'He gave me the key and said: make it special'

Philippe Gurdjian, CEO of Abu Dhabi Motorsports Management (ADMM) and chief co-ordinator of the UAE capital's Yas Marina Circuit, is a man who never takes no for an answer.

In 1975, the French-Armenian – then a fresh-faced 30-year-old whose career moved from banking to advertising – dreamt of racing cars. His first love was always motorsports and he longed to pursue a career on the track.

The problem was, Gurdjian did not meet the necessary license requirements to race – but he did have determination, persistency and self-belief. And a contacts book thicker than a Formula One driver's pay packet.

Within weeks he had talked his way on to the starting grid at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and went on to race there for the next seven years.

Nowadays, after 23 years of working in the notoriously close-knit motorsports community, the 63-year-old Gurdjian is known as "The Fixer".

For the past two decades he has helped organise Grands Prix (his first was the 1985 French GP) and each of the 25 events he has overlooked has, literally, been a roaring success.

In 2003, with the Middle East's first F1 spectacle in Bahrain only four months away and construction heavily behind schedule, it was The Fixer who was shipped in to save the day. He arrived in December and by March Schumacher and Co were on the starting grid of the Sakhir track.

At the unveiling of the Yas Marina Circuit at Emirates Palace this week, Gurdjian refuted rumours the Dh5.5 billion project will not be complete in time for the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on November 15, 2009.

"I don't have any problems to finish it," said Gurdjian, who also helped co-ordinate the completion of Malaysia's Sepang circuit in 1999. "I have 370 days – more than 12 months."

Gurdjian's superior at ADMM is Khaldoon Al Mubarak; another man who never takes no for an answer. The 32-year-old Emirati is chairman of Manchester City Football Club and one of the chief negotiators behind the Fifa Club World Cup taking place in the UAE for the next two years.

"Khaldoon came to me and showed me the [original Yas Island] project," explained Gurdjian. "He had invited me to come on board and asked me what I thought of the project. I could not say anything, so he said to me: 'What is the problem?'

"I told him: 'If you do a circuit, you can see that in many places, such as Magny-Cours. You can do that anywhere in the world. After seeing Al Sadiyat Island, I will try and do something completely different'. So he gave me the key and said: 'Do it'."

Al Mubarak is understandably happy with his decision. "Philippe is extraordinary," he said at Tuesday's glitzy ceremony as the two businessmen proceeded to pace the room with beaming smiles; like proud parents of a beautiful newborn baby.

"I've been working with him for some time now. He has been tremendous. You can see his touch everywhere on the project. He's been a fantastic addition and a great leader. He shares many of our views and visions."

The weaving 5.5km racetrack is the central cog in the project's wheel, but it is only a part of a glittering project intent on putting the UAE capital firmly on the motorsports map.

Originally designed by celebrated German architect Hermann Tilke, the entire complex spans 162 hectares and boasts a solar-powered VIP tower, a karting track to nurture the country's best talents and the Yas Marina Yacht Club.

But the centrepiece of the project is undoubtedly the five-star Yas Marina Hotel, complete with a glass walkway, which the F1 cars will speed under on their route round the track.

Gurdjian, who helped rejuvenate races in Spain and France, said Yas Island has been his most rewarding assignment to date.

"This is my best project yet – the most interesting, the most unique and most exclusive," he revealed. "They gave me the key and said: 'Try to do something special'.

"You know, when you start with a blank page, it can be very difficult to do something unique."

But there is little doubt he has succeeded. With 21 turns, there are plenty of areas where the cars can slide off the track. Gurdjian has used this to his advantage by creating run-off areas that go underneath the spectator stands – a feature never before implemented in an F1 circuit. "That was one of our objectives: To make new things at many places," said Gurdjian.

Al Mubarak added: "It was important that Yas Marina was not just another racetrack. It had to be really special, unique and very Abu Dhabi. I think this is what we've achieved.

"It was also very important that it set the highest standard of quality possible. This had to be the new benchmark for the future of motor racing, it had to be the most modern and technologically advanced racetrack in the world."

Al Mubarak was, however, coy when asked about the possibility of following Singapore's lead and hosting a night race in the future.

"We were very certain that we wanted a track that was fully operational 365 days – and nights – of the year," said Al Mubarak, before adding with a grin, "but I won't comment on the race itself."