Saturday September 25th, 2004
Media Centre Frenzy
The impressive facilities at the new Shanghai International Circuit include a gigantic media centre that stretches across the track from the main start-finish grandstand and can comfortably claim to be one of the best in the business. Its ninth storey location is reached by a set of lifts and its situation is not the most convenient for quick access to the paddock, but the organisers were keen to display the overall set-up to whoever wanted to see it and members of the media often spotted private tours being led around the area for people who would normally never pay a visit. British Racing Drivers Club president Sir Jackie Stewart headed on up to see what all the fuss was about, Formula One supreme Bernie Ecclestone took time to check it out, former Toyota boss Ove Andersson was keen to have a look and even Mark Webber's father Alan took a trip up the lifts to enjoy the spectacular views.
Welcome to Shanghai
The organisers of the inaugural Chinese Grand Prix offered the whole of the Formula One paddock an invitation to sample the delights of Shanghai as VIP guests when they put on their welcome evening on the Thursday before the race. With the track situated around one hour from downtown, the early departure time of 5:30 left frantic journalists rattling away at their keyboards in desperation and many missed out on the event because they failed to finish in time. Those who did, or those who finished late and argued for an extra shuttle to the city, were treated to a buffet at the top of the spectacular Pearl Tower before being whisked away onto a bus for the 200m drive to the river, where they boarded boats for a river cruise along the spectacular 1930s buildings along the Bund area of the city. It was the ideal way to display the city to the visiting circus.
Birthday Boys
Juan Pablo Montoya celebrated his 29th birthday in Shanghai this weekend with a cake presented by his Williams team's lubricant suppliers Castrol. But Montoya, who cut the cake at a media conference in the Xingtiandi region, was not the only man enjoying his special day. The other was Dutchman Robert Doornbos, who received the call-up to join Jordan's Friday test team just three days before the event and delightedly described the offer as "the best birthday present ever!"
No Pyjama Party
Further to the embarrassment expressed by several BAR-Honda team members early in the weekend over their new blue and yellow uniforms, team boss David Richards went one step further and chose to ditch the stripy trousers altogether on Saturday and was seen wearing black slacks with the blue and yellow top. The rest of the team remained in their pyjamas.
Programme Mistakes
Grand Prix race programmes generally provide accurate information to help educate even the biggest fans of Formula One but for the Chinese race, which welcomed an audience with limited knowledge of the sport, there were several key errors. Jaguar driver Christian Klien was not complaining, though - he was credited with "obviously great potential" after points-scoring finishes in Bahrain, the Nurburgring, Silverstone and Hockenheim despite actually only claiming his first points with a sixth place finish at the Belgian Grand Prix in August. The presence of former Jordan driver Giorgio Pantano and former Renault driver Jarno Trulli in the programme was not unsurprising given their late replacements, but the appearance of Toyota's long-departed Brazilian driver Cristiano da Matta, who was dropped by the team after the German Grand Prix in July, was slightly concerning.
Timetable Confusion
The Chinese have so far failed to get to grips with the schedule for a Grand Prix weekend and this fact was amusingly displayed for all to see in the reception area of one of the media hotels. The timing details were all correct on the notice that stood next to a sign to the shuttle buses, but Saturday's pre-qualifying and qualifying sessions were called first and second semi-finals and the race was billed as 'The Final'.
Media Mess
The racetrack's location - approximately one hour out of Shanghai - left journalists and teams in a dilemma of where to stay for the inaugural Chinese Grand Prix. Some chose to be near the circuit, having heard scare stories of trips to and from the city taking up to two hours, while others took the decision to stay in the city and take in the whole experience of their first time in China. On the opening day it appeared the decision to plump for city-based hotels was flawed when no media buses were available to pick up where they were expected and journalists resorted to taxi cabs. By Friday, however, there was an exclusion zone around the circuit and cabs, the organisers declared, would not be allowed in. Thankfully the media buses got going but the strict Chinese timetable saw them leave the city at 8:00am and circle around the outside of the track before planting the journalists in a carpark after the first session had already started. "It will be better next year," promised one source. It certainly should be - the direct train link to the city should be built by then.
Rolex Watch
It is difficult to walk along the street in Shanghai without hearing calls of "Lowrex watch" from street hawkers, but it was a surprise to see that, somehow, several fake watch sellers had infiltrated the Shanghai International Circuit and were touting their wares on the walk from the car parks to the media centre. Rumours that Eddie Jordan immediately rushed out to take advantage of the offer remain unconfirmed.
Published at 09:19:40 GMT
(03-11-2005): 
