India's F1 Hopeful On The Mend

Had it all gone to plan you would have seen Jehan Daruvala—India’s first Formula 3 race winner since Narain Karthikeyan—line up for the biggest F3 race weekend of the season in Macau from November 15 to 17. But an injured knee and at least two more months till a full recovery means that the likeliest contender to be India’s third-ever Formula 1 driver is having to sit it out.

“I would much rather be in Macau than sitting at home, but it is what it is,” Daruvala said, speaking to Zigwheels from Mumbai.

In the meantime, the 21-year-old who finished third in this year’s FIA Formula 3 Championship— scoring two wins and seven podiums in the eight-round, 16-race season— plans to work with his trainer to keep his neck strengthened, so at least that crucial physical aspect of single-seat racing is not found wanting whenever he does make his eventual return to the cockpit.

As far as what the future holds, the ideal aim would be moving up to Formula 2, the last stepping-stone to F1. And despite some hiccups, his results should make him a contender for a good drive, although, it is pointless speculating about the future. Case in point is the knee injury that has sidelined him from the most important F3 race weekend of the season, which he wouldn’t have missed under normal circumstances.

So, putting the crystal ball away, Daruvala looked back on the past season and an aspect of his race-craft that he feels he needs to work on.

“I could definitely be more aggressive on the opening lap of races, in particular, the sprint races because the grids are reversed, in order to not be stuck behind cars for too long. I feel there were cases when that happened, and I used up the tyres a bit much. I mean, it is easy to say this sitting outside the car but often one can end up being too aggressive and getting into an incident. But still, there is room for improvement there,”he added.

With regards to the format and nature of racing in the FIA F3 Championship, Jehan felt there was a big change from the erstwhile FIA F3 Europe series but that it was more racing-friendly.

“Those cars I drove in F3 Europe in 2018 had a lot of downforce compared to the cars I am driving now, and it would often get difficult to follow a lead car through a corner. The cars in this (FIA F3) championship can allow drivers to race a lot closer and the tyre wear factor also adds a bit of fun for the fans. Plus, it allows us, drivers, to think a little more about how we approach the race,” he said.

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Since the subject of closer racing was breached, we couldn’t help but ask Daruvala what he felt about the impending changes to F1’s technical regulations in 2021.

“It definitely looks like it will be better for racing,” said Daruvala. “People who want to see lap records get broken will probably be disappointed, but you can’t have both super-fast cars and close racing.”

Daruvala claims his potential path to F1 has not been affected that much by the end of Force India’s presence. He was a junior driver for the team at the time its ownership changed hands but he is confident of receiving enough backing in the future to chase his target of reaching global motorsport’s most high-profile racing series.

“It definitely was not something that I expected,but I feel confident about my future and I just need to make sure I keep delivering on track,” he said.

Speaking of the future, Daruvala finds time to keep track of Shahan Ali Mohsin a young kart racer who could be India’s next car racing talent.

Mohsin qualified in the top ten in the Rotax Grand Final, where 72 of the world’s top kart racers competed to be one of the 36 participants in the final after three heats and a pre-final. Mohsin’s fourth-place finish in the second heat, seventh-place finish in the third heat, and just barely missing out on the final caught Daruvala’s eye.

“It’s great that he is doing such a good job in such a competitive field. It is important for drivers to start very young in karting and get a lot of experience, especially in Europe where people race against you much harder and the tracks are more physical. Getting results like these is also important as it will make people take you seriously,” Daruvala said.

He hopes other Indians can follow suit and he can make himself available to questions from young aspirants, many of whom live in close quarters to him in Mumbai. He is definitely setting a good example for them, and hopefully, he can continue to do so once he is fully fit and ready for battle again. 

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