The United States Grand Prix will take place here on Sunday with only 17 cars on the grid, the lowest number since the infamous six-car race in Indianapolis in 2005, the most controversial GP in modern history.
The shortfall comes after Marussia and Caterham fell into administration and there is speculation that further shrinkage in the sport of vroom and bust could be just around the hairpin, with Gulf News reporting Force India’s team principal, Vijay Mallya, the owner of the failed Kingfisher Airlines, is about to have his villa in Goa seized because of debts.
Mallya is known for hosting lavish parties at his beachfront Kingfisher Villa but now, according to the report, State Bank of India officials are poised to file a petition seeking police help to take possession of the property which, it is claimed, was pledged as collateral against loans that are still outstanding.
There was a dire warning from another threatened team, Sauber, whose team principal, Monisha Kaltenborn, said here: “I am beyond the stage of frustration. I don’t think the way it is will last for many years to come. We have also seen in the past that manufacturers come and go.” Kaltenborn has called for urgent action from the FIA, the sport’s governing body. “There should be a certain amount [of money] that allows every team to at least live decently,” she added.
Like the Marussia and Caterham drivers, Sebastian Vettel, who won here last year, will be absent from the grid as he starts from the pit lane, paying the penalty for using up all his power units.
According to Autosport magazine’s F1 editor, Ed Straw, the average number of cars making the grid in the 903 world championship races held since 1950 is 22.6; there have been 29 races where more than 26 cars have started. The peak came in 1989, when the averages number of cars entered was a remarkable 38.81. But they didn’t all make the grid. The record number of cars to make it to the start is 34, for the 1953 German Grand Prix.
The record low number of entries is 10, for the race in Argentina in 1958. The situation in Indianapolis in 2005 was a little different. On that occasion a crowd of 200,000 watched in dismay as all the 14 cars running Michelin tyres pulled into the pits at the end of the formation lap on safety grounds.
What is most important for the spectators here and at home is that Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg of Mercedes are on the grid, battling for the world championship as they have been doing all season. Hamilton is attempting to become the first British driver since Nigel Mansell in 1992 to win five races in a row. Asked whether he could keep up his momentum, he said: “I don’t see why not. Nico’s going to be strong. He’s going to be pushing. The tables could always turn. Nico has shown this year that every race he bounces back.
“It’s been amazing. The last few races I’ve really felt great. It’s almost like there was a wall in front of me and I was trying to climb it but couldn’t quite get over it. But I’ve got over it now.”
Hamilton could also beat Mansell’s British record of 31 victories. “I don’t really think about that one as much because I just want to win the championship,” he said. “Perhaps at the end of the year I will be able to look back and really think about it.
“I never thought that I would be put on a record board with the greats. To be among the great drivers in the UK is a really proud feeling.”
Hamilton is contracted to Mercedes until the end of 2015 and will start negotiations for a deal beyond that at the end of the current season. The situation is complicated by the fact that Hamilton is believed to be considering breaking away from his agents, XIX Entertainment, and going it alone – if not immediately than in the near future.
