15/04/2009
NEWS STORY
Despite the global economic crisis, the head of the company building India's F1 track says the facility will be ready for the inaugural event in 2011.
"The progress is very nice," Samir Gaur, Managing Director of JPSK Sports Pvt Ltd, which is building the track, told Reuters, "I'm absolutely, absolutely confident it will be completed. The track will be ready in 2011."
The circuit, which will have room for a 200,000 capacity crowd, will form part of a "sports destination", a complex, which will include a golf course, cricket stadium, hockey stadium and sports academy, is located roughly 30 miles from New Delhi.
It was originally planned that India would host its first F1 race in 2010, but Bernie Ecclestone subsequently announced that the date had been put back a year to 2011.
"The race was pushed back from 2010 because of the Formula One calendar," said Gaur, who claims that all the necessary funding has been secured. "From what we understand, they had scheduled an India race only in 2011."
Asked about the projected cost of the complex, Gaur said: "The figures vary, but the track construction will not be less than between 15 billion rupees to 18 billion rupees (up to £250m). This is just a ball-park figure.
"I'm expecting the track to be completed in April 2011," he continued. "We plan to run trial events between May and July so that in October I think we can fix the calendar for the race."
Asked if India might follow Singapore's example and hold the race at night, Gaur said: "There is no plan for a night race right now. e want to see the outcome of the first race after which we will see if we can do a night race."