They screech in on private jets and party with the rich and famous, but Formula One’s pampered drivers admitted India’s grinding poverty had given them a jolting reality check.
Although the brand new Buddh International Circuit appears, against many expectations, to be ready for the inaugural Indian Grand Prix, the plush facilities cannot hide the sheer squalor of the country outside. Britain’s Jenson Button said coming to India was “difficult” for the drivers, who have been stunned at the living conditions glimpsed outside their luxury hotels.