Formula Racing
Check out Jehan Daruvala’s live interview on The Mind Behind
The Indian F2 racer participated in an interview live on Instagram as part of the series known as The Mind Behind.
Jehan Daruvala is the brightest hope to be the next F1 star from India.
The racer from Mumbai is hoping to follow in the footsteps of Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandhok to become the third Indian to participate in Formula One.
He recently signed on with Red Bull Junior Team – which has produced the likes of Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen – to develop his skills further. He is set to race with Carlin Motorsport in the 2020 F2 season and hopes that he will be in an F1 seat next year.
Recently, he participated in an interview for The Mind Behind series – a set of interviews with athletes and artists on what inspires them and influences their thought process. Here is the full interview about Jehan Daruvala’s preparation before getting into a racecar, how he deals with the mental and physical pressures of the sport, and how he continues to train while he is at home.
You’ve recently been announced as a part of the Red Bull Junior Team. How do you feel right now?
I'm in that stage of my career where the next goal for me is Formula 1, so to be backed by the Red Bull Junior Team – which is part of one of the top teams in F1 – is a really huge opportunity for me.
How are you staying race fit mentally and physically while at home? Are you visualising circuits or going through them on your PlayStation?
I am doing both mental and physical fitness. I do FaceTime sessions with my trainer every day. Unfortunately, my racing simulator has broken and I’ve not been able to get it fixed. Hopefully I can get that going soon so I can feel the steering wheel in my hand again. Other than that I'm just keeping my mind calm and spending time with my family just waiting for the season to begin.
Jehan Daruvala
© James Gasperotti
You are usually based in Europe during the season so you probably don’t see your family much. Are you enjoying spending time with them?
Luckily they all travel – my sister, mom and dad – for my race weekends. So I get to meet them then. But as a professional in the sport, I get busy and don't really get to spend time with them. They just come to support me. So being around my family every day has been one of the bright points while waiting for the season to start.
When did you start karting and when did you realize that motorsports is the career for you?
I started karting in 2010 when I was 10 years old. I started in Mumbai with Rayo Racing and spent my first few years in India. It took me time to realise no sport is easy. Once I started winning in India, I moved on to the Asian circuit and won the Asia-Pacific Championship. The real turning point was the Force India ‘One in a Billion Hunt’ in 2011. I was one of three winners and all three of us got a chance to compete in Europe. So that’s when I decided to race in Europe and study in an England boarding school. In my second year there, I won the British Karting Championship despite some tough rivals like Daniel Ticktum. That gave me the self-confidence and belief that I could really pursue this as a career.
Racing in Europe is much more competitive than in India. How much of a step up did you find that and how did you adapt to it?
It definitely was a massive step up. After I won in Asia, I didn't expect it to be that difficult when I went to Europe. I just thought I could turn up there and do well. But I realised everyone was practicing for a week or ten days before each race. So to be able to compete with the best I had to put in the hard work. It was a big compromise at the time because I had to stop studying and leave boarding school to go practice.
When did you know that you were going to be part of Red Bull Junior Team? How did that pan out over the 2019 F3 season?
In 2019, I was driving in Formula 3 for Prema, and it was the first year that GT3 and Formula 3 merged together. So it was one of the toughest categories of junior racing last year. To be able to fight for the championship to the very end with Ferrari juniors gave me confidence. I was the only one in the top-6 who wasn't a part of an F1 team academy. So my goal was to just keep doing well and see where I am at the end of the year. The last round was in Sochi and that was when I met Dr Helmut Marko for the first time to start conversations about me joining Red Bull Junior Team.
You sustained a knee injury towards the end of the 2019 season. How has the recovery been and how did you get back in the racecar?
I got injured last October and I missed the Macau GP. That put the plans with Red Bull on hold. More than anything, I was just trying to be positive and working hard to get fit again. I travelled to London to get my physiotherapy and get into shape for pre-season 2020. So that was my plan – to be fit enough to drive. I don't have to run a marathon or anything; I just have to be fit enough to drive. Thankfully it all went well at the three days of testing in Bahrain. The car performed well and I was on the pace straightaway. So there was nothing holding me back in terms of injury.
A lot of people don't realize that racing takes a toll on body and mind. Could you take us through your physical regimen and mentality for racing?
Racing is one of the most physically demanding sports in the world, but like all sports it is demanding in its own way. Racers also have to be mentally fit because races are u to two hours long. In physical fitness, the main thing is the neck because the G-forces that we go through are really high. I train five-six times a week with five days dedicated to neck and shuffling between core, upper body and arms strength on other days. We don't have too much time in the car through the year. We just have allocated races where we are allowed to test and drive. So through the rest of the year, we have to make sure we stay fit and ready for the car. The main thing is to stay fit and ready for the level up. That means if I want to race in Formula 1 next year, my goal is to be fit for it this year. So in case I get the call up and opportunity, I'm ready to go there.
How hard is it to switch on and off each season, especially since you keep changing cars?
It is very difficult. Like all sports, a lot of things happen behind the scene. When you're at the race track, you visualise and go through things with the engineer, but you only get 20-30 minutes on the track, which is basically two laps. So you need to be ready, because it’s very difficult to arrive at a new track, with a new car and new tyres, and just be able to drive straightaway. That’s what separates the good and the bad drivers. If everyone got 100-200 laps with their car on each track, we'd all be very close in the competition.
How do you deal with the frustrations of that aspect of the sport, where things don’t always work in your favour?
I actually heard Karun [Chandhok] speak about this in an interview recently. He said what makes the winning so special is that it doesn't happen so often. You go through bad phases and bad luck but if you continue to stay determined, work hard and are confident, you will do well. Bad luck will fade out over time but if you keep a positive mind-set, you will do well that's what makes the winning feel so special.
Last year was a breakthrough year for you. You had been in the F3 title battle until the last round. What did 2019 mean for you and your career?
I think I had nine podiums last year. It was very special. It was a new team for me and both my teammates had experience in the team. But it took me no time to get into it because it is a very welcoming, family team. My teammates (Robert Shwartzman and Marcus Armstrong) were Ferrari junior drivers and both very highly rated. So to be competing with them all season long was very good for me. On the bright side, I think I was the top qualifier on average in the team, so it gave me a lot of confidence and self-belief. When I went to the F2 tests this year, it was last year’s performance that gave me the confidence to know that if the car is good and everything is running smooth, I can make the most of the situation.
Jehan Daruvala
© James Gasperotti
You’ve always been in good, competitive teams during your racing career. How important is it to choose the right team?
It’s a very important choice. But it’s also a matter of if you do well then good teams want you the next year. So the main thing is to keep performing well. If you're not in a good team but winning races in a bad car, or if it’s raining and you're leading the race when cars aren’t normally aren’t performing at their best, things like that give teams confidence to pick you. Fortunately for me, I've always been in a good team since I started karting.
How much of a luxury has it been for you to have that support of a good team behind you?
I think I have to consider myself fortunate that I've had the opportunity to be in good teams. Especially last year, I think it was clear that we were one of the top teams, so I was able to focus on my own driving instead of having to tell my engineer about changes to the car during races. That helped me focus on my racing. I could relax after giving my feedback, and the team would make adjustments to the car without me having to stress about it. Knowing that the car was always going to be competitive gave me confidence as a driver.
You were teammates with Lando Norris for a while? How has your friendship been with him?
Lando and I still have a very good relationship and get along really well. We were teammates in karting and kept going forward together. He went into Formula 2 and then Formula 1, but we still maintain a good relationship. He's probably one of my closest friends on the race track. We still keep in touch. He has some good tips for me for F2 which I will obviously keep to myself, and hopefully we'll meet again in Formula 1.
What is the adrenaline like when you are on a racetrack? How is it different between your first race and the last race you did?
It’s the same excitement; there's always adrenaline and you're always pumped. I tend to get more nervous in the build-up than when I’m on the grid. Once the engine starts and I’m on the formation lap, I think that everyone on the grid is the same as me and focus on what I need to do, which I know I'm good at. But yes, the adrenaline is there from lights out to the chequered flag. You can never relax. It’s not like other sports where you can slow down after an eight-goal lead. In racing, you are driving to the limit for each lap.
How do you prepare before a race? Are you fully focused or do you like to take your mind off things by talking to people around you?
In the past, I used to be really focused with headphones on and talking to no one, but that didn't really work for me. I think you just got to find what suits you. So now I like chatting with my coach and family. Even if its five minutes before a race, I'm fine for a chat. But as soon as I put my helmet on, I don't like anyone talking to me because that’s when I get into the zone. I overthink for hours before the race, I get nervous. So for me, it’s best to be casual until my helmet goes on and I really focus.
Who has been your most competitive teammate?
I would say Lando. He's been the teammate I've had for the longest time and everyone would tell me that he's the best benchmark; and that was true. He progressed through his career really quickly and made it to F1. I've learned so much from him. Hopefully I use what I’ve learnt and I do well in te coming season.
What are your goals for the 2020 season?
My personal goals are quite high. I would like to win the championship, but top-3 would also be fine, like last season. I want to always be competing for wins and always qualifying in the front row. I want to make my way up the field in reverse grid races. That’s what I’m looking forward to.
How important is the relationship and trust you need to have with your race engineer?
I think a driver-race engineer relationship is very important in motorsports. Both need to have blind faith. You have to just believe what he tells you and vice versa. You're driving the car so if you're feeling something, he changes it according to what you say. I have an engineer who I've been working with since 2017 and we get along quite well. He's experienced in F2 so it was good to work with him through this season’s testing too.
What’s the best racing advice you've received?
The best advice I received was, "You just have to keep working hard". It makes sense because winning doesn't always fall on a plate. You have to accept failures and defeat. Only then can you survive. You have to just take the beating and keep coming back, and hopefully as you keep surviving you make it to the top.
Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandhok have been India’s only F1 racers previously. Do you interacted with them often and get advice?
I don't have personal day-to-day interactions with them but they're always available for a chat and advice. Since Karun is part of the F1 crew, he is always around on race weekends. He is always there to give me advice, as is Narain.
How have your parents supported and influenced your career?
I've been very lucky with my family. They've always supported me with everything I do. With racing, they've always supported me and they trust the professionals. To have a family like them is one of the things that make me happy.
Does it bother you mentally when you see a fellow racer have a crash on the track?
Seeing someone else have an accident doesn't really affect you so much because you know it happens in our sport. But if you personally have a crash in practice and then have to go back out for qualifying the same day, it can play in the back of your mind, especially around the area you had the crash. But that's what we develop as drivers so it doesn't keep playing in our minds. We accept it because we have a lot of crashes in motorsports. We try to think that every time you go out on a race track, it is a fresh start.
How do you train mentally for a particular race weekend?
I think a major part of our mental preparations happen in the simulator a week before the race. We sit in the simulator and do lap after lap of the circuit, even though after 10 laps you don't really improve you time. It’s just a fixed routine for us so when we are on the race track, we do the same thing we practice for 40-50 laps. It can take a toll mentally and physically, that’s why we train harder.
Which is your favourite circuit to race on and which circuit do you like the least?
My favourite track is Spa-Francorchamps. I think it’s the favourite for most racing drivers because it’s got a famous cruise corner. It’s also the longest track on the calendar. There’s a mixture of slow speeds and high speeds, and also it’s a track where you can overtake. I don't actually have a least favourite. It used to be Paul Ricard Circuit until last year, but that turned out to be my best weekend last season.
What is your favourite corner in a circuit anywhere?
I don't really know the name but at Macau GP, one of the corners through the mountain section is probably my favourite corner. It is unbelievably fast and close to the walls.
Talk us through the Macau GP experience. Why is someone who does well in Macau considered a serious contender for F1?
For me, Macau is one of the coolest tracks in the world. It’s really hard to explain what it is like, for racing drivers, racing at Macau is like having tunnel vision – everything comes so quickly that you kind of have blind fate. When racing there, you think you're going to turn into a wall but a little bit of under and over steer makes you miss the wall. When you drive Macau on the limits, it’s like no other track. It can go wrong any minute. It can go from hundred to zero in a split second.
Jehan on track during the Macau GP 2017
© Jehan Daruvala
How do you deal with the commotion around a race track? Racer briefings, media commitments, fan interactions, etc?
It’s part of our routine. We have a fixed schedule from Wednesday to Sunday. From driver arrival times, to data analysis, to arranging of our kits; everything is scheduled and we know that it is fixed that we will have those commitments at those times. When we get to the track, we have a weigh-in, then scrutineering, and then all the meetings for the race weekend. The difficulty is when we have free practice and then qualifying, but have media commitments or a driver parade between them. That leaves us with less time to focus on our racing. But it’s the same for everyone and part of our lives.
How can we have more youngsters in motorsports in India?
When I used to drive in India, there were only 15-20 people competing in the top level. That is far less than Europe, where they have 150. I think when India had an F1 race, it was really good for young kids to experience motorsports. But since it was discontinued, I feel things faded away a bit. I think if we have an F1 race or other promotional activities, like go-karting for kids, I think it will promote the sport a lot more.
Give us three reasons why being a racing driver is the coolest thing in the world and three reasons why it is the worst.
You get to travel. You get to drive fast cars. To be honest, I haven't really thought about it too much. Reasons to not be a racer would probably be spending time away from family and the amount of commitment needed. I'm not sure of anything else. I would never recommend anyone to not be a racing driver; I think there's no downside to it.
Who do you think will be your biggest competitors in the 2020 F2 season?
I think there will be a lot of good competitors this year. There’s Mick Schumacher, Giuliano Alesi, and a lot of experienced drivers who have been in F2 for the last three years. I think it will be a mix of good rookies and experienced drivers. My goal is to just compete with the guys in the front and show everyone I'm capable of winning races and competing at the highest level. I want to win the championship and go to Formula 1.