Throughout the next decade, Formula 1 motor racing will become a doorway that will allow Chinese businesses to step up to the global stage, according to one of the men behind the sport.

And the door will be thrown wide open in three years' time when China hosts not only the Shanghai Grand Prix, but also the Olympic Games in Beijing. Combined, the events will make for a sports and marketing phenomenon unrivalled in recent history.

"2008 will be the year of China," said Formula 1's Michael Payne. It will be "the most incredible coming out party onto the world stage."

Payne is a special advisor to Bernie Eccleston, CEO of Formula 1 Management. He is the man in charge of turning Formula 1 into a sports marketing option capable of elevating Chinese companies onto the world stage.

This weekend, Chinese audiences will get another taste of the glamorous world of Formula 1 and a preview of the marketing opportunities it offers.

The second Shanghai Grand Prix will be held this weekend at the year-old Shanghai International Circuit. The race, the last in the Formula 1 season, will follow a business conference on Friday that has attracted top-level marketing officials from some of the world's biggest companies and motor sports sponsors.

"This is the first time in the history of Formula 1 that we have staged such a conference," said Payne yesterday. "This really is the first time we have brought together so many business leaders from around the world."

"We have seen many, many companies (in China) begin to engage in sports marketing."

Payne spent 21 years working with the International Olympic Committee to develop sports marketing and broadcasting strategies. Now, in Formula 1, he faces the challenge of developing the sport in China for both fans and sponsors.

Formula 1, he said, can give companies an opportunity to link their brands with a sport associated with a glamorous lifestyle and high technology.

"Formula 1 is all about technology," he said. It is about how companies use technology and take it to the consumer.

"The Grand Prix is the most important sporting event up until the 2008 Olympic games," he said.

"You are beginning to see the start of the development of a motor sports industry, but it will take time," he said, noting that he "fully expects to see many Chinese brands sponsoring Formula 1."

"You are at the beginning," he said during an exclusive interview with China Daily yesterday.

All sports marketing is growing, and motor sport, which has seen significant growth, is no exception.

Last year, 100 million people in China tuned into Formula 1 races throughout the season, with most watching the Shanghai race.

China's enormous population also comes into play.

"You're dealing in a dimension that you're not used to," said Payne. "As the Chinese market begins to get some serious traction, within a decade China will become the number one sports market."

(China Daily October 13, 2005)