|
Narain Karthikeyan unveils Jordan Toyota
Midland (!!) F1 car in Moscow's Red Square Update
6 - 25/2/2005
Narain's helmet gets a ban from the Indian
govt Update 5 - 25/2/2005
It seems that according to the home ministry's
interpretation of the Indian flag code, wearing
representations of the Indian tricolour on
helments of sportsmen - be it Sachin Tendulkar or
Narain Karthikeyan - is an offence.
Narain Karthikeyan has expressed his
displeasure and said that it was a matter of pride
for him to have the tricolour on his helmet, but
if the government wants him to, he would be happy
to sell the space to a sponsor and make some
money. We applaud the sentiment, and fervently
hope for a new generation of politicos and
bureaucrats so our F1 drivers and other sportsmen
can wear their country's colours just like the
sportsmen of other countries.
Narain karthikeyan and Tiago Monteiro
complete their test drives in Silverstone and
Barcelona Update 4 -
20/2/2005
The testing is over. Both Narain Karthikeyan
and Tiago Monteiro have received their F1
superlicenses. The car, the Toyota powered EJ-15
is an evolution of last year's car. As expected,
the car has been slower than most of the others
testing. But Narain Karthikeyan's timing showed a
steady improvement - making one wish that things
woud have been different if he was in a more
powerful and superior F1 car. Narain himself has
been careful not to raise expectations, and has
repeatedly stressed that completing races and
finishing, as well as picking up any points that
may come his way is the best he can hope for.
Narain takes Toyota EJ-15 out for historic
first drive Update 3 -
10/2/2005
Yesterday at Silverstone, Narain Karthikeyan
made history just by being the first Indian to
officially test a
Formula One car. His drive went
smoothly, and he completed 23 laps yesterday. Narain's helmet featured the Indian tro-colour for
the first time on a Formula One helmet, and the
logos of Tata Motors and Speed. No
official timings were issued as the drivers Narain
and Tiago Monteiro were not pushing the cars to
their limits. Narain will be driving the Jordan
car today also at Silverstone track.
Jordan makes official announcement
Update 2
It seems Red Bull thinks that
Narain Karthikeyan and Tiago Monteiro - two F1
rookies - in the Jordan team is a recipe for
failure.
The Red Bull team has David Coulthard, a
Formula One veteran of ten years. We don't know.
The Red Bull team could just be playing mindgames
here - or may be they just want to think aloud.
But as two teams not too far apart in performance,
one wonders: Will we see a David Coulthard-Narain
Karthikeyan battle? We can hardly wait!
Right now, Narain is in the UK at Silverstone,
training and testing.
Jordan makes official announcement
Update 1
3 Feb 2005: It's official. Narain Karthikeyan will drive for Jordan Grand Prix in the 2005 Formula One world championship after finalising the deal in London on Thursday.
Jordan GP, recently taken over by Russia-born Canadian business tycoon Alexander Schnaider announced the signing of the 28-year old Indian and Tiago Monteiro of Portugal as its race drivers for the season.
Announcing the deal, Trevor Carlin, Jordan's Sporting Director, said, "I know Narain very well because he drove for me in 1998 in Formula 3 and I have run him in various formulas every year since then. We've won a lot of races together.
"He's very competitive, a super-quick driver, sometimes a little bit raw and wild in his style but he is a proven race winner and I am confident that in our environment he will thrive. He's ready for F1 now I think he'll do a good job for us."
Team Jordan says on their website making the official announcement, "Karthikeyan’s signing marks the entry of the first ever Indian driver to the top echelons of motorsport, giving Formula One exceptional appeal in India with the potential for an enormous new audience and business market associated with a national racing hero known as "the fastest Indian on wheels".
1 Feb 2005: After several years of hopes and disappointments, the flying Indian makes it into Formula One.
Karthikeyan has tested for Jaguar, Jordan and Minardi in the past.
The offer also involved a request for several million in sponsor cash, which Narain is hopeful his sponsors will be able to provide.
As of now, reports are not certain about whether Narain has actually secured the drive for Jordan or not. While several news outlets are reporting that Narain Karthikeyan is close to securing the drive, Reuters reports that he has secured the drive for the Jordan F1 team.
Initiated into the world of racing by his father, G.R. Karthikeyan, a former Indian National Rally Champion, Narain cut his teeth in the racing world by joining the ELF Winfield Racing School in France. This racing school has produced champion drivers like Alain Prost and Damon Hill. His talent was evident from his performances there. He was one of the finalists in the Pilote Elf Competition for Formula Renault cars. This was in 1992. Narain was just fifteen.
From then on there has been no looking back.
Narain is supposed to be exceptionally well at
driving in wet conditions.
Profile
Born: January 14, 1977, Madras
Son of G.R. Karthikeyan, a former Indian rally champion
1996 - Formula Asia champion, first Indian to win the title
1997 - Sixth overall in British Formula Opel Championship, including first place from pole at Donington Park
1998 - Two third-place finishes out of eight Formula Three races, at Spa-Francorchamps and Silverstone.
1999 - Sixth overall in British Formula Three championship with five podium finishes and two wins at Brands Hatch.
2000 - Fourth on Formula Three circuit, winning races at Spa and in the Korea F3 Super Prix.
2001 - Test drives for Jaguar, becoming first Indian to drive a Formula One car. Also test-drives for Jordan.
2003 - Test drives for Minardi, gets an offer to drive in the Formula One season but misses out after failing to raise the huge sum of money needed to secure the offer.
2004 - Wins two races in the 2004 Nissan World Series
2005 - Secures drive with Jordan for the 2005 season.
|
The
magic begins! Read all about 
