Racing makes gradual rise in Chinese sports

Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel of Germany (front) competes in the Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit on April 9. FAN JUN / XINHUA

However, university students have a chance to get involved without having their own fortunes.

"Universities have budgets for their racing teams, and there are also corporate sponsors," said Wang Da, the 24-year old student head of the Tongji University Racing Team in Shanghai.

He said there are about 80 student racing teams nationwide.

"At first I thought racing was a very remote concept before I started to study automobiles at the university," Wang Da said. "When I saw the university racing team, I realized there are a bunch of cool people doing cool things, and I signed up for it."

Wang Da led his team to compete in the Formula Student Japan race in 2015. He said Chinese teams are catching up with their Japanese rivals, but there is still a long way to go compared with the Western world.

Though not everyone can enjoy motor sports in the way Wang Fushi or Wang Da do, many who are finding their passion for speed are resorting to fast, sporty road vehicles, known as performance cars.

Mercedes-AMG, the high-performance division of Mercedes-Benz, which has been atop the world Formula One series three years in a row, and winner of the Chinese Grand Prix four years in a row, saw its China sales grow about 100 percent last year, according to Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Service Co, but it did not release specific sales figures.

Statistics from parent company Daimler AG show it sold 99,235 cars worldwide in 2016, a 44.1 percent growth year-on-year.

Nicholas Speeks, president and CEO of Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Service Co, said China is now one of Mercedes-AMG's most important markets and the brand is planning to introduce 11 models this year into the world's largest auto market.

Two other performance arms of famous carmakers, BMW M and Audi Sport, also are planning to carve out more of the market. The two sold 67,900 units and 20,200 units worldwide, respectively, last year.

Yale Zhang, managing director of consulting firm Automotive Foresight Shanghai, said volume brand performance cars, thanks to their lower prices, may play a bigger role than premium ones in fostering a muscle car culture in China.

"Things may get even better, say five or 10 years later, when more Ford Mustangs or Chevy Camaros become second or even third-hand cars, enabling more people to try them."

Ford Motor introduced its Mustang into China two years ago, and its sales grew 44 percent year-on-year in 2016.

Contact the writer at lifusheng@chinadaily.com.cn