It lasted just three years. Three fleeting seasons of roaring engines, tire smoke wafting into Noida and the heady smell of Sunday afternoon fuel. Between 2011 and 2013, the Buddh International Circuit became part of the most prestigious motor racing championship in the world. Then, as quickly as it had come, Formula 1 was gone.
This weekend, Delhi NCR will get a small but evocative taste of what it once had. Sebastian Vettel’s 2012 RB8 – the very car that won the Indian Grand Prix that year – will fire up its naturally aspirated 2.4-litre V8 engine on Indian soil for the first time in 14 years. It will be directed by Arvid Lindblad, one of Formula 1’s most exciting young prospectsat the Red Bull Moto Jam on March 1 at the India Expo Center in Greater Noida. For anyone in the stands, it will be less a display of motorsport and more an act of remembrance.
More than a decade after the Grand Prix disappeared, there are whispers that Formula 1 could make a permanent return. The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is reportedly working to remove the tax and bureaucratic hurdles that once derailed the Indian Grand Prix, as India Today reported in early February. For anyone who remembers the electricity of those early races, it’s a thought worth indulging.
But Karun Chandhok – one of only two Indians to have raced in Formula 1 – urges caution alongside optimism. Speaking in a group media interaction, Chandhok was measured but clear. “I’d like to see it,” he said. “But there are steps.
HOW IT ALL CAME DOWN
The story of why the Indian Grand Prix disappeared is less about motorsport and more about money and politics. At the heart of the collapse was a dispute over classification. The Uttar Pradesh government along with the central authorities have decided to treat Formula 1 as entertainment rather than a sport. The consequences were devastating. High fees were charged for entertainment and luxury at the event. The financial incentives that usually go to big sporting opportunities have been removed. The promoter, Jaypee Sports International, has invested more than US$400 million in the construction of the circuit. They were left with mounting losses and no way out.
Import duties on race equipment piled up additional costs for teams and organizers. In 2013 it was over. The race was cancelled, and Buddha’s international circuit died down.
Vettel, who won all three editions for Red Bull, may remain the face of those years. But the more lasting legacy was a lesson in how not to host a world-class event.
REMEMBERING THE GOLDEN ERA OF MOTOR SPORTS IN INDIA
Chandhok speaks of this era with undisguised pride. The way you talk about something you knew was rare even when it happened.
“We definitely had a purple spot between 2009 and 2012,” he recalls. “Narain and I were both in F1. Force India was on the grid. And we had the Indian Grand Prix.” He vividly remembers 2011 – when the sport dominated seven pages of newspaper coverage in a country that had barely looked up from cricket. “It felt surreal in a cricket-obsessed country. I remember thinking, how is this happening in India?”
Around 95,000 fans attended on race day in 2011. In later years, the numbers dropped and settled around 65,000. Chandhok wants to reframe that figure. “When you build a 120,000-seat facility and 60,000 turn up, it looks half-empty. But 60,000 people at a sporting event in India is a strong number. Look at Bahrain or Qatar – they build stands for 30-40,000 and call it a sell-out every year.”
The problem was never the fans. The problem was the frame that surrounded the entire spectacle.
WHAT DO WE NEED TO RETURN F1 TO INDIA?
Chandhok sits on the dashboard at Silverstone helping to manage the British Grand Prix. He thought carefully about what makes a race viable in modern times.
“Money is only one factor,” he says. “Many cities are willing to pay hosting fees. You have to offer strategic value – market potential, fan engagement, government support, commercial viability, stability.” He claims that India has these qualities. The fan base has grown since 2013. At the Singapore Grand Prix last year alone, the local promoter counted 14,000 Indian spectators. “I’m sure Bahrain, Qatar and Abu Dhabi are seeing similar numbers,” he adds.
The legislative part remains non-negotiable. “Even if it’s privately funded, you need government cooperation on customs, visas and taxes,” he says. The tax classification that killed the race the first time cannot be reinvented.
Then there’s the calendar. The Formula 1 program is very competitive. “I personally don’t see it opening before 2029 or 2030,” says Chandhok. “The demand is huge. The calendar is full.”
Any return must also come with a long-term commitment. “We had F1 for three years. Formula E came once. MotoGP once,” he notes. “We need a commitment of five to 10 years to properly establish it.”
THE BIG PICTURE
Bringing Formula 1 back to India would be a spectacle. But Chandhok is careful not to overstate what he would achieve for the sport’s roots in the country. “Running a race and producing riders are two different things,” he says. The three editions of the Indian Grand Prix did not bring a boom in mass motorsport. “Obviously there’s an inspiration factor. But motorsport is capital intensive. It’s not buying a bat and a ball.”
Structured investment in young talent is needed for India to put another powerhouse on the grid. The right pyramid, based on merit and maintained for years. The race, if it returns, can provide visibility. But visibility alone does not build a career.
Corporate support is also part of the equation. “It becomes a loop,” says Chandhok. “Cricket gets eyeballs. Because it gets eyeballs, money flows in. That brings more visibility, which attracts more sponsors.” Breaking this cycle requires more than a race on the calendar. It requires commitment from government, corporations and sport itself.
Chandhok believes the demand is there. The fan base is bigger than it was in 2013, the market cannot be ignored and the Buddh International Circuit still stands – a world-class facility sitting idly by. But India was already there. It had the race, it had the crowds, and it still lost it all to paperwork and short-termism. The opportunity, if it presents itself again, cannot be won by enthusiasm alone. It is won – or lost – in the fine print.
– The end
Published on:
28 Feb 2026 14:30 IST
