Top FIA sports car events look set for India debut

Greater Noida, Nov 30 (IANS) Two premier sports car racing series – the World Endurance Championship (WEC) and the World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) – could be the latest additions on the Buddh International Circuit’s calendar.

A top official from the Circuit’s promoters, Jaypee Group, told IANS that talks are on to get the two International Automobile Federation (FIA) sanctioned series at the Greater Noida circuit in 2013, after the inaugural round of Superbike World Championship in March.

“After hosting two successful editions of Formula One Championship, the focus is now on keeping the circuit busy and amongst the big events coming to India, most likely are WEC and WTCC. Our team is in constant touch with the promoters of both championships,” the official told IANS.

Nothing much took place at the BIC between the first and the second F1 races. But with the Sidvin Festival of Speed happening during this weekend, including the domestic racing series, the lean period looks set to be a thing of the past.

“BIC is a $400 million facility and we got to make the most of it commercially. We are not only looking at the big Europe centric series, we are also close to hosting some Asian rounds of the Porsche Carrera Cup and Aston Martin Asia Cup. All these competitions we feel can connect with the Indian fans,” the official said.

Asked whether BIC was ready to host an endurance race of a minimum six hours, the official said: “We are very much ready for it. There are night vision cameras installed all around the circuit and a bit more of lighting is all we need to go ahead with.”

The legendary Le Mans 24 Hours is one of the highlights on the WEC calendar. India’s Karun Chandhok drove for JRM Racing in 2012. The series features multiple classes of cars battling amongst each other.

WTCC, introduced in 1987, is a series contested by manufacturers such as BMW, Ford and Chevrolet.

IANS 2012-11-30 19:16:24