Adam Khan is to visit Dubai later this month – to take the opportunity of getting behind the wheel of a Renault Formula One car.
Khan will visit as part of the F1 team’s roadshow programme, helping to demonstrate its cars around the city alongside race driver Nelson A Piquet and reserve driver and GP2 veteran Romain Grosjean.
Dubai, part of the United Arab Emirates, has no grand prix of its own – the Middle Eastern rounds of the championship take place in Bahrain and Abu Dhabi this year, which is set to replace the iconic Interlagos as the final date on the season calendar.
However it got a consolation prize in the shape of F1-X, the first-ever theme park based on the sport, which is currently under construction – although construction work has been suspended due to the global financial crisis, according to a recent report in the New York Times.
A reported unwillingness by banks to lend any more money to the project has seen its opening date pushed back to 2010. Despite this, the show must go on.
According to Renault, plans for the event include a blast through the desert in last year’s R28, drag races against some of the world’s most powerful super cars and main demonstrations taking place on a giant floating platform built on a lagoon in front of the world’s tallest skyscraper.
The Dubai trip will be Khan’s first outing with Renault’s roadshow team, after he was appointed to the job in January.
He said: “I’m very excited about the activities we have planned for our four days in Dubai.
“It’s a new market for Formula One and it will be great for the fans to experience the sight and sound of a Formula 1 car up close, which is what the Roadshow is all about.”
Renault has been putting on its roadshow since 2003 and in the past year the team have demonstrated their cars in locations including Rotterdam, Lisbon, New Delhi and Sao Paulo.