Stars line up for piece of Sachin's racing league pie

Shah Rukh, along with business partners Juhi Chawla and Jai Mehta, will own the Mumbai franchise, while Dabur's Mohit Burman is on the verge of buying the Delhi franchise

Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan, Telugu hero Akkineni Nagarjuna and Dabur family scion Mohit Burman are among the celebrities and business honchos who will own a racing team in a motor sports league backed by Sachin Tendulkar, said sources directly briefed on the matter.

The Indian Racing League - called the i1 Super Series - which was launched in August this year, is looking to ride on the huge success of the Formula One Indian Grand Prix. The first edition will hit the tracks on January 8 and conclude on February 26 next year.

The racing league, owned by Machdar Motor Sports Company, will have eight city-based teams with two cars forming a 16-member grid. Sachin and Sanjana Reddy together have bought a 26% share in the league.

The cost of a franchise-for a contractual term of 15 years-will be around $20m with investors having to pay $5m upfront and the remaining in $1 million tranches during the ownership period. The races will feature F1 and upcoming Indian drivers and will be held in Delhi, Abu Dhabi, Kuala Lumpur, Doha and Bahrain.

Shah Rukh, along with business partners Juhi Chawla and Jai Mehta, will own the Mumbai franchise, while Dabur's Mohit Burman is on the verge of buying the Delhi franchise. Malaysian business tycoon and Air Asia boss Tony Fernandes along with UK-based hedge fund manager S G Srinivas is set for the Chennai team.

Telugu superstar Nagarjuna and entrepreneur N Prasad, who sold Matrix Laboratories to Mylan, has sealed the franchise deal for Hyderabad. Former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly is discussing the possibility of leading a consortium to bag the Kolkata team. Cricketer Yuvraj Singh along with a local business partner is behind the Chandigarh franchise.

The ownership details of the Bangalore and Pune franchises have not been finalized. An investor and a member of a leading Bollywood family, besides a large consumer durables group, are in contention for the Pune team. Machdar has finalized the racing calendar for 2011-2012 and signed a broadcast deal with Ten Sports.

Unlike the IPL, Machdar did not opt for a public auction process and selected franchises by invitation. The potential franchise owners will have a minimum commitment on marketing within the franchise agreement while Machdar will take care of most marketing initiatives.

Machdar is also on the verge of gaining the required approvals from world governing body of the sport-Federation International de l'Automobile ( FIA), and the Federation of the Motorsport Council of India (FMCI).

Potential $20m Investors

Mumbai: Shah Rukh Khan, Jai Mehta, Juhi Chawla

Delhi: Mohit Burman and another investor

Hyderabad: N Prasad, Akkineni Nagarjuna

Chennai: Tony Fernandes, SG Srinivas

Chandigarh: Yuvraj Singh and a local businessman

Kolkata: Consortium involving ex-cricketer Sourav Ganguly

Pune: A businessman related to a top Bollywood family

Bangalore: A consortium of investors

ON THE FAST TRACK

* i1 Super Series will have five races this season involving 8 teams from 8 cities in India-Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Hyderabad and Pune

* Team owners and drivers are being selected on invitation basis only and one cannot apply to race in this championship

* The series will take place in 5 venues at New Delhi, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Kuala Lumpur and Bahrain

* Broadcast rights owned by Ten Sports

* Each team will have three drivers: one international driver, an Indian (with international experience) and one domestic driver

* Each weekend will have 1 qualifying session and 2 races, making a total of 14 races in the championship

* Each team will use the Radical SR3 race car

* The car weighs 570 kg, goes 0-100 kmph in 3 seconds, has a top speed of 250 kmph