Bye-Bye F1

The race is done. The F1 circus has moved on. Chitra Subramanyam though cannot help but relive every single moment of Race Day Sunday at the Buddh International Circuit. After all, it was a day packed with celebs, doughnuts, champagne, and good-byes.

Bye-Bye, I said. “Bye-Bye F1.”

I looked around. Dusk had fallen. The Paddock was milling with people, running around, doing this and that. The manicured look was gone. Crates lined the road. The tyres were being washed. The hallowed insides of the team garages, hidden from the public’s eye the past few days, were open for the whole world to see.

The race was done. The trophy was won. The F-1 circus was getting ready to

move on – to a different paddock, a different country, a different language and a different culture.

Would they come back? Will we see them again? It was a question that was asked again and again the whole weekend. The talking heads gave their opinion, but the reality is anybody’s guess. Though that is a story for another time, another day.

Sunday though was a day of celebration, of celeb-spotting, of chaos and madness, of passion, V-8 engines and of saying good-bye.

The morning was foggy as usual – the not-a-mist, more-like-a-smog kind of fog, if you get my drift. The media centre was empty in the morning – not surprising really. It was going to get mad soon enough.

Soon though, it was time. You could see it all around. The team garages were overflowing, the television folk were out in full swing. The drivers walked toward the pitlane – it was coming on Drivers’ Parade time. Eddie Jordan waved at Daniel Ricciardo. All of a sudden, an excited hum went up. Oh. Lewis Hamilton. Enough said. The photographers scrambled past, shoving a few passersby. They all wanted Lewis Hamilton in their frame.

Jenson Button’s girlfriend, Jessica Michibata, caused a stir outside the McLaren hospitality. She posed for photographs in a gorgeous pink sari, and graced the clicks with a Namaste.

I wandered further down. “Where is she?” one news photographer asked another, as he balanced his multiple cameras. “She has probably gone in now. Everyone was taking her pictures,” came the reply. His shoulders slumped. “Gulshan Grover’s also here.” He smiled and shuffled off in search for more celebrities.

The Ferrari suite was surprisingly crowded with a long line outside. It almost seemed like they were waiting for Fernando Alonso to come and give autographs. Then, I remembered. The Ferrari team very kindly offers lunch to all FIA accredited media. I bet their lunch is the best! Fresh pasta with homemade sauce? I didn’t get a chance to go in. It was lunch at Ferrari or the race, sorry folks. The mini lawn in front of their suite, though, had been taken over a group of TV personnel – chatting away in

front of the camera.

Meanwhile the Sky F1 team walked through the paddock – complicated-looking equipment on their backs. I spent a lot of time gaping. You would need to do some serious strength training to lift all that weight. David Coulthard walked past in impossibly tight trousers, waving at his colleagues.

I left the comfortable confines of the media centre and entered the Paddock madness right before the start. I listened to the roar of the V-8 engines – sweet music that makes the tummy do a strange dance, and leaves you with a smile that’s hard to wipe off. This was it, I told myself. The last time I hear the sweet symphony of V-8s. Next year, it will be V-6 (could I please make a sad face here?).

I returned to my seat and settled down. My laptop and iPad were ready at hand: Live Timing to throw data at me and Twitter to tweet. I can’t tell you how strange it feels to watch the race on the big screen in the media centre to the sounds of the cars roaring by. They are hard to ignore. You can feel them. It is incredible.

The drivers started off – down the straight towards the first corner. The radio journalists shouted into their headsets – different languages Spanish, German, French – resounded through the centre. The radio team crackled, “Box, box, box.” It is the Red Bull. A journalist swung around, “What? What did he say?” Why was Vettel heading to the pit? What is going on? The Pirellis were at it again! Vettel rejoined at the back, but rose quickly. Bad luck continued to haunt Mark Webber, as his last race in India ended in a retirement. Lotus’ Alan Permane and Kimi Raikkonen exchanged harsh words…and that’s being polite. Fernando Alonso was just having a bad day, period. Felipe Massa provided a little competition, but Nico Rosberg and Romain Grosjean were just too determined.

The initial excitement faded as the race continued and the number of laps grew. The V-8 engines became a comfortable roar in the background – the sound rising and falling as the F1 cars went about their laps.

The end was inevitable. Vettel crossed the finish line and a smattering of claps echoed through the media centre. The four-time world champion made a doughnut, then ignored his team’s orders to return to the parc ferme. Instead, he soaked in the cheers – very different from the booing in Monza. He kissed his car. He jumped up toward the fence and threw his gloves over. And only then, did he head to the parc ferme.

Meanwhile, the pen outside was bursting at its seams. Fernando Alonso, Felipe Massa, Jenson Button, they were all there – moving from TV camera to TV camera talking about the race that was, and the race that should have been. Kimi Raikkonen came in and left right after. Vettel came in, beaming, with bottle of champagne in hand. It was time for the interview.

The evening fell quickly. Outside, the packing continued, unabated. The race was done. Abu Dhabi was calling. It was time to say bye-bye.

Follow Chitra on Twitter or read more of her work on her website

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