UKs Motoring

The death of Indycar racer Dan Wheldon

Dan Wheldon was an extraordinary talent and it is ironic that he met his death on the last day of the 2011 season. He was not contesting the championship; the drivers who were, were Dario Franchitti and Will Power. Wheldon was racing for an entirely different challenge, and a controversial one. His challenge was to start the race from behind the rest of the grid and during the course of the race overtake all of the other cars; all 34 of them. If he had been successful he was would have collected $5 million prize money.

He was up for the challenge; his tweets expressed his intensity and determination to achieve it. It was not to be. The race was only 12 laps old before one of the most dreadful accidents in motorsport happened. 15 racing cars were involved in a pile up and Wheldon’s car flew through the air then exploded.

Motorsport is dangerous, but Indy Car racing is its most dangerous formula. Cars hurtle round a tight and steeply banked oval at speeds of up to 230 mph and there is simply nowhere to go should anything go wrong. Sadly it was an accident waiting to happen and one that will certainly change the nature of the sport.

Like just about all successful racing drivers, Wheldon started his sport when just a young child. He began driving Karts when he was just four years old and he competed in Karting against Jenson Button, often beating him. He had hoped to become an F1 driver, but he did not have the necessary finance so he crossed the pond to race in America. He was incredibly successful there and won the Indianapolis 500 on two occasions, including this year.

There have been large numbers of tributes from many who are or have been involved in the sport. Lewis Hamilton described him as an ‘inspiration’. And www.motors.co.uk would like to add their name to the many that have paid tribute to him.

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Any relevant motorsports news

The coming weekend will see the first ever Indian Grand Prix. The newly built Buddh International Circuit represents a flight into the unknown for Formula 1 fans and drivers alike. Each track has special qualities and this New Delhi track will be no different. The track will open up the sport to a whole new demographic of fans in a sport which could well take off in Central Asia.

Narain Karthikeyan was the first Indian F1 driver and will feature for the HRT team. Karun Chandhok will also be hoping to get the nod from Lotus. It would enhance the occasion if there was some national interest for Indian F1 fans.

Sebastian Vettel will be looking to stretch his lead at the top of the championship. Vettel achieved sporting greatness in winning this years title – he became F1’s youngest competitor to win the championship twice. 30,000 fans turned out in Hoppenheim for Vettel’s homecoming. Button, Alonso, Webber and Hamilton are jostling for position below him.

Vettel has taken the glory that many thought might come to Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton has been dogged by unfortunate collisions in what has been a fairly miserable season. His father claims he has found his focus again and will return with new found vigour next season.

2012 promises to be an exciting F1 campaign if this is the case. The prospect of seeing Hamilton take on Vettel in top form is a prospect to relish. Hamilton and Vettel are two of the most talented young drivers F1 has ever seen and they can breathe life into the sport through a fierce competitive rivalry.

Any great driver needs a rival to push him to new heights – Hamilton and Vettel could emulate the Senna/Prost rivalry. The driver’s battle in the early stages of the Korean Grand prix could be an exciting taste of things to come. Hamilton knocked the Red Bull team off pole for the first time this season in Korea.

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