SEPANG, MALAYSIA�IF PLANS do not miscarry, local fans may come face to face with two of Formula One racing�s brightest stars.
William Herrera, owner of Red Rock Travel and the Philippine authorized agent for race events for Malaysia�s Sepang International Circuit (SIC), said that there is a big possibility that Lotus drivers Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen will come over for a visit.
In a chance meeting with Lotus F1 team owner Tony Fernandes after the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, Australia, recently, Herrera learned from the billionaire sportsman that he�s keen on including the Philippines as a stopover for an Asia-wide promotional tour for his star drivers.
Herrera, who was in Sepang last weekend, brought a group of Philippine F1 fans to watch the 2010 Malaysian GP.
�His objective is to drum up interest with Formula One racing not only in the Philippines but with the whole of Asia, with a long term goal of developing a truly Asian team. By bringing his star drivers Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen, he hopes to generate F1 racing interest in RP.� said Herrera.
Currently, Italian driver Jarno Trulli and Finnish Heikki Kovalainen are the Lotus team drivers together with Malaysia�s only F1 driver Fairuz Fuazy, who had won races in A1GP, GP2 and World Series by Renault for the last few years before joining Lotus.
Furthermore, Fernandes has reportedly been scouting for talented drivers in Asia including the Philippines and is also said to be in talks with some influential businessmen in the country for this purpose.
Aside from Tony Fernandes serving as co-owner and team principal, the Lotus F1 team is co-owned by the Malaysian government plus a consortium of investors including Malaysia�s automobile maker Proton and Sepang International Circuit. While its longer term vision is to create a center of technical excellence at the Sepang circuit, Lotus has opted initially for a UK base at the RTN facility in Hingham from where its F1 operations will be handled until such time the team would be ready to be headquartered in Malaysia, but Lotus F1 Racing team will still have to keep a UK base that offers a logistical advantage since a lot of F1 are racing within Europe.
Fernandes also owns Air Asia, South East Asia�s biggest budget airline. According to Nizam Eshak, Deputy Director for Tourism Malaysia Philippine office, who was in SIC during race day said that �Mr. Fernandes has a standing wager with another new F1 team owner, Virgin Racing boss Sir Richard Branson, that whoever loses among the two F1 teams will have to wear the other�s airline flight attendant uniform.� Fernandes carries the title Datuk, which is considered an equivalent of a knight in UK.
The name Lotus has been a name in hibernation for over 15 years in Formula One racing until Fernandes brought the British engineering firm and sportscar brand back to the Formula one racing scene. The team gave Malaysians an added local flavor as they also eagerly awaited for the comeback of F1 racing great Michael Schumacher, albeit having raced the SIC for just 10 laps due to some mechanical failure.
Meanwhile, spurred by the disappointment of mechanical failures that cost him victory in the Formula One season�s opening two races, Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel led from start to finish to win Sunday�s Malaysian Grand Prix.
After the team�s championship hopes had been written off due to queries over the reliability of its cars, Red Bull answered in the best possible way�Vettel leading a 1-2 finish ahead of teammate Mark Webber.
Vettel led in Bahrain and Australia before his car let him down mid-race but there was no easing up Sunday, the German passing pole-sitter Webber in the run to the first corner at Sepang circuit and leading throughout as forecast rain stayed away. With wire reports
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