Narain Karthikeyan Linked To Force India Drive

Former Jordan and HRT driver Narain Karthikeyan has become the latest driver to be linked to the remaining race seat at Force India, amid continued speculation as to who will eventually team-mate Paul di Resta. The last seat for the Silverstone-based outfit remains the only vacancy on the 2013 grid.

With only several weeks remaining until the season opening Australian Grand Prix, Force India remain the only team on the grid without a fully confirmed driver line-up, after Marussia and Caterham signed Luiz Razia and Giedo van der Garde respectively to complete their driver line-ups for the forthcoming season. Many drivers have been linked to the vacancy at Force India, including the likes of Jaime Alguersuari, Adrian Sutil, Jules Bianchi and now Narain Karthikeyan.

Narain Karthikeyan’s sudden link to the Indian outfit comes after it emerged that the 36-year-old would be able to bring wealthy sponsorship money to the team with Tata, which would essentially see Karthikeyan pay for his drive within the team. The topic of pay drivers has been rife throughout the paddock of late, however it has become a well known fact that some teams up and down the grid require such income to continue their existence in sport.

“As soon as Narain’s long-term sponsors Tata increased the budget for 2013, talks with Force India began.” Explained a source in the Deccan Chronicle. “Unlike the past, the negotiation has been a lot more positive. As reserve drivers don’t have much of a role in F1 these days, Narain is only interested in the second driver seat. If talks fail, he will probably go to America for [the] IndyCar Series where a couple of teams have already shown interest.”

Should Narain Karthikeyan complete the switch from the ashes of HRT to Force India, he would become the first Indian driver to secure a full-time race seat with an Indian outfit. Although this would be an ideal PR opportunity for the Indian Grand Prix later in the year, Karthikeyan’s previous record is unarguably against him with the likes of Adrian Sutil and Jules Bianchi in the mix.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team

Pedro de la Rosa Proud Of HRT’s 2012 Achievements

Pedro de la Rosa has explained how he is very proud of HRT’s achievements so far this season, after the Spaniard outfit suffered a tough start to the season. The team initially failed to partake in pre-season testing, and then failed to qualify for the opening race of the season at the Australian Grand Prix.

However, since the team’s rocky start to the season, they have undeniably steadily improved at each race weekend, at one stage even battling with Marussia on a weekly basis. However, finance has always been the achilles-heel of the outfit, and they have recently been put up for sale by current owners Thesan Capital. Despite these change of events, the team have remain focused on their efforts out on track.

Last time out at the United States Grand Prix around the Circuit of the Americas, the team initially struggled to qualify for the race. However, after successfully qualifying within the 107% rule, the team managed to bring both Pedro de la Rosa and Narain Karthikeyan to the finish of the race. This was unquestionably an enormous achievement for the team, after rumors throughout the media suggested the team could be running low on spare parts.

“It is incredible how time flies and for us to get to Brazil for the last race of the season, after everything we’ve achieved, makes me very proud.” Explained Pedro de la Rosa, “The race in Brazil is always a very special Grand Prix, not only because of the track’s layout but also for the Formula 1 history and the fans. It is a short but challenging track where it is possible to overtake. But the weather and the possible showers can also play an important role in the race’s outcome. If that would be the case, we will be ready to take our chances. It is the last race of the season and we will do our best to achieve a good result.”

Rumors circulating throughout the paddock indicate the team is poised to be purchased by Chinese buyers, a move which would undoubtedly benefit the team’s development driver Ma Qing Hua. Pedro de la Rosa has been confirmed with the outfit for next season, however the second seat alongside the Spaniard remains vacant as the 2012 season draws to a conclusion.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team

HRT Plagued With Returning Brake Issues At India

HRT once again suffered overheating brakes at the Indian Grand Prix, which ultimately stunted their progress and saw Pedro de la Rosa spin into retirement on lap 44. This recurring issue for the Spanish outfit is most worrying, as the next race at the Yas Marina circuit features equally high braking points around the track.

After slowly improving during each practice session at the beginning of the race weekend, HRT entered the Indian Grand Prix with high expectations. However, after only the third lap the duo of Narain Karthikeyan and Pedro de la Rosa began to endure the first signs of overheating brakes. This issue forced de la Rosa into retirement last time out at the Korean Grand Prix, and began to once again impede the teams progress as the race wore on.

With both Karthikeyan and de la Rosa giving way to reduce the brake temperatures throughout the race, the duo began to loose ground greatly to their nearest competitors at Marussia. Eventually, the overheating became too intense for de la Rosa’s machine as he spun off the track at turn four and lightly tapped the barriers. Luckily the car wasn’t too damaged, however the worrying issues remain a major talking point within the paddock.

“It’s a shame that I had to retire because the car was running well on the hard tyres but, with no warning, the brakes failed.” Explained Pedro de la Rosa, “We have to understand why this failure occurred and fix it because Abu Dhabi is another challenging circuit for the brakes.”

Although Pedro de la Rosa was forced into retirement due to the issues with the brakes, local hero Narain Karthikeyan was able to control the overheating and finish his home race for a second year in succession. Karthikeyan was at a further disadvantage in comparison to team-mate de la Rosa, after the 35-year-old lost a small piece of his front-wing during the opening lap.

“I got off to a good start but had an incident on the first corner and lost a chunk of my front wing.” Said Narain Karthikeyan, “The damage wasn’t too severe but we had problems with the balance of the car from then on. But the greatest problem was the overheating of the brakes. They warned me on the radio that I had to look after them because we had to make it to the end. And we did that.”

With next weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix set feature further high braking zones, HRT will be frantically searching the cause of this continuing issue on their cars. Luckily for de la Rosa, there was enough run off space to avoid a big collision. However, due to the semi-street circuit nature of Yas Marina, the same issue could have bigger repercussions it returns next weekend.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team

Pedro de la Rosa Plagued With Tyre Degradation At Singapore

Pedro de la Rosa enjoyed yet another competitive race weekend around the Marina Bay street circuit, as the Spaniard came home 17th after a time-capped Singapore Grand Prix. This result matches de la Rosa’s personal best result of the season, however the Spaniard was plagued with tyre degradation during the closing stages of the race.

As the race drew to a thrilling conclusion, Pedro de la Rosa lost out heavily due to high amounts of tyre degradation on his Cosworth-powered HRT F112. The 41-year-old lost ground as the likes of Nico Hulkenberg and the two Marussias simply steamed passed the ailing HRT driver. Regardless of the difficult ending to the race, which ran the entire two hours, Pedro de la Rosa was satisfied with the race weekend at Singapore.

“I’m satisfied with today’s race.” Explained Pedro de la Rosa, “The safety cars helped me out, but I must admit that the race dragged on a bit for me, and the last five laps never seemed to end because I had no tyres left and I started to lose ground on Glock and Pic and Kobayashi, Kovalainen and Hulkenberg, who were flying, passed me like nothing. Physically it was a tough race but I finished quite well. We did everything we could with what we had and I think that we managed the situations well. For us it wasn’t easy at all to finish the race and that is a victory in itself.”

Although Pedro de la Rosa enjoyed another satisfying race weekend for HRT, Narain Karthikeyan retired from the race on lap 30 as the Indian driver slid into the wall at turn 18. Due to the unforgiving nature of the Marina Bay street circuit, Karthikeyan became the second retirement of the race. HRT will unquestionably be striving to continue their competitiveness next time out at Suzuka, for the Japanese Grand Prix.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team

Narain Karthikeyan: “Street Circuits Aren’t My Favorite”

After a highly disappointing Spanish Grand Prix, Narain Karthikeyan is hoping for better luck as the F1 fraternity prepares for the 70th running of the glamorous Monaco Grand Prix. The Indian driver failed to qualify within the 107% rule in Spain, however he was eventually allowed to race. Karthikeyan retired on lap 22, bringing an end to a dismal race weekend.

However, with the Spanish Grand Prix in the past, Narain Karthikeyan is hoping for a change of luck this weekend, even though the HRT driver dislikes street circuits. With his team-mate Pedro de la Rosa expecting to be closer to the leaders this weekend, there is optimism within the HRT paddock that a promising result could be on the cards.

“Street circuits aren’t my favorite but Monaco obviously has a special place on the calendar.” Explained Narain Karthikeyan, “It’s one of the toughest races because you’re so close to the guardrails that you know you can’t make one single mistake. Coming away from a disappointing weekend in Barcelona, I am hoping for better luck this time and to get a proper chance to work with the updates we brought in Spain and have a trouble-free weekend.”

Following on from the updates that were introduced on the car throughout the Spanish Grand Prix weekend, HRT’s team principal Luis Perez-Sala has confirmed that several more ‘minor’ updates will be added to the car this weekend. 

“Monaco is a very demanding track mechanically, where drivers need great ability and suffer physically and psychologically because you can’t make any slip-ups. It’s a tough test for the car’s reliability and even more so if it is hot. We have minor upgrades for this race which we hope will help us to close the gap to the front pack. The team is really looking forward to taking on a beautiful race as is Monaco.”

In a race which could feature many safety-car periods, the HRT’s of Narain Karthikeyan and Pedro de la Rosa could well close the gap right up to the Marussia’s of Glock and Pic. However, the first hurdle for the Spanish team will be qualifying, with the tight and twisty nature of the Monte-Carlo street circuit meaning blue flags will be a common recurrence throughout Q1.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team

Narain Karthikeyan Permitted To Race

As a frustrating weekend for HRT continues, Narain Karthikeyan unfortunately failed to complete a time within the 107% rule during Q1. This meant the Indian driver would have to request permission to take part in the race, or risk not starting the Spanish Grand Prix.

The 107% rule is a requirement whereby drivers must complete a lap within 107% of the qualifying time at the end of each qualifying session. For yesterday’s qualifying session, the 107% time was a 01:28.363 which left only the HRT of Narain Karthikeyan outside the limit. The Indian driver only completed one timed run, and was therefore woefully off the pace over eight seconds off the leaders.

However, after successfully setting faster times throughout the first three practice sessions of the weekend, the race stewards have permitted Karthikeyan to race in the Spanish Grand Prix. 

“It’s been a very unlucky weekend for me so far.” Explained a disconsolate Narain Karthikeyan, “We were going to go on the second set of tyres but we discovered some problems and due to safety concerns, not only for myself but the others, we decided that the best thing was to not go back out. It seems like my bad luck continues to follow me this weekend and, although I’m disappointed about that, there’s nothing else I can do but keep giving it my best shot.”

In a bizarre turn of events, the Indian driver will actually line-up 23rd on the grid, after Lewis Hamilton’s controversial grid penalty. This means Karthikeyan and Lewis Hamilton will line-up alongside each other on the last row of the grid.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team

Karthikeyan Positive After “Best Grand Prix So Far This Season”

Narain Karthikeyan has ended the Bahrain Grand Prix on a satisfied note, after the Indian driver and HRT finished their third race in succession after their slow start to the season. In the previous two races, Karthikeyan has consistently finished 22nd for HRT, and today finished a position higher in 21st as the team continue progressing.

With HRT dubious of cooling issues heading to the incredibly hot Sakhir International Circuit, they have passed yet another test of their durability with Pedro de la Rosa coming home in 20th just ahead of his team-mate. Both HRT’s completed a 4-stop strategy, with team principal Luis Perez-Sala satisfied with good reliability from the team.

“We passed another stern test here in Bahrain with the high temperatures and I’m very satisfied with how everything went.” Explained Luis Perez-Sala, “Reliability was also good and the team is working well. We can say that we are already at the standard with which we finished last year. From here we must progress.”

Narain Karthikeyan made his 30th start in Bahrain this afternoon, and has hailed the event as his best performance so far this season.

“After my first pitstop, I improved a lot and from there my lap times were consistent.” Said Narain Karthikeyan, “We did a four-stop strategy, which I think went very well, and in the end we were only half a second behind Pedro at the checkered flag. My race performance was extremely good, I’d say it was my best Grand Prix so far this season, so I’m very happy about that”.

The Spanish outfit now head to Mugello for three days of testing from 1st-3rd May, before they return home for the Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya which gets underway on 11th May.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team

Vettel Could Face FIA Sanctions After Malaysian Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel could well face FIA sanctions after gesturing his middle-finger at Narain Karthikeyan during last weekends Malaysian Grand Prix, a race which saw the German make contact with the HRT driver. This in turn caused Vettel to show his darker side, and slightly loose his temper in what as a less-than-successful race for him.

After making contact with the HRT of Narain Karthikeyan, the Red Bull driver was caught giving the Indian driver the middle-finger on his onboard camera. Vettel then continued the negativity towards Karthikeyan, calling him a “idiot” and a “gherkin”. Reports have now emerged that Vettel could well have breached the new stricter code of conduct which has been introduced by FIA President Jean Todt. 

  “I think he’s highly frustrated because he’s having a tough season,” Said Narain Karthikeyan in the Deccan Chronicle, “It’s completely unprofessional to blame me for the incident. The derogatory remark only goes to show him in bad light. Just because he has a good car, he can’t call others an idiot. I have won races in all the previous single-seater Championships I have participated in so I don’t need a certificate from Vettel.”

With Sebastian Vettel being out-qualified by his team-mate, Mark Webber, on both occasions so far in 2012, the reigning World Champion seems to be struggling to come to grips with the fact he and Red Bull are not leading the way at the moment. Jenson Button also made contact with Karthikeyan during the race, however the 2009 World Champion swallowed his pride and blamed himself for the incident, unlike Sebastian Vettel.

Narain Karthikeyan isn’t alone in being bemused by Vettel’s outbursts both on and off the track, with Force India drivers’ Paul di Resta and Nico Hulkenberg backing the Indian driver. Either way, the reigning World Champion has had a rocky start to 2012, and blaming others for his own mistakes is only going to amplify his current woes.

Picture Copyright © Reuters

HRT Forced To Delay Scrutineering

After suffering an extremely difficult winter period, HRT are now struggling to complete Pedro De La Rosa’s car in preparation for the scrutineering ahead this weekends season-opening Australian Grand Prix. This has forced the team to request a delay of the scrutineering, which is required before the car takes to the track this weekend.

With HRT struggling to get their car on track during pre-season testing, it seems their woes are set to continue. The car is question is car number 22, which will hopefully be driven by Spaniard Pedro De La Rosa, and has had it’s scrutineering from the Australian Grand Prix race stewards postponed until 11am Friday morning. If all goes well, the car will then hopefully take to the track later in the day for free practice.

Formula 1 veteran Pedro De La Rosa will hopefully start his 87th Grand Prix this weekend, after making his debut at the same venue back in 1999 for Arrows. The Spaniard will be joined by Indian driver Narain Karthikeyan, who was replaced at HRT by Daniel Ricciardo halfway through last season, and will be hoping history does not repeat itself.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team  

HRT Preview Quotes – Australian Grand Prix

After becoming one of the final teams to unveil their new 2012 car, HRT are only days away from taking part in FP1 alongside the likes of McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull. It has been a rocky winter period for them, transferring their HQ to Spain and initially failing the FIA crash test.

Regardless of those setbacks, HRT are positive ahead of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix which takes place on the Albert Park circuit. Last year HRT failed to qualify for the Australian Grand Prix after failing to set a time within the 107% rule. The team will be hoping for different results this year.

“I’m feeling positive ahead of the Australian Grand Prix after having completed 10 laps with the new F112 last Monday.” Explained Indian driver Narain Karthikeyan, “Of course this was only a first contact and we didn’t push it to the limit but the important thing was to get the ball rolling. It’s not ideal to miss testing but we must look forward now. The new management have done an incredible job putting everything together and we’ll do the best we can to continue progressing. We’re in the right direction. Last year we only managed to complete five laps in the third practice session and failed to qualify for the race, so I’m looking to etch out that memory”.

“After a long winter of hard work, we’ve finally made it to Australia and are really looking forward to trying the car out and continue learning.” Said F1 returnee Pedro de la Rosa, “We need to try and make the most of our time on Friday and Saturday morning to make it to qualifying and the race in the best possible conditions. We would have liked to have come with more mileage but I think it’s an achievement to have made it with a 100% new car and a practically new team. Our aim is to do things well, with seriousness and patience. Albert Park is a circuit I like a lot because there are many overtaking opportunities and hard braking areas, besides various chicanes. It’s a track where you have to drive aggressively and know how to ride over a lot of kerbs. The most important aspect of the car is braking, traction and its top speed, which is why the DRS will play an important role”.

“It doesn’t seem true but the first race of the season is already upon us.” Said team principal Luis Perez-Sala, “We’ve spent three months working relentlessly, but the team and the car are ready for the great task ahead of us. We have done a lot of things since the last race of 2011 in Brazil and I’m very proud of the entire team but, without a doubt, the hardest part comes now. We know where we are but also where we wish to be and with the team spirit and sacrifice that we have shown, I’m convinced that we can achieve it”.

The first practice session for the Australian Grand Prix gets underway in only 6 days time.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team