DUBAI // There will be seven former Formula One drivers on the grid in the Speedcar Series this season. But Johnny Herbert, the defending champion and winner of three F1 Grand Prix, has picked Sheikh Hasher Al Maktoum as one of the biggest threats to his crown.
"To be honest, Hashar was very competitive last year," said the Briton, who has driven for Benetton, Sauber, Lotus and Jaguar among others in an 11-year F1 career. "He has learnt a lot and I think he will still have to learn a bit more, but he is moving in the right direction. "So he should be one of the challengers. He thoroughly enjoys racing here and we enjoy racing against him because he is a hard driver to race against."
Hasher hopes he can prove Herbert right. "I am looking forward to doing better this season," said Hasher, 23, who had one podium finish last season. "The more time you spend driving, the more you learn. Every time you are out on the track, you learn something new. So I am confident of a better show." Hasher has driven everything from a 12hp go-kart to the 620hp Speedcar over the last three years, but he doesn't see himself getting behind the wheels of a Formula One beast. "I started very late and I do not think it is possible for me to drive in Formula One," he said.
The Speedcar Series will start its second season today at the Dubai Autodrome, with revamped cars that boast of rip-roaring V8, 6.2 litre engines and lighter, composite panelled bodies. There will be seven teams and 14 drivers starting on the grid, hoping to make a head-start in the six-round championship that is worth US$500,000 (Dh1,836,550) each for the winning driver and team. "We are very pleased with the high level of teams we have on board at the moment," said Claudio Berro, the operations director of the Speedcar Series. "Our focus this season is to attract professional teams and we are accomplishing that.
"We are still waiting for a final adjustment to the list of drivers, but I can anticipate it will include six former F1 drivers - Herbert, Jean Alesi, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Stefan Johansson, Gianni Morbidelli and Jacques Villeneuve, and Vitantonio Liuzzi." The Speedcar Series will top bill at the Grand Racing weekend, with Hamad al Fardan of Bahrain, the first Arab driver in the single-seater GP2 Asia series, will be attracting interest.
@Email:arizvi@thenational.ae