1. Fashion Show : Adrian Sutil and Vitantonio Liuzzi started the week with a fashion show, here are some photos from the event :

2. Charity Football : Later on they participated in a charity football match which is a signature of the Monaco Grand Prix, more photos :

3. After that team owner Vijay Mallya took them along on his Yacht Indian Empress (one of the most luxurious Yachts in the world currently in Monaco) :

And here is Vitantonio Liuzzi’s Golden Cash themed helmet which he is using at the Monaco Grand Prix :

We are sure about one thing , The force India F1 team is surely having a ball in Monaco

The above is the reception of the Force India formula one team, no relation to the motorhome, but cool nonetheless. The new motorhome of the Force India formula one team is also expected to be a steel and glass structure.

In the era of austerity and economic crisis, there is one team that is certainly not feeling the heat and its Vijay Mallya led Force India formula one team. One remembers him for his flamboyant ways and the uber cool parties thrown by him on the Indian Empress yacht. The whos who of formula one including Bernie Ecclestone, Flavio Briatore etc. are known to be guests of Dr. Vijay Mallya who leaves no stone unturned in ensuring that his guests are treated well.

So it really should come as no surprise when we get to hear that the Force India formula one team is redesigning their motor home to Vijay Mallya’s exacting standards .

With the flyaway races done for the time being and the European leg starting, teams carry their own motor-homes with them and try to have super luxury in these

‘The structure we used in 2009 and 2008 was still in very good condition and the square footage it afforded us was perfect, but internally it needed some pretty major tweaks based on the use it had over the last two seasons. We looked at this use in depth and made a plan accordingly over the winter. We worked intensively with our hospitality partners Kitz Catering& Service to get their feedback on what could, or should, be done.

‘Last season the use of each of the floors overlapped slightly. The ground floor was used for team and guests, the second floor for team and drivers and the third floor for Dr Mallya’s guests and meeting area. Overall, when we looked at it, nobody really had the ideal situation. We needed to revisit each floor.’

Quoting further from the Force India F1’s press release , one can imagine the super luxury :

Which is exactly what happened, with each floor a separate ‘project’ in itself. After more than 40 designs between Force India and Kitz, the ground floor has become a space for guests and media where, after stepping through a touch activated sliding door mechanism (also new from 2009), visitors are greeted by a new welcome desk with computerised guest lists that will even – when the person says their name – recognise what their preference of drink is! Next the guest will be seated on furnishings made specially for the Force India motorhome, a mix of white, green and orange curved ergonomic tables and chairs. A fully integrated bar area with flat screen TVs will also be available for visitors wishing to chat a bit more informally, while a chill out area gives guests space to read the latest newspapers or team updates. Although this set-up is designed to promote a relaxing yet convivial atmosphere, the work that has gone into making it so has been taxing.

‘The ground floor has been a challenge,’ Andy continues. ‘The whole area has been re-fitted. The floor has been relaid with a wood laminate to make it more durable but also more in-keeping with the cooler decoration, the electrics completely rewired and the air conditioning units replaced so the whole area stays cool. This has been done in close consultation with Dr Mallya, who takes guest hospitality very seriously.’

The second floor is perhaps the most impressive overhaul from 2009. This area will be used exclusively for team and drivers, but also features a large boardroom-type meeting room, a marketing office and two extended driver and treatment rooms with all fixtures and fittings changed to make it more of a relaxing space for Adrian and Tonio.

This floor will be accessed via a separate staircase that will also have direct access from the kitchen so the team’s meals can be served fresh. Again, this whole floor has been rewired – with two kilometres of cables approximately – and air conditioning units completely reinstalled. More than 30 panels will be used to construct this area, which has also been extended by 33 square metres by the addition of an extra container to the semi-permanent structure.

The top floor will remain Dr Mallya’s guest and meeting area however he will enjoy the luxury of an additional 33 sq metres as a terrace has been constructed on the roof of the additional containers. Again, this has been refitted completely to have three separate areas, including an office, reception area and guest zone with panoramic and sound-proof windows.

This whole structure weighs more than 40 tonnes and will take 10 people up to three days to construct – more than the team’s VJM03′s take to build!

‘It’s been a major undertaking,’ surmises Andy. ‘But we feel in the end that it has been worth it. Kitz has done a fantastic job within the timescale and brief. As a team, the biggest selling point you have – apart from on track performance – is the experience you can offer to guests, sponsors and potential partners. We want to excel in every area this year and we’re confident that this new refurb will help us achieve this.

‘Given the overall benefit we will have, both long and short term, we’re quite happy to wait for an additional two races to have a perfect motorhome for our needs. The first build always takes some time to get spot-on and rather than have to revisit again later in the year, we want it right first time. In the meantime we will use a temporary motorhome in Spain and Monaco while the new improved motorhome is driven direct to Turkey. It will be impressive and something the whole team can be proud of when we see it return in 2010.’

Now that will be one sleek motorhome , cant wait for the photos of the motorhome to come through.

Photos Copyright : Force India Media Images

Its official now, Giancarlo Fisichella has dumped the Force India formula one team for a shot with the Ferrari formula one team. He will replace Luca Badoer who was filling in for the injured Felipe Massa. His recent podium finish for Force India (their 1st) and Luca Badoer’s pathetic performances acted as catalyst to the switch. The announcement of the switch wasn’t really a surprise, rumours in the paddocks were alive about the switch for around 1.5 weeks now with Vijay Mallya doing every bit to reject them until now.

Its often said that the dream of every formula one driver is to drive for the Ferrari formula one team, but its even more true for Italians, who probably dream of driving for the Ferrari formula one team even if they aren’t formula one drivers.

The move ofcourse is a big loss for the Force India formula one team and there are rumours that Ferrari did waive off the money Force India owed to them. Vijay Mallya insisted that there were no financial transactions which secured Fisichella’s release from contract.

Meanwhile Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo praised Fisichella in a press release on the Ferrari Media website. He hinted that Fisichella would be the third driver when  He was quoted as saying :

“I chose Fisichella for several reasons, starting with the fact he deserves it, that he’s on great form and that he is an expert driver. On top of that, we all wanted to have an Italian driver in our car for Monza and lastly, because it takes the long term view, as he will be our third driver.”

“It is an important moment, coming off the back of a great win with Kimi Raikkonen,” added the Ferrari President. “We also have the good and important news that Felipe Massa is recovering well and will be more than ready for the first race of next season.

“I wish to thank Luca Badoer who, once again has been so amenable towards Ferrari. Therefore, I look forward to Monza with confidence and especially with great pleasure at having Fisichella in the team.”

“the good news that Felipe will race again, that he is recovering and that he will be very ready to race next season is a further plus, after what was a terrible August for us, what with his accident, all the uncertainties and, unfortunately, Michael Schumacher’s fitness difficulties, when we would have liked to see him in our car. However, bit by bit, we are putting everything right again. Victory is the best medicine.”

In the time of recession one would hope that teams cut down on unnecessary expenses and would focus on the game and also on satisfying the millions of fans due to which they are still in business. But who can predict Force India’s actions, they have roped  in yet another actor (politically correct term for actress) to promote their f1 outfit. Deepika Padhukone is set to be the new face of Force India F1.

While their brand ambassadors keep getting smarter and more expensive every year, how much their performance has improved over the off season remains to be seen. At the launch of their 2009 car also , the guest list included Bollywood actresses, but it remains to be seen whether any fans were invited to the event !

People in Europe and Americas are probably unaware of the kind of outrage that Vijay Mallya’s comments have caused in India’s formula one fans.

I really admire Vijay Mallya, mainly for the fact that he has brought India on the world map in a large number of places, liquor being 1. But formula one is not one of them. Narain Karthikeyan was the Indian who had brought India to the world stage in formula one. His sponsors like JK Tyre and TATA were the ones who put India on the formula one map not Kingfisher, not Vijay Mallya.

Narain Karthikeyan became the first Indian driver in formula one, he was a test driver for Williams. Even in the defunct Jordans, he drove his heart out. Steve Slater and Chris Goodwin praised his guts and moves. The kind of aggression he showed in racing was praised by all. Michael Schumacher, Emerson Fittpaldi and Tiago Monteiro (his teammate) all praised his guts.

Then along came Mr. Mallya, bought over a defunct formula one outfit and named it after India. That was good, but his comments about Indian drivers was uncalled for. Karun Chandhok and Narain Karthikeyan are good drivers, better than if not as good as Adrian Sutil and Giancarlo Fisichella. Both of them have WON races at every stage of racing they have competed in and are very much competitive when pitted against the best of drivers.

Mr. Mallya’s obsession with glamour and foreigners is not appreciated by this formula one fan. I would much rather have one of the Ambanis or the TATAs in formula one.

Narain Karthikeyan has always held his cool, but his patience was tested once again by Vijay Mallya who again commented on Narain’s abilities and said he wasnt fit to race in Force India formula one team or f1 for that matter. Vijay Mallya further sacked Collin Kolles and Mike Gascoyne.

Narain Karthikeyan was not impressed , he immediately went on the offensive. He called Mallya’s outift a pedestrian team. His exact words were :

“I spent a frustrating time with Jordan, where I had a car that just could not perform. I have no desire to be with another pedestrian team that’s low on performance and loud on talk,”

Despite being Indian i will agree with him here. The Force India outfit has been all talk and no show for a long time now. We have all heard of the Force India car on podium talk and how they are an Indian team for the fans.

But time after time, they have delivered nothing but failure, nothing but disappointment. It seems to be more of a money making machine than a people’s team. The merchandise launched last year was even more expensive than the Ferrari merchandise available in India. No true (not rich) Indian could afford to buy the merchandise.

Time and time again, the only people seen in Force India pits are movie actors ( actresses mainly, who would pose around the F1 car) and around Vijay Mallya himself and get clicked.

Also such comments about Narain Karthikeyan are really in bad taste and do not speak well of the team and its motives and motivation.

Photo : Dan Smith , Under CCSA Att.

Owner Vijay Mallya said that his team is different from giant Honda who pulled out of formula one last weak amid a weak financial situation. It was said that with Mallya’s many ventures also facing declining profits, the Force India F1 team might just pack up. But the boss cleared all doubts and theories.

In an interview , Vijay Mallya had the following to say :

“Clearly one has to be concerned about what is happening in the world today,” he said

“Honda’s withdrawal was not a shock to me as I could well imagine that on one hand with global sales and profits under pressure, the first thing that any independent board member would say is ‘what are you doing with a Formula One team?’

“It’s unfortunate but true that we have to cut our costs and live in the real world and balance both income and expenditure. From the sponsor side as well, people are cutting down budgets, so it’s not going to be very easy to get anyone to write out large cheques for sponsorship either.

“Force India is in a good enough position, it’s a smaller team with a much smaller budget than the big boys and so it is probably relatively easier for us to manage under these circumstances.”

Vijay Mallya seems to be at his reassuring best atleast for the interview.

For once i would like fans to be present instead of actors and models to be present at various races of Force India and their names and faces in the Media images. If you are looking for a fan to fly to any grand prix, choose me Mr. Mallya

Take last week’s Singapore Grand Prix for example :

Leo Sayer was present !

Sonam Kapoor and Imran Khan were present !

Even Shilpa Shetty was present !

Some photos of these people below :

All photos from Force India Media Centre.

1 July 2008 – The British Grand Prix later this week will mark the mid-point of Force India’s debut Formula One World Championship season. It’s an appropriate place for the team to reach this milestone given the Silverstone Circuit, where the race is held, is right opposite Force India’s HQ. 

As such, the British Grand Prix is seen by many as the team’s ‘home’ race. Although preparations continue as normal, with the cars re-built at the factory and then taken on a transporter over to the circuit, it does make the event a special one for the team and their families.

Following a solid French Grand Prix Force India will be looking to move forward at Silverstone. At a three-day test at the same circuit last week, the team debuted a major new aero and mechanical package comprising new sidepods, bargeboards, diffuser, front wing, engine cover, inerter damper and further suspension modifications. With the developments looking positive, the team has every hope of an improved finish in the ninth round of the 18-round series. 

Dr. Vijay Mallya, chairman and managing director
‘The British Grand Prix will be a special race for the Force India Formula One Team. With the history and heritage of this team and its location just opposite the main gates of the circuit, it’s obviously considered by the team as its home race.
‘In the past, when this team was Jordan Grand Prix, there was a real buzz whenever it came to Silverstone. The fans supported it, the media enjoyed it and the atmosphere in the factory was by all accounts electric. This team now really needs to remember those days and try and recapture some of the spirit. We’re moving forward, that’s for sure, and step by step improving, but I really want everyone to feel proud of where we are and what we have achieved. It’s this race in particular that really fires everyone up, let’s put this energy into a great performance in front of our ‘home’ crowd.’

Colin Kolles, team principal
‘For sure we all look forward to this race as it’s just across from the factory so family and friends can come more than they can to another race. We also have a lot of information about the track from being on its doorstep, so it does feel very familiar, but we don’t approach it any differently to any other event on the calendar. We ultimately have the same aims we always have. ‘The French Grand Prix clearly showed the steps forward we have made in reliability, with our first two car finish since the Bahrain Grand Prix, but now we need to be able to race competitively and finish ahead of people. 

‘From a performance point of view, we have a significant new aero and mechanical upgrade package we will use at Silverstone for the first time that I expect to move us closer to the field.’

Mike Gascoyne, chief technical officer
‘At the mid point of the season I think we are fairly much where we expected to be. We are competitive in race conditions and are able to fight with the group in front. We’ve also had some good showings, with Monaco as a particular high point with Adrian. 
‘We have also tried to sustain a cycle of development to improve performance throughout the season and have moved forward compared to where we were last year, but unfortunately Formula One is so competitive this year that we’ve not been able to show this progress in our results. 

‘After a productive test at Silverstone, we’re looking forward to the British Grand Prix this week. We tested our new aero and mechanical configuration over the three days and received very positive feedback from all three drivers. There was more grip and downforce in general over one lap, and all reported an increased stability under braking.
‘It was unfortunate we lost some running time on Wednesday with Giancarlo’s accident, but the team was able to get the car repaired and we managed pretty much to catch up with the schedule and I’m confident we won’t see any knock-on effects this weekend.’
Driver quotes

Giancarlo Fisichella
‘I’m motivated to do well in Britain now we’ve got a solid finish under our belts at the last race in France. I’ve always enjoyed and done well at Silverstone. Even though it’s not a particularly distinctive track it’s very technical so you need a good driving rhythm, good pace, good balance and constant levels of grip. I also like the atmosphere there as the fans are very enthusiastic, particularly for any British team.
‘We’ll be introducing our new aero package for this race. We tested it at Silverstone last week and although my day of testing was pretty much cut in half by the accident, up to that point the car felt better than it has done in a while. Even though we know Silverstone is going to be tough too, any step forward will be a big help.  ‘I’m not feeling any ill effects from the accident: it really looked worse than it was, I only wish I
had remembered to take my hands of the wheel so it would have spared me the trip to
hospital!’

Adrian Sutil
‘I’m looking forward to Silverstone this year. It’s good to be at a circuit you really know well and you are comfortable at. We test here a lot and of course the factory is so close, it’s like our home race. Personally I like the track, it’s quite challenging and really one of my favourites. The atmosphere is great too, and with all the Lewis fans it should be a fantastic race.
‘The test here last week went well, we tried out the complete new aero package with the wheel covers, engine cover and of course the inerter damper that we hope will give us more stability. If everything works well together, both on the aero and mechanical side, it would be a good step forward for us, which we need at the moment. 

‘My target for this race would be to get everything working well and hopefully being in a
position where we could race and pass some cars. In Magny-Cours we were quite close, especially on my middle stint where the lap times were good, but we just need that little bit more to be able to get ahead of some others.’