Malaysian Grand Prix is a Milestone for Asia

Saturday, Oct. 16, 1999 | 3:05 a.m.

First to arrive were the six jumbo jets carrying precious cargo: the million-dollar cars, stacks of tires and digital television equipment. Then, one by one, the big names landed: Hakkinen, Schumacher, Coulthard, Irvine, Frentzen.

The cast and props were all in place in Kuala Lumpur for the Malaysian Grand Prix Sunday. And while the 350 million television viewers might see the event as just 56 laps around a ring of black tarmac, the race is a milestone for Malaysia, for Formula One and for the Asian sports industry as a whole. Malaysia will become the first country in Asia outside Japan to join the prestigious Formula One circuit.

For Malaysia, a successful race will be proof that a developing nation can stage a major motor-racing event as competently as - or better than - the big boys in Europe.

For Formula One, Sunday's race is a test case that may decide the direction of the sport. Bernie Ecclestone, Formula One's chief executive, has indicated that the Malaysian Grand Prix may be just the beginning of other races in Asia, where countries are willing to bend over backward to attract the millions of dollars that the sport can pump into an economy.

The region's trump card over Europe is clear, as Asia is relatively free of the obstacles that frustrate Formula One organizers in traditional markets: threats to ban tobacco advertising, red tape and limits on noise.

Formula One organizers have had nothing but praise for the $100 million track and facilities that Malaysia built for Sunday's race.

"The crews say they have never worked in conditions like this," said a Formula One official last week amid hurried preparations for the race. "They've never had this much room. Their first impressions are very positive."

It is perhaps unlikely that Formula One's foray into Southeast Asia is taking place in a country with no strong racing culture. But that is not really the point. Formula One is in Malaysia mostly because the government made all the right moves to lure race organizers, first building a world-class airport and then building the state-of-the-art track a few miles away.

The result: Malaysia will be the first new country to hold a race since Hungary in 1986.

The Malaysian Grand Prix is the brainchild of Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad. He has been the driving force behind many of the huge projects the country has undertaken - the Petronas Towers, the tallest building in the world; Malaysia's new administrative capital, Putrajaya, one of the biggest construction projects in Southeast Asia, and the stunning Kuala Lumpur International Airport, the region's largest in terms of acreage.

"Motor sports will help to put us on the world map and attract commerce and tourists to Malaysia," Mahathir said Thursday at a motor sports exhibition in Kuala Lumpur.

Indeed, a recent study commissioned by the International Automobile Federation, the sport's governing body, indicated that nearly $500 million is spent each year by the spectators visiting the 10 or 11 races in Europe.

The Malaysian government made its first move into auto racing in 1995, when the country's national oil company, Petroliam Nasional Bhd., or Petronas, took up sponsorship of the Sauber Formula One team. A year later, Malaysia became the first government to sponsor a Formula One team in a $10.7 million, two-year deal with Jackie Stewart's new team. The sponsorship, which was canceled after one year because of the regional economic crisis, included a "Visit Malaysia" logo on the team car.

But before the crisis set in, Malaysia had struck a deal with Formula One to hold a race in Asia, beating out several other Asian countries.

China was to be the first new Asian race, and was on the 1999 schedule until it was removed because of logistical problems. Singapore and Indonesia bid for the race at the same time as Malaysia. India and South Korea have recently shown interest.

Mahathir appointed Basir Ismail, the chairman of Malaysia Airports Bhd., the company charged with managing the country's airports, to carry out the negotiations with Formula One.

The 5.542-kilometer Malaysian track, which features 15 turns and eight straightaways, is the world's widest, at an average of 52.5 feet across. That design, race organizers say, promises an exciting race with constant passing. Some 70 percent of the track is visible to spectators in what is the sport's longest grandstand, a structure seating 30,000. The grandstand's large roof canopies were designed to block out the tropical sun.

Malaysia's climate may pose an added challenge for drivers Sunday. Mika Hakkinen of the McLaren team, who visited the track in March, said the cars would suffer more and be more susceptible to breakdowns. The Malaysian capital's frequent rain showers also could be problematic. Races in Europe are rarely stopped for rain, but, said Hermann Tilke, the track's German designer, "if a monsoon comes, the race has to stop."

Tilke designed the track to clear water within 25 minutes, but some Malaysians think rain could wipe out the race entirely. While the weather is out of their control, race organizers say they have solved one potential problem: attendance.

Organizers had worried that the race could face the same woes as a Grand Prix motorcycle event staged by Malaysia in April. Crowd turnout was poor, and the series will not return next year. To prevent those attendance problems, Ecclestone installed a Frenchman with Formula One experience, Philippe Gurdjian, to promote the event.

Mahathir, for his part, has been marketing the product locally. Last week was declared National Motor Sports Week in Malaysia. While there appeared to be relatively few spectators in the grandstands during practice sessions Friday, organizers say they have sold 65,000 tickets and are expecting crowds of 80,000 to 100,000 people Sunday. If the weather holds up, the fans may be in for a good show: Sunday's race could decide who wins this year's Formula One championship.

While it did not rain during the Friday practice sessions, the sky was cloudy and the track was wet for at least half of the two one-hour sessions. Jacques Villeneuve set the fastest time in practice. "It's a very simple track to drive on," he said. "It's fun."