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Narain Karthikeyan 9th in first qualifying at F1
2005 Melbourne, Australia
Assisted by rain which slowed down many of the experienced
drivers, Narain Karthikeyan races to 9th position in first
qualifying
5 March 2005: Jordan Grand Prix's Narain Karthikeyan
set the fastest qualifying lap of all cars wearing Bridgestone
tyres with driver Narain Karthikeyan in 9th position after the first ever qualifying session under the new format for 2005.
Narain was faster than his Jordan teammate Tiago Monteiro
who finished 13th quickest in preparation for Sunday's final
F1 qualifying at Australian Formula One Grand Prix 2005.
After a bad start yesterday at Friday's free practice when
he was hampered by an oil leakage, today was brilliant for
Narain Karthikeyan.
Today's F1 qualifying timings:
Narain Karthikeyan
Chassis: EJ15/02
9th, 1:44.357
Tiago Monteiro
Chassis: EJ15/03
13th, 1:46.846
Of course, Narain has his stars to thank for the timely
rain which saw even last year's F1 champion Michael Schumacher
finishing slower than him.
The next qualifying will be on Sunday morning at the
Melbourne Albert Park track. The timings of all drivers in
that qualifying will be added to the timings of the first
qualifying to determine the positions on the race grid.
Tiago Monteiro:
"It was quite tricky as you do not know what to expect and you have to push on your first lap out. However, the wet conditions were the same for everyone, but as a rookie it is not the easiest solution. I have made a few mistakes with braking and almost went out twice as I was pushing and trying to do my best."
Narain Karthikeyan:
"Qualifying was a bit tricky for the rookies today as it was so slippery. I am happy with what I have done. Obviously I could have pushed a bit harder but I am learning step by step. "
Trevor Carlin, Sporting director:
"It was quite an interesting session with mixed conditions. We started out in heavy rain which obviously put us behind a little bit as the track dried, but then with the downfall, we had a bit of luck. It is a great start. It is nice to be 9th even though we would be very lucky to finish there tomorrow."
This qualifying run should make Narain and Jordan feel good
about themselves. Of course, they would be the first to
acknowledge the contribution of the rain gods which slowed
many other F1 drivers down. But a 9th position will ensure
that even if Narain Karthikeyan has a mediocre run tomorrow,
the aggregated timing will still ensure that he starts
somewhere around 13-16th on the grid.
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