Bureaucratic hurdles continue to stifle big-ticket motorsport events

In front of a raucous crowd at the Buddh International Circuit, freshly minted four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel decided to do his celebratory donuts, filling the track with smoke that rose till the grandstands.

He then got off his car, pumped his fists in the air and acknowledged the support. Soon after, he bowed down in front of his all-conquering Red Bull RB9, an image implanted in the memories of motorsports fans till this day.

A Hermann Tilke designed racetrack and a 400-million-dollar project, the Buddh International Circuit in Greater Noida, captivated the imaginations of the drivers and fans worldwide with its unique undulation and sweeping corners during its three years of hosting F1 races till 2013.

But it laid desolate since, even becoming a quarantine zone during the pandemic, until MotoGP announced that their caravan would dip their toes into the Indian market in 2023.

A closer look into why the Formula 1 event deteriorated so spectacularly provides a ghastly premonition of what is happening a decade later, in Formula E and MotoGP.

There were murmurs of a tax dispute between the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and the Uttar Pradesh Government after a relatively successful first year as the UP State Government opened a fresh bracket of taxation calling Formula 1 ‘entertainment’ and not a ‘sport’ -- a classic case red tape bureaucracy.

The sponsors dried up and brands looked away. Once exorbitant ticket prices were excessively slashed, and the highest pedestal of motor racing left India never to return since.

In February this year, Hyderabad hosted India’s inaugural Formula E race, a true spectacle which went down to the wire. But the Hyderabad E-Prix had a litany of issues to deal with, ranging from security to a lack of amenities.

As things stand, there is a slim chance that Hyderabad will get to host the event next season, as it has not been named in the 2024 calendar.

There was considerable buzz following the announcement of the inaugural MotoGP Grand Prix of India, slated to take place this weekend at the Buddh International Circuit, which had not hosted an international level motorsports event in over a decade. But in the run-up, visa issues have been all the talk.

After completing the requisite track work for improving driver safety well past the intended deadline, the organizers had to resolve another glaring problem. While most of the paddock were supposed to arrive by Wednesday, Spanish duo Marc Marquez and Joan Mir, and South African Brad Binder only boarded flights on Wednesday due to visa delays. The riders present will meet today (Thursday) and decide if the track is ready or not.

In a press statement, the reasons for the delay in issuing visas were mentioned as “an unforeseen technical glitch.” 

Former FMSCI President Vicky Chandhok told DH on Wednesday, "I thought that India would have learnt from their previous mistakes, but things have not changed and seemed to have gotten worse. 

"Visa issues are the downfall of bringing any motorsports event to India. They are probably not used to issuing thousands of visas in a week, but that is how it has to work."

Several media and team personnel were left stumped when their visas were not processed in time for their flights. All this, despite the race being announced over a year ago and visa applications submitted by July. 

Chandhok also called out the MotoGP India organisers Fairstreet Sports and their handling of the situation:

"The organisers Fairstreet should have done a better job. They have not anticipated the enormity of the task, which they should have evaluated and assisted far better than they did. 

"They are fighting every single battle on various fronts, on track homologation, electronics, the visa front. So it is obvious that the planning was inadequate."

Several attempts to reach Fairstreet and FIM officials went unanswered.

Time and again, bureaucracy rears its ugly head into the various happenings in our country, and motorsport has borne the brunt multiple times. Chandhok cites that better planning and Bahrain's visa model need to be considered to avoid similar sticky situations.

"The red tapism in our country is synonymous with over-ambition of organizers. There is a way to deal with the red tapism if the organizers had planned it better. 

"Bahrain does such a great job. You are given a Formula 1 pass, whether you are a member of the media, a driver or a member of a team. With this pass, you get a visa on arrival for free.

"You are not going to get over red tapism, but Bahrain did it..."