Alonso mania grips Indian Grand Prix

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Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel may have won the second edition of the Indian Grand Prix, but Fernando Alonso was truly the crowd favourite here at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) Sunday.

The Ferrari driver, regarded by many as the best Formula One driver currently on the grid, had lot of fans among the 65,000 that gathered here to view the penultimate Asian race of the calendar.

Alonso did well to come second, 9.4 seconds behind winner Sebastian Vettel in the 60-lap race.

"I am here only for Alonso. He is just superb in that car. I wish he wins the title this year even though the Red Bulls look stronger," said V. Adithya, who has come all the way from Bangalore to watch the race.

Alonso now trails drivers' championship leader Vettel by 13 points with three races remaining this season.

Though legendary driver Michael Schumacher also drew several fans, Alonso remained the clear favourite.

During the drivers' parade before the race, the crowds went bonkers to get a glimpse of the two-time former World Champion.

When the Spaniard, who started in third position, overtook Vettel's teammate Mark Webber on the back straight for second place, the crowd went into a frenzy, clapping and cheering for him and waving the Ferrari flag.

"That was the move of the race. Alonso has something special in him to relentlessly drive this well. Though he has not won the title since 2006, he is still the best you have on the circuit today," said another racing fan, Rohit Madan, who had come from Chandigarh to see the race.

Indian GP sees dip in spectator interest
Formula One management and Jaypee Group, promoters of the Indian Grand Prix, remained unfazed about the 30,000 dip in the number of spectators for the second year of the race at the Buddh International Circuit.

An estimated 65,000 people turned up at the Buddh International Circuit for the second Formula One Indian Grand Prix while in the inaugural season the attendance was close 95,000.

The dip is substantial but race promoters Jaypee Group and sport’s rights holder Formula One management do not see it as a major issue.

"The first time the excitement is always high, second it goes down. Third year is what is important as there is something to worry if the interest keeps on falling. And we have stiff competition from cricket," said F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone at the paddock area of the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) here.

The BIC capacity stands at 1,00,000. A top Jaypee official told IANS that only 3,000 complimentary passes were distributed.

“Second year the interest is bound to go down but 65,000 is still a huge number. For us, the most important thing was the Grand Prix went smooth. All the technology functioned properly. The teams and the drivers were happy with the upgraded facilities,” the official said.