuit after the first day of running at the new track.

Here’s a sample of what they had to say:

Nico Rosberg

“The new track here in India is awesome.

“It has some very interesting corners, and that’s why it takes a bit longer to get used to the layout than at some of the other new circuits.

“Turn two for example is very different; you come from downhill, then go up looking into the sky and so you see the hairpin very late, just before you arrive.”

Timo Glock

“It’s been a good first day here in India. The track is just awesome and really good fun to drive. It’s been an enjoyable day without any problems.

“I can’t wait to get back in the car again here!”

Karun Chandhok

“It felt great to finally be able to drive an F1 car here at the Buddh International Circuit, and it was a real honour to be the first car to set a timed lap in front of the fans.

“I want to thank the team for giving me that chance, and everyone at the Jaypee Group and all the people involved in helping create the first ever Indian Grand Prix for doing such a great job on the whole event.

“The track itself is really enjoyable to drive, particularly the middle section which is very quick, and as it evolves and the times keep coming down I think we’ll see some very good racing here all weekend.”

Narain Karthikeyan

“The first lap was very special; I felt so many emotions driving in India. I just couldn’t believe it and there were so many things running through my head.”

Lewis Hamilton

“The track is fantastic – the organisers here in India have done a great job. It’s very fast and flowing, the grip-level is fantastic, the run-off areas seem to be good, and the kerbs are probably the best of any circuit we visit: nice rumble-strips that you can drive on.”

Sebastian Vettel

“It’s an interesting track, a good challenge. It was very dusty to start with, but the track seems fun, especially the wide entries which give a lot of options to all the drivers. It should be a good race on Sunday.

“It’s a good circuit for overtaking I think, with long straights and wide entries. The long run seemed good today, so let’s see how we go tomorrow.”

Fernando Alonso

“I like the track, even if it is very dirty and if you go just the slightest bit off line it’s like driving on ice: this could create problems during overtaking moves on Sunday, but maybe by then the situation will have changed.

“It’s very nice that the track is wide in some corners and I think it will add to the spectacle, because it means you can take different lines and I think even qualifying should be very exciting, given the rather high average speed, especially through the final sector.”

Mark Webber

“It’s a good track with good Formula 1 corners, there are quick left-rights and you can take a lot of the corners in fifth gear.

“Turn three is a unique corner, it’s very slow, but it’s uphill and quite extreme on the elevation. Turn four is also not straightforward, so they’re both challenging and I like the two quick chicanes – they’re enjoyable.”

Kamui Kobayashi

“The layout of the track is really nice, and I have a good feeling driving the circuit.”

Adrian Sutil

“The circuit is good fun and very nicely done. It has some challenging corners and there seem to be plenty of opportunities to overtake. It should make for an interesting and exciting race on Sunday.”

Jarno Trulli

“The track is not too hard to learn but it’s interesting – there are a few different lines you can take and I think that will encourage overtaking, so Sunday’s definitely going to be fun.”

Jenson Button

“I really like this circuit. It’s great fun to drive. There are some tough corners, like Turns Three and Five, but there’s also a lot of high-speed stuff and it feels a lot faster than we initially thought it would.

“What’s also been quite a surprise is the amount of grip out there, particularly in the faster corners where the downforce is really working for you. And, because the high-speed corners are pretty smooth, you can really carry a lot of speed through them.”

Michael Schumacher

“This is a very interesting track with a challenging layout, and it’s certainly enjoyable to drive.”

Vitaly Petrov

“The layout of the circuit is quite tricky. On some corners you can’t see the apex which makes it difficult to find your braking point and turning in point”

2011 Indian Grand Prix

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    Keith Collantine
    Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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    34 comments on “Drivers laud “awesome”, “fantastic” Buddh circuit”

    1. Between the (expected) sell-out crowd, the reception the sport has received in the country and the drivers applauding the circuit, there is just one question that needs to be asked: why didn’t Formula 1 come to India sooner!? It’s almost as if the sport has found itself a second home.

      1. Economical reasons teacher, India despite it’s vast amount of wealth is still a third world country. If Bernie gave a dollar of every ticket to India’s farmers and track builders they might be able to afford to take the day off and watch through the fence.

        1. In hindsight, I love the track and what it brings to the sport and congratulate the people involved for making it happen.

        2. Yeah, I’m aware of that. It’s just that based on what we’ve seen so far is that Formula 1 has more business being in India than it does in Bahrain, Turkey, Valencia, South Korea and Abu Dhabi combined (China, Malaysia and Singapore have all managed to attract decent crowds).

          1. F1 was supposed to come to India in 2007. Naidu then CM of AP signed an MOU with Bernie Ecclestone in 2003 to build a race track in Hyderabad. It was promptly shelved by YSR after he came to power.

          2. From what Unplugged writes, its a bit like going back to the US taking ages. Its not always easy to get everything working and fitting together.

        3. still a third world country

          Third world still exists? Twenty years have gone by since the collapse of the Soviet Union mate. You are hung up in the past. Yes, not all’s well at the BIC & we are aware of the deficiencies. Am sure something will be done to please F1 Fanatic readers.

    2. This makes me happy.

      1. Looking at qualifying I enjoyed the track as well and would like to drive it in F1 2011 as soon as possible.

    3. Happy to know that India has managed to produce a good track, I didn’t expect it.

      1. Finally someone got the grip on Herman.

    4. seems like tillke its raising his game… korea also has very cool parts on its layout

      1. @joac21 Oh no! Don’t say that! People will start liking Tilke now!

        Personally, I’ve always liked his designs. Yes, they could do with some tweaking (Valencia, Abu Dhabi) but I like China/Bahrain/Malaysia/Korea/Turkey (RIP) / India.. They’re good circuits..

        I just hope I can watch the Texas GP next year when the BBC decide it’s pointless showing a primetime cutdown repeat of the race that doesn’t start till about 4pm UK time…

      2. I think people are far too quick to remember Tilke’s failures, and they don’t give him nearly enough credit for his victories. Yes, it’s easy to write the drivers’ responses off as hype for the sake of the event and the promoters – there were similar glowing comments about Abu Dhabi – but after watching the free practice sessions and seeing the demands of the circuit, I think it’s easy to picture the drivers feeling like kids at Christmas time when they started exploring the circuit, which is something we couldn’t do in Abu Dhabi.

        It might be a little premature, but I think we can add Buddh International to the growing list of good circuits designed by Tilke, joining the likes of Istanbul Park and Sepang. And given the responses to the Circuit of the Americas and Port Imperial, I think both the American circuits will be early candidates for inclusion on this list.

        Of course, the numbers are not in Tilke’s favour – Abu Dhabi, Valencia, Singapore and Bahrain stand out as poor performers, as do his modifications to Barcelona. Shanghai is an unpopular design, but if the sky so much as looks like it is threatening rain, the races can be exciting. Hockenheim has also been poorly-received, but I honestly doubt there was much he could have done given the shape of the original circuit, and I find it telling that Martin Brundle described the old layout as “boring”. I suppose the deciding vote falls to South Korea, but I find it very hard to judge since we don’t know too much about it and the two races have been so very different. With the scoreboard fairly even, a lot is going to hinge on Sochi in 2014.

        1. Its an interesting thought that had Abu Dhabi included more of the undulation (as they origially promised to build in over 100 feet of it) and had been a bit more open minded it might have been at least a solid track as well.
          After all, the fact the undulation was man made in India shows it should have not been a problem to do the same in the UAE.

          Bit of a shame they now waited to see what the DRS, KERS and Pirelli tyres mean for racing at Yas Marine and postponed track changes. But I expect they will have to do those for next year anyway

        2. On his homepage Tilke does not say anything about Singapore, who says that he is responsible for it?

          1. If my memory serves me well, Singapore’s current form is a modification of Tilke’s original design.

    5. @keithcollantine do you know how are these kerbs that lewis likes that much? are they like silverstone ones ?

    6. I am pleasantly surprised. I had feared that this track might have gone the way of Abu Dhabi/Bahrain where the track itself is “boring” or that it might have gone the way of Turkey – a very great track with the infamous Turn 8 – dropped for lack of interest. It is great to see this has not happened and that the Indian Grand Prix has turned out well.

    7. Now we have real Indie-car racing

    8. I like driving it in f1 2011

      1. C’mon Alesi – you’re too old for this

          1. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    9. Hi I am Sumith from Delhi & I want to tell you guys that all’s not fine at the BIC.These drivers are payed well to not speak the truth. I was at the track & the facilities are quite appalling.

      The seats were filled with moths,dust & some red stuff. The toilets are dank & filthy. The exhaust fan in the toilet near the toll gate plaza doesn’t work. There is rubbish beneath most of the grand stands, mostly concrete & polythene waste & even saw a carcass of a dog or goat beneath one of the stand. None of the structures,including the grandstand & the paddock have a smooth finish to them. They all have rough edges, in some places you can see the iron rods protruding out of them.

      Also noticed the tow vehicle/crane which was use to carry away Fernando’s car had a puncture! and that vehicle was all rusty & in quite a bad condition. The tyre barriers at turns 8/9 are clumsily placed.

      The lake/pond in the middle of the track has a foul smell emanating from it. It is filled with algae & it might become a source for mosquito breeding.

      I’ve been to Sepang, Shanghai & Melbourne & I can say for sure that the infrastructure at BIC is no where near as good as those, although the track layout itself is probably the best after Spa. The western press have been very gracious in appreciating the BIC, but truth is all is not well.

      1. These drivers are payed well to not speak the truth. I was at the track & the facilities are quite appalling.

        How can you expect the drivers to be able to comment on the conditions of grandstands and toilets when they don’t actually go into them? If you actually read the comments from each of the drivers, they only talk about the actual circuit. Not the facilities.

      2. This is what happen to the track that was build in rush. Sepang finish 1 year before F1 come to the circuit. They even held MotoGP in early 1999 to test the facilities. Anyway, the track look good but really dusty especially off track.

    10. Hi I am Sumith from Delhi & I want to tell you guys that all’s not fine at the BIC.These drivers are payed well to not speak the truth. I was at the track & the facilities are quite appalling.

      The seats were filled with moths,dust & some red stuff. The toilets are dank & filthy. The exhaust fan in the toilet near the toll gate plaza doesn’t work. There is rubbish beneath most of the grand stands, mostly concrete & polythene waste & even saw a carcass of a dog or goat beneath one of the stand. None of the structures,including the grandstand & the paddock have a smooth finish to them. They all have rough edges, in some places you can see the iron rods protruding out of them.

      Also noticed the tow vehicle/crane which was use to carry away Fernando’s car had a puncture! and that vehicle was all rusty & in quite a bad condition. The tyre barriers at turns 8/9 are clumsily placed.

      The lake/pond in the middle of the track has a foul smell emanating from it. It is filled with algae & it might become a source for mosquito breeding.

      I’ve been to Sepang, Shanghai & Melbourne & I can say for sure that the infrastructure at BIC is no where near as good as those, although the track layout itself is probably the best after Spa. The western press have been very gracious in appreciating the BIC, but the truth is all is not well.

      1. I think the BBC commented on it yesterday, that the teams have refrained from mentioning this openly but their complaints have been put in directly to the track owners.

        But I guess there is still a lot to improve, the real test will be to solve these things for next year. Also saw on twitter yesterday the bus service for fans back to the city left a lot to be wished for yesterday.

        1. Yeah @bascb I don’t think we can be too harsh on them. Building and maintaining an F1 track is one hell of a learning curve. The real test will be 2012 and beyond.

    11. Maybe these people can get tips from the elite on their way into the track.
      This is an obscenity.

    12. The link didn’t take the first time. The obscenity part still applies.

    13. Well, nuts, Keith, your “link” function didn’t work. This is what I entered:
      http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/oct/28/indian-grand-prix-f1-workers

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