01/09/2015
NEWS STORY
There is no greater test of a sports fan's commitment to the cause than how he or she reacts to a drop of rain. If the immediate reaction upon feeling the first watery splash is to leg it for the nearest shelter then you know they aint the real deal.
There was no sign of that kind of fair weather fandom in the Russian city of Kazan on Sunday. Despite bracing conditions, chill winds and rain that switched from light showers to cascading downpours in seconds flat, some 20,000 passionate race fans turned out and stayed out to show their support for homeboy Dany Kvyat, who gave them a slip-sliding, edge-of-the-seat taste of what F1 is like.
Russia's most successful F1 driver was turning a wheel in his home country for the first time since he scored that superb second-place finish in Hungary at the end of July and even though the Kazan City Racing event faced pretty harsh weather the day still had a celebratory atmosphere as Kvyat strapped himself into the RB7 and powered around the specially constructed course in front of the Kremlin of Tatarstan and with the republic's President, Rustam Minnikhanov, and the city's Mayor, Ilsur Metshin, watching on.
While Kvyat and the double title-winning RB7 were the undoubted stars of the show, the Kazan City Racing event, now in its second year, saw fans treated to a full day of motorised mayhem that included demos from a host of Red Bull athletes including Dakar Rally-winning truck racer driver Ayrat Mardeev, drift king Nikita Shikov, stunt motorcyclist Arunas Gibieza and two-time European Rallycross champion and current World Rallycross Championship racer Timur Timerzyanov.
With the rain falling it was necessary for Kvyat to bolt on full wets for his demo runs but keen to give his home crowd a good show the Red Bull star pushed the RB7 to the limit as he powered around the course and delivered a barrage of slithering tyre-smoking donuts and burnouts.
Once out of the car he headed straight for the meet and greet area where he spent a long time posing for selfies, signing autographs and chatting to fans who had come from far and wide to see their local hero (Kazan is just 500km from Kvyat's home town of Ufa).
"It was a really nice event," said Kvyat afterwards. "It was great to see so many people here, even if the weather wasn't great but because of that I think we saw the true fans of racing here in Russia and I was very pleased with that.
"It was great to do a show run on home soil," he added. "There were so many supporters of mine here today and it was a great feeling to see them all here. I hope to see them all again in Sochi for the grand prix later this year."