It’s a mid-summer morning in Coimbatore. It’s unusually cool, as we stand in front of a huge white gate. Soon, a security guard escorts us to an outhouse in one corner of a big compound lined with trees and a well-manicured lawn that gives you the impression of an English courtyard.
Except for a beautiful black 911, there is not a hint that we are soon to be in the company of an F1 driver. And then, with two playful dogs jumping all over, Narain Karthikeyan emerges and leads us to the drawing room, adorned with trophies and memorabilia. The 2005 Jordan F1 helmet stands out, reminding us of the glory of an Indian first competing in Grand Prix racing.
Narain has just returned from Malaysia, and sits in his typical relaxed style. “It’s one of those rare days when I spend time at home between F1 races,’’ he says, to begin his free-wheeling interview with TopGear. With the rain-lashed performance still fresh in his mind, he speaks for the first few minutes about Malaysia. The mastery of how he piloted his car in the pelting rain at Sepang again showcased Narain’s driving skills.
“It was a great feeling to dominate in the rain and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I’ve always said I’m as quick as anybody else out there. But we knew the car wouldn’t sustain the pace once it dried up. It yielded nothing in terms of the result, but it was nice to prove your talent and show the control you have on the car in such adverse conditions, even if only for a few minutes,’’ he says. On the last lap before the race was red-flagged, the HRT driver was in 10th place and his sector-one time of 42.4s was faster than the nine drivers ahead of him. Only Lewis Hamilton of McLaren, who also flourishes in rain, came close, with a time of 42.9s.
As we settle down, Narain speaks about his father, GR Karthikeyan’s influence on him. “My dad was a rally champion in his time, and the great S Karivardhan was a relative, so the sport ran in my family blood. It became my childhood passion and I was very stubborn about becoming an F1 driver. My father encouraged me a lot but he also knew it was a daunting task,’’ Narain explains. “If you really want to become a professional racing driver, you go and train in Europe, to see if you have it in you to make it big,’’ Narain recollects his father’s words. “I was still a schoolboy and my father thought once I saw the tough competition and the difficulties of competing in Europe, I’d give up,’’ Narain feels.
“That’s how I landed in France at the Elf School,’’ he points out. That was 1992, just after finishing school in Stanes Anglo Indian School in Coimbatore, and “I was all of 15 and raring to go. I impressed my teachers at the Elf Winfield Racing School, making it to the semi-finals of the end-of-the-course race,’’ he says. It was in the Pilote Elf Race for Formula Renault cars that his inherent talent was spotted. “Frankly, I didn’t understand that getting into Formula 1 is such a gigantic task. In hindsight, I feel it was a blessing in disguise, as I might have given up, had I known the tremendous difficulties one faces,’’ he confesses.
“But I’m glad I worked with single-minded determination. It was always going to be tough since motorsports was primitive in India in those days,’’ feels Narain.
Talking about his childhood pranks and how he and his friends used to ‘steal’ cars and do all kinds of stunts, he notes: “Those days, Coimbatore roads were not so busy and we used to take on empty streets… and I remember doing a Mahindra jeep when I was in Class 8. I had great fun, sliding, throwing-out and what-not,’’ he says while giggling.
On a serious note, he talks about how Karivardhan transformed motorsport in India. “Kari was a genius. He built completely indigenous racecars at a very cheap price, which allowed young race drivers to practice in single-seater cars. Those days when racecraft was virtually nil, and only a few understood the intricacies of Formula racing, he promoted motorsports and encouraged young talent,’’ Narain says.
After his debut podium in Formula Maruti in 1993, Narain returned to Europe to gain valuable experience in the Formula Vauxhall Junior Championship. Then came his first chance to watch an F1 race live, at the Portugal Grand Prix in 1994. He was driving the F1 support race and became the first Indian to win any race in Europe at the British Formula Ford Winter Series. “It was an amazing experience watching an F1 race and it only reinforced my dream,’’ says Narain, whose pioneering work laid down a path for other Indians to follow.
He crossed hurdle after hurdle and became the first Asian to win the Formula Asia International series in 1996. He moved back to England to make his debut in British F3 in 1998, after which he took time to settle down and finished third in the last two races. Five podium finishes, including two great victories at Brands Hatch in 1999, got him sixth place in the championship. In 2000, his third year in British F3, he did a notch better, moving up to fourth place, getting a pole position and fastest laps in Macau Grand Prix. He peaked with two stunning victories at Spa Francorchamps and Korea Super Prix, which got the attention of the world and soon landed him a test drive with Jaguar Racing.
And that is how Narain Karthikeyan became the first Indian to test a Formula One car at Silverstone, on 14 June, 2001. His amazing performance got him two more test drives for the Jordan F1 team in October and September, but it was a long wait till 2004 before he got an F1 call from Minardi. That effort proved futile because he couldn’t raise sponsorship money.
“You can master the sport and do everything you can, but when it comes to sponsorship I keep my fingers crossed even today. Nothing has changed even after reaching the zeniths of driving skill. One moment, I go down to utter despair, but then, I find a glimmer of hope somewhere. It was the same in 2004, and even now. But in all these periods of uncertainty, I trained hard and kept myself ready. In all the ups and downs, I thank Tata for steadfastly supporting me in my grueling journey from F3 to F1, and even today,’’ Narain says thankfully.
With his F1 career on the backfoot, Narain took time out for family and married Pavarna in 2004. “I met her through a common friend in 2001. For an outsider, the racing life looks very glamourous and glitzy but for your own family and wife, it’s very hard to cope with the rigorous and unconventional lifestyle. But Pavarna has been a stabilising factor in my life and has stood as a pillar of strength,’’ says Narain.
In Februray 2005, at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, the deal with Jordan saw him qualify 12th on the grid, ahead of giants like Michael Schumacher. On March 6, he created history when he became the first Indian to drive in Formula 1. He finished 15th in that first race. The rest as they say is history.
Narain continued in Formula 1 as a test driver for Williams in 2006 and 2007, in his struggle to keep racing at the top level. And just when the world believed his racing career was over, he landed a drive with HRT in 2011. “I always said I still have the mettle and Formula 1 is a continuing dream. So I trained extra hard to realise that dream of driving in front of the home crowd as F1 made its debut in India,’’ he says with a smile.
Narain continues to live that dream for another year with HRT. Asked if missing the podium in 2005 at the Formula 1 US GP was his biggest disappointment, he says: “With only six cars, I came fourth. But my greatest regret is not winning in Macau in 2000. Starting from pole, I was doing the fastest laps. It was over-exuberance and I was pushing too hard and made a stupid mistake. I was not mature enough. A win here at one of the toughest circuits in the world could’ve changed my entire career path,’’ he says a tinge of sadness.
“But I bounced back and retrieved whatever I could with dedication and hard work. That’s when I realised the importance of training hard. Now my training regimen is very strict. I do weights, endurance and specific workouts for individual muscles. Working to keep the neck and lower back fit is a complete routine in itself. I also do yoga and meditation,’’ says Narain, whose personal trainer now is Chandigarh-born German Balbir Singh, who once famously looked after Michael Schumacher.
“Karthikeyan is a true representative of India’s young spirit and he has set an example for the entire motorsports fraternity,’’ was how Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described him. “The Padma Shree was one of my proudest moments in 2010. It is not just an individual honour, it has come as recognition for all of motorsports in India,’’ Narain says, just as the fax machine rings. It’s his day’s training schedule, from his trainer in Austria. No time to waste. Another race weekend, another battle beckons. The Shanghai GP is just days away…
Lewis Hamilton of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team finishes on way to a successful pit stop in the Spanish GP for a second place which keeps him in the third place in the drivers' championship with 53 points. Vodafone McLaren photo.
DRIVERS
1 – Pastor MALDONADO (Williams)
2 – Fernando ALONSO (Ferrari)
3 – Kimi RAIKKONEN (Lotus)
TV UNILATERAL
Pastor, your first victory, brilliantly judged – describe your emotions?
Pastor MALDONADO: I think it’s a wonderful day, not just for me but for all the team. We have been pushing so hard since last year to try to improve race by race and here we are. Yesterday we were here after a great qualifying and today we did it again. It was a tough race because the strategy as well, it was tough especially because of the rear tyres – after a couple of laps we were struggling with [them]. I need to say I’m pretty happy because the car was so competitive since the first lap. Fernando did a better start than me but I was just following the pace and it was so great. It’s my first podium and my first victory and you can imagine what I feel.
Fernando, second today and obviously a lot of progress for you and the team. And once again a blinding start.
Fernando ALONSO: Yeah, it was a fantastic start again. The team prepared quite nice again the clutch and everything – the procedure to do a good start. It was close on the straight until Turn One with Pastor, and then we had the better side, the inside. We took the momentum there and we led the race for the first part but then William’s anticipated the stop and get in front and at the end it was close. We had a newer tyre than Pastor and we tried a couple of times but it was not possible out of the last corner. Then in the very last laps I felt the car was strange, we lost a lot of grip. Maybe we lost some aerodynamic part or something because we were very slow… (inaudible) …we were lucky at the end. Second place at home feels fantastic and thanks to the people that came here and the people at home and hopefully a step forward in terms of championship possibilities.
Kimi, third today. You were a lot of people’s favourite going into this grand prix. Do you think you and the team made all the right choices this afternoon?
Kimi RAIKKONEN: We have to look. I’m a bit disappointed. I expected us to be a bit stronger in the race, especially at the beginning. At the end we were very good, but it was too late. We were not fast enough and quick enough to race and that’s why we couldn’t fight for a win. But we showed in the end that we have to speed but we just have to look at what we did. Maybe we took the wrong choice in the first pit stop. In the end, like I said we were not fast enough in the beginning and that cost us the race, so I was not so disappointed during the race because I saw that I couldn’t follow them at the beginning. But at the end when you catch them up almost 20 seconds then you get a bit of a disappointed feeling afterwards, when you just needed a few laps to be even able to fight for the first place. That’s racing and at least I scored some good points and we’re going in the right direction.
Back to you Pastor and this is the first Williams win since 2004. They managed to get you to jump Fernando at the second round of pit stops but he gave you some real pressure at the end didn’t he?
PM: Yeah, it was so close. We were looking to manage the tyre degradation so I wasn’t pushing that hard, just to keep the tyres alive for the end of the race and Fernando got too close. There were some moments that he was so close, especially at the end of the straight. But I was managing the gap and controlling everything. I think our pace today was pretty strong and the car looks fantastic. Even the team. We did a small mistake at the last pit stop but it doesn’t affect our performance.
Fernando, describe your feelings at the second stop when Pastor jumped you because you were caught up behind a backmarker in that critical lap weren’t you?
FA: Yeah, we were a little bit unlucky maybe. We had a Marussia but I think he got a penalty at the end. Obviously, it’s not a solution now but hopefully people start to understand that they need to respect the rules and today again they didn’t and they paid the penalty. It’s more of a penalty the penalty we paid – maybe the race win – but yeah a little bit disappointed. But they [Williams] did a great job and they had the pace, because in the last stint, if we were faster than the Williams we had the opportunity to overtake but they were quicker than us so thy deserve the victory.
Kimi, it’s the second podium for you in a row. Do you feel a win is around the corner?
KR: Yeah, twice already. Unfortunately you’re not always going to get there. If you get the chance, you should take it because it’s not every race that you will be able to fight for that position or even try it. Hopefully we can keep doing what we’re doing now and at a certain point I’m sure that things will go exactly right and we can. But so far it’s been a good step and the car has been strong everywhere. The next race is a bit different – Monaco – it’s hard to say how it goes there. The team has done a good job and we have still work to do, things to improve. But so far it’s going in a good way and I’m happy with it. OK, we’re not 100% happy with it because we are not winning but that’s a very normal thing and I’m happy for the team.
As Kimi says, we go to Monaco next Pastor. That’s one of your favourite tracks. What chance a back-to-back victory for you?
PM: I think it’s going to be a great opportunity for us to be strong again. For sure I will be doing my best on the driving. The team is looking after the car so we need to continue like that. Keep pushing with the car, to develop it as soon as possible and consistency will be the important thing in this championship.
PRESS CONFERENCE
When did you think you could win, because obviously there have been changing emotions, obviously you were second on the grid and then first on the grid and then obviously the start etc., When did you think this was possible?
PM: After the qualifying. Y’know, it was so great to start from the head, from the front and for sure the team did a great job to give me a car and I did my job on the qualifying. And then starting from the pole it’s much easier, everything.
And then obviously overtaken at the start…
PM: Yes, our start wasn’t that great, Fernando had one better than us but after the first lap the pace was very competitive, the car looks very good and we were looking at the strategy, that’s it.
And what about the tyres at the end? Because obviously Fernando closed on you and then dropped back.
PM: When Fernando got close I was looking after the tyres, I didn’t push that much, just because the big tyre degradation. We did an extremely good strategy today, everything under control, even some moments when Fernando got too close but we had a little bit better traction than him, using KERS and everything. So it was managing the race, looking for the gaps and the pace.
You must have thought that with KERS, him within a second, at any moment it was going to happen – but it never did.
PM: For sure it was difficult from this morning because the gaps are so close between the top teams at the moment. When I saw that I was second in the first corner, ‘OK’, I said, ‘the race is going to be long. We need to keep pushing, we need to prepare to change our strategy just to attack Ferrari and we did it. Everything was perfect, except the last pitstop. We had a big moment there but it doesn’t affect our final result.
Fernando, you got so close, right up there, and then it just went away I guess, and then by the end it looked as though you really were struggling on the tyres.
FA: Yeah, it was close with ten laps to go, ten laps to the end. We were attacking Pastor when we were closing to within one second but then the last seven or eight laps we lost the grip, around Turn Seven I felt. I informed the team some corners after, in Turn Nine, to check if everything is OK because maybe we lost some aerodynamic part of the front wing or under the floor or something because we had no more grip at all. So, from that point the last seven laps, it was monitoring the distance and the gap with Kimi. We knew it was a very long last seven laps. At the end it was close. I think one lap more and Kimi overtake us. So we were lucky at the end and happy – happy with the weekend in general, not only with the race, because we had a very strong weekend, on Fridays with good practice, the car felt more or less competitive yesterday. I think we extract everything from the car again, maximise the potential of what we have in our hands and today the start was great, the race pace was good, at one point we were lapping one Red Bull in front of us with the blue flags, so… it’s very strange. We were 57 seconds behind Vettel in Bahrain, and we were lapping Webber here. No one understands probably. Not us either.
It really was that sudden when you lost the grip? It was almost like a switch.
FA: Yeah, yeah, it was in turn seven, over the kerb maybe, something fall out of the car or something, we need to check. But it was difficult. As Pastor said, in the last corner, turn 16, it’s difficult to follow anyone after the chicane, so we knew that when you lose the position at the pitstop, you have to have a big pace advantage if you want to overtake someone. With the difference and with the pace that Williams had today, we knew it was difficult.
I suppose everybody in Italy wants to know, has Ferrari turned the corner? Are you now back in front again?
FA: We’ll see. I think when we are first and second in one qualifying and first and second in one race, we have to say that we have the best car. Until that moment we are fighting. I think this year is very difficult to have a pace advantage or to be happy with the car you have in your hands, because everything is so close. Consistency and continuous development will be important in this championship because two-tenths can be six or seven positions in one qualifying this year. But what we can say is we have probably the most difficult start of the championship in these three years in Ferrari, with a car that was not competitive at all, and we finish the first quarter of the championship, so this is the fifth race out of 20, and we are leading the championship, or the same points as Vettel, so we have to be very, very proud and very happy with the points we achieved and with the position. Maybe we have not to be so proud about how competitive we are but we are working on that.
Kimi, tell us about the start, because that pretty much established your race.
KR: Yeah, I had a pretty good start, nothing to complain about. I thought I would get the chance to overtake outside both of the first two but I didn’t have enough speed in a straight line – I actually hit the limiter I think in fifth gear which kind of stopped my acceleration a bit but after that I didn’t have the speed to hang on and hound them. I was pulling away from the guys behind me but I couldn’t stay. The first stint was pretty OK but the second, I chose the soft tyre and I didn’t have the speed to keep up with them. I’m a bit disappointed but I just tried to fight and then we changed the tyres and it seemed to turn out to be pretty good but we were just too far away. We need, like, ten more laps and then I think we could have been fighting for the win.
Absolute charge at the end, your tyres were OK?
KR: Yes, it was OK. I had two new sets of Prime but unfortunately I didn’t have more sets of Prime anyhow to put in the first pitstop. The car was very good but just a bit too late for me. We fall off too much in the last stint to be able to fight for the win. But one more lap we could probably could have got Fernando – but it’s easy to say after.
And what did you tell the Finnish viewers just now?
KR: It’s Mothers’ Day in Finland.
So Happy Mothers’ Day?
KR: Yeah. I had nothing else to say to Finnish viewers.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Leonid Novozhilov – F1 Life) Kimi, second place in Bahrain, third place in Spain; is this the maximum for you or can you win?
KR: The fact is the reason why I’m disappointed is because in the end if we have done everything right, we could have put ourselves into first place. The car has been fast enough but we’ve been doing small things not correctly and I’ve done some mistakes on my side but if everything was 100 percent OK we could have won. There’s no issue with the speed of the car, but it’s so close between all the teams and drivers that if you have a small problem or a small issue during the weekend then it’s going to cost you a lot. If you’re three tenths behind then you’re suddenly not in the last qualifying. As you give yourself the chance to be fighting at the front, I think our car can do it but everything has to fall in the right place to be able to win.
Q: (Leonid Novozhilov – F1 Life) Pastor, you are now a national hero. Are you ready?
PM: For sure everyone is so happy in my country. I’m very lucky to have a country behind me, pushing so hard, to see me here in Formula One and especially to be here, between these guys. I’m pretty happy for Venezuela, I’m happy for Williams as well. They did a wonderful job to give me a great car for this race. We are getting better and better, race after race.
Q: (Adrian Huber – Agencia EFE) Fernando, after the first five races, and all the problems you’re supposed to have in your team, no one has scored more points than you have now. How much more confident are you today than you were on Thursday, or on the inside were you expecting this?
FA: No, I am a definitely surprised by the quantity of points that we have; I’m a bit surprised by today’s result, or the weekend’s results. We were confident of improving the car, we were hoping for some signs of improvement here in Barcelona. As I said, in Bahrain, we were nearly out of Q3 and then in the race, P9, one minute behind the leaders, so we arrived in Barcelona with some hope, some optimism about the upgrades but I think the result, the overall weekend pace has been a little bit better than expected, because we were quick in qualifying and quick in the race but this, in my opinion or how I feel after the weekend, I still don’t know where we are. I think we need to wait for more races, for the championship to stabilise a little bit because I think we maybe over-performed a little bit compared with the potential we have and maybe some other teams under-performed or they had some problems to get their tyres working or something, because, as I said, some of the results that we saw this weekend feel very strange.
Q: (Carlos Miguel – La Gaceta) Fernando, if we take a look at the race, maybe it was a bad decision to stop so late after Pastor after you’d had the problem with the Marussia because it’s so important in Formula One to stay in front from the aerodynamic point of view.
FA: Yeah, obviously you never know. After the race it’s always easier to review the strategy. The choice was always to stop on the same lap or one lap later than Pastor, always try to cover the position. When Williams decided to stop in the second pit stop, we had one Marussia in front of us for a lap and a half. When we saw that in the second sector, we were already exiting behind Pastor so at that point, we decided to keep going for a few more laps and try to get the opportunity at the end of the race, with a shorter stint. I think we didn’t lose the win because of the Marussia because if you had the pace in the last stint, you had to overtake Pastor and we didn’t because they were faster than us, but for sure, we went out of the plan because of the backmarker.
Q: (Jaime Rodriguez – El Mundo) Pastor, could you explain the start of the race, because you had a good fight with Fernando, and I want to know if you’ve received congratulations from your president in Venezuela?
PM: You know it wasn’t the best start ever from us. I think the clutch slipped quite a lot. Fernando had a better jump than us. It was so close, I tried to defend the position but he was already on the better part of the track, so I decided to back off and follow him. At that moment, I thought that the race was long and we changed our strategy, to attack Ferrari. I think from the second stop we did pretty good and I think we surprised them because we did it so early.
And the call? No, not yet because I was on the podium before, so no time to even see my family, my people. Maybe he will call. I don’t know.
Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Fernando and Kimi, did you believe that Pastor could be your main rival today, and if not, how big a surprise is it?
FA: Yeah, I think so. We saw in general that during the weekend that Williams was good. Lewis was maybe the favourite for this race after the pace we saw from Ferrari on Friday and the pole position by half a second yesterday. With Lewis’s penalty, Pastor was the strongest at the front so no surprises.
KR: Williams have been quite fast for two races in certain points and I think, as we’ve said before, it’s very difficult to say who is really the quickest overall because at one race one team is there and then suddenly they are tenth in the next race, so it’s bit of an odd situation where we are this year, but it gives a lot of chances for all the teams who have the speed and when the tyres are working for them they are much better than the others. The tyres seem to be the key thing. If you get them working well you seem to be fast. Sometimes you just drop out of the window a little bit and you have a hard time.
Q: (Marco degli Innocenti – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Pastor you are the fifth winner in five races, so the top of the field seems to be very close. Do you put Williams and yourself among the possible winners of the championship?
PM: For sure we are a little bit backwards compared with the leaders, with Fernando and Vettel, but we need to keep working. We are not the best team at the moment. The car looked pretty good today, but I think we need to keep pushing some particulars at Williams, especially in the car, but everything is possible. The gaps are so close at the moment, I’m driving well, I have a good feeling with the team, with the car, so everything is possible. For sure we are looking to do our best, looking forward to winning some races, to getting a couple more podiums and I’m really happy because the team hasn’t won many races for many years so this is a great moment for us. I hope to continue like that.
Q: (Livio Oricchio – O Estado de Sao Paulo) Pastor, you were in the same team last season. When you finished the season you were in front of only three teams: Marussia, Hispania and Caterham, and now you are in front of all of them; what has happened to explain such a change in performance from one season to another?
PM: We made big changes in the factory, we have new staff in some of the departments and completely changed the approach to building the car. I need to say that this year’s car has great performance, great potential to become even stronger than it is and for sure, this is great for motivation, to motivate the team, the factory, to keep pushing like that. I think this is the way. We are motivated and we need to keep pushing.
Q: (Adrian Huber – Agencia EFE) Pastor, it looks like this could be a very long Sunday in Venezuela. Do you have any information as to what’s going on now or can you imagine what might happen there?
PM: I can imagine that there will be a party everywhere but I don’t know at the moment. I need to see some of the fans, my family there. I think everybody who saw the race and for sure all the people are happy at the moment and this is great for Venezuela after nearly thirty years without any driver in Formula One, so I think it’s a great moment for our country.
Q: (Michael Schmidt – Auto, Motor und Sport) Fernando, you have already said that at the moment everything is possible and not many things are explainable which is very strange for Formula One. I don’t think we ever had this situation before. Do you, as a driver, enjoy this uncertainty or would you like to have some more answers on open questions?
FA: I don’t know. I don’t know how to answer. We probably like the unknown situation that we have now, so you arrive in Monaco next Wednesday and you don’t know if you will be a winner or if you will be out of the points. That’s what we feel at the moment, not only for us. But in a way, after eleven years in Formula One and seeing Ferrari dominate most of them, now that I’m at Ferrari, I would like to have more stability and a dominant car.
Barcelona, 12 May 2012:Indian Formula One driver Narain Karthikeyan was disappointed with another set-back to the car spoiling his chances of setting a qualifying time below the mandatory 107 per cent as he clocked 1 min 31.122 seconds way
Pedro De La Rosa of HRT team does better than teammate Narain Karthikeyan for the home race at Circuit de Catalunya on Sataurday. HRT F1 team photo.
below the required 1: 28.363 in the qualifier where Lewis Hamilton put McLaren on Pole pipping a surprise Pastor Maldonado of Williams at the Circuit de Catalunya on Saturday.
Ferrari’s updates helped former world champion Fernando Alonso get into the second row for the first time this year in his home race with a deserving thrid place and the extra set of tyres left will make him confident for the race tommorow. Hamilton who used two quick laps will not have that tyre advantage. Current world champion Sebastian Vettel will start on 8th place.
Narain Karthikeyan who lost a chance to get more laps under his belt due to a problem on Friday which saw test driver Dani Clos take to the track, did a good morning session but encountered problems again during the qualification and due to concerns of safety for himself and for others, the team decided that the car would not return to the track despite not setting an appropriate time. Now the stewards are expected to allow him to race on Sunday as he has set a time which is under the 107 per cent in FP3. But it is completely their discretion to decide that the HRT car is safe to be on the grid on Sunday.
A disappointed Narain Karthikeyan said: “It’s been a very unlucky weekend for me so far. In the morning everything went smoothly but in the afternoon, with the first set of tyres I was pushing really hard and spun on turn 3 and, as a result, I flat-spotted a tyre so I had to come back in to the garage. 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”.
Narain’s teammate Pedro de la Rosa was able to continue progress with his car’s set-up and improve his feel as the day wore on. Karthikeyan set HRT’s best time up to that moment in the morning.
“The team is still awaiting the FIA stewards’ decision but is confident that there will be no trouble for both drivers to line-up on the grid for tomorrow’s 66-lap race,” said a team release.
Pedro de la Rosa was happy. “The day went very well, especially this afternoon, so I’m very happy with what we achieved. We completed two very good laps in qualifying, getting under the 1.28 mark which we hadn’t achieved neither yesterday nor this morning. I know that our position seems the same as always but, in terms of performance, we have progressed and that’s what I’ll take away with me. As I always say, we’ve still got a lot of room for improvement but we’re on the right path and that’s what matters. Tomorrow’s race won’t be easy because it’s a tough track and the rear tyres wear out a lot. We have to get off to a good start, give the Marussias a good fight and finish the race in front of all our fans,” he said.
Team’s Technical Director Toni Cuquerella said: “We had mixed fortunes today. Pedro was able to continue with his programme and we were able to confirm that everything works fine and, as anticipated, the upgrades gave us an improvement. But we can’t stop, we have to continue progressing. For qualifying, the car’s balance improved a little bit more and Pedro completed two very good laps. With Narain the target in the practice session was to do as much mileage as possible and he did a fantastic job, but we weren’t lucky in qualifying as he spun on the first set of tyres and wasn’t able to set a good time, and when he was about to go out with the second set we had to abort as there was a problem with the fitting of the on-board camera which made it dangerous to go back out. He wasn’t able to get in the 107% but I’m confident that, given the performance he showed this morning, there won’t be any trouble for him to sta rt tomorrow’s race”.
11.00-12.00 FORMULA 1 PRACTICE SESSION 3
Pedro de la Rosa F112-02 #22 23rd (13 laps) 1:28.373
A HRT car during the Friday free practice for the Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya on Friday. A HRT F1 team photo.
10.00-11.30 FORMULA 1 PRACTICE SESSION 1
Pedro de la Rosa F112-02 #22 23rd (19 laps) 1:29.107
Dani Clos F112-03 #23 24th (19 laps) 1:31.618
14.00-15.30 FORMULA 1 PRACTICE SESSION 2
Pedro de la Rosa F112-02 #22 23rd (26 laps) 1:28.235
Narain Karthikeyan F112-03 #23 24th (2 laps)
The time has finally come and the highly anticipated Spanish Grand Prix finally got underway today with the first free practice sessions at the Circuit de Catalunya (4.655 km). The day started with Dani Clos lining up alongside Pedro de la Rosa, making it a historic moment for the team and Spanish motorsport as a whole. The Spanish duo were able to try out the aerodynamic upgrades and compare data until Clos’ car came to a halt as a result of an electrical issue towards the end of the session.
The team worked hard at midday to solve the problem and get Narain Karthikeyan out on the track on time for the second session. It wasn’t to be but the team continued to fight against the clock and, in the end, the Indian driver was able to get on the track with half an hour to go in the session. But the car said enough was enough immediately and Karthikeyan wasn’t even able to finish two laps.
On his behalf, de la Rosa completed a total of 26 laps comparing the two aerodynamic options with the two tyre options.
Dani Clos: “I’m happy to have got into the car for the first time today, albeit for a short first encounter. The feeling I had when I left the pits and saw the Spanish crowd, whilst driving for a Spanish team alongside Pedro, was unbelievable. It was my first time in the new car and I wasn’t 100% comfortable since the car is built for Narain, so I had to adapt. We were able to carry out some aerodynamic work and try out some different things on the car so I’m pleased to have completed my job for the team”.
Pedro de la Rosa: “Today was the day to try out the aero package we’ve brought to Barcelona, so we completed various short stints to see how the car behaved with the changes. It was interesting because the car has effectively taken a step forwards, but we need an even bigger step, especially at such a tough circuit as this one where there are many quick turns and where you need to improve the balance of the car. There’s still plenty to do and a lot of data to analyze to have a better understanding of how to get the most out of these upgrades”.
Narain Karthikeyan: “I’m disappointed to have not got any laps under my belt today; it’s certainly not how I was aiming to start my weekend in Barcelona. Tomorrow will be an uphill struggle as we’ve only got one hour in the morning to get the car ready for qualifying in the afternoon, so we’re really going to have to get our heads down and work hard. Hopefully we can make up for the time lost today and turn things around tomorrow”.
Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal: “Today was a day of mixed feelings. On one hand it was very nice to see Dani make his debut but on the other hand we suffered a lot of electrical issues on Narain’s car. It’s a new chassis and there’s a lot of work to do with any new car so it’s not that strange for things to not work out first time round. It looks like the upgrades we’ve brought have worked well, which makes us optimistic for the future. Now we have to fix our immediate problems and work so that the weekend turns out the best way possible”.
Sahara Force India looks forward to round five of the season, the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona. To view the full PDF preview click on the link below.
“We may be approaching the fifth race of season, but it’s still difficult to get a true read on the relative competitiveness of all the teams. Each race has thrown up different surprises and it’s difficult to make any predictions before qualifying or the race,” says Vijay Mallya, Team Principal.
The last race in Bahrain was certainly an eventful one for Sahara Force India, so it was particularly rewarding to see such an outstanding team performance with everyone delivering to the best of their ability. Our two-stop strategy was judged to perfection and helped earn Paul a valuable sixth place finish. It was a close call, though, because there was no more performance life in the tyres when Paul crossed the finish line. I want to thank the entire crew for their brilliant efforts during that weekend.
Now that the European season is upon us, we should be able to bring through more updates to the car. That will start this weekend when we run with some of the new parts we evaluated in Mugello last week. However, we have to remember that most teams will make a development step for Barcelona so it remains to be seen how this will impact on our relative performance.
As well as developments for the car we are pushing hard to maximise the strategies and the drivers are delivering excellent performances in the races. That’s so important this year with the margins between the teams so tight. If we can continue to deliver like we did in Bahrain then we should be able to remain in the hunt for points this weekend, add Mallya.
File picture of Sahara Force India drivers. Sahara Force India photo.
Paul on Barcelona
Paul Di Resta gets set for the start of the European season in Barcelona
Paul, looking back on Bahrain you must be pretty satisfied with the weekend as a whole…
I think when you have a result like that you feel very proud of everyone in the team. Everybody stepped up and helped deliver the performance. The strategy was a bold one, but it was the right one and gave us one of our best results in the last couple of years.
Did the test in Mugello help your preparations for Barcelona?
We didn’t do a massive number of laps but it was a chance to start evaluating some of our car developments. There’s still plenty of work to do in free practice to get on top of the car, but we’ve already done the basic checks.
Are you looking forward to getting back to racing in Europe?
I probably know Barcelona better than any other track on the calendar. We did two tests there in the winter and I had four days in the car so I already feel quite well prepared, but it’s the same for everyone. I expect the field to be incredibly close once again.
Nico on Barcelona
Nico Hulkenberg reveals his thoughts ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix
Nico, the start of the European season is upon us. Are you looking forward to racing in Barcelona?
It’sa track I enjoy and where I’ve been successful in the past. It’s high-speed, there are lots of right hand corners and it’s quite tough physically, especially on your neck. As a city I enjoy being in Barcelona because it’s a great place with a nice atmosphere. Also, the stands are always full on race day because the Spanish fans love Formula One.
What are the main challenges of the lap?
The first sector through turns one, two and three is tricky and you need to treat them as one corner. A mistake in one or two will hurt you through three and cost your laptime. It feels great when you get them just right. Also, the final sector is quite technical: it’s slow and twisty, especially the last chicane and it’s easy to drop time at the end of the lap.
How are you feeling about the 2012 season after four races?
I feel very comfortable in the team and I’m enjoying the season. A few of the races haven’t worked out for me, but I’m looking forward not backwards and determined to get some great results for the team. I’m working well with my car crew, we are pushing hard and we will try our best to get back in the points this weekend.
Barcelona, 8 May 2012: HRT F1 team will be creating history at the Home Race on Friday, for a day, where for the first time a Spanish F1 team will have two Spanish drivers for a home race. Narain Karthikeyan, the regular driver will sit out for the first Friday Free Practice session, to help Dani Clos make his debut in an F1 race. Karthikeyan will be back on Saturday for the qualifiers and the race on Sunday.
Dani Clos, HRT test driver will make his debut at home for the Friday free pactice. HRT F1 team photo.
Spanish driver Dani Clos will step into the F112 for the first time on Friday to take part in the first free practice session of the Spanish Grand Prix which will take place at the Circuit de Catalunya. 23 year-old Clos will substitute teammate Narain Karthikeyan for that session and will join Pedro de la Rosa for the first 90 minutes of practice in Montmeló.
It will be history in the making for HRT Formula 1 Team at the Circuit de Catalunya since this will be the first time that two Spanish drivers hit the track forming a part of a Spanish team at the Spanish Grand Prix. It will be a moment to remember for Spanish motorsport and a great opportunity for Clos to prove his worth in front of his home crowd.
After having completed 377.67 kilometres at the helm of the F111 in the Young Driver Test in Abu Dhabi last November and having joined the team as an official test driver in February, Dani Clos will take another step on Friday and will fulfill another vital aspect of his testing role by completing his first laps at the wheel of the F112. A car that will be brining a series of aerodynamic upgrades for this important Grand Prix.
Dani Clos: “I’m delighted to have this opportunity. It’s something I’ve fought for all my life; to make my debut in Formula 1 and, above all, to be able to do it at the Circuit de Catalunya which is something very special for me. Besides, I’m extremely lucky to be able to do it with a Spanish team, alongside another Spanish driver who I admire and at home. I can’t ask for more! It’s the ideal situation and I’m proud to be where I am with the people who have always been with me and still are. I hope to extract a lot of data from this practice session, contribute with positive things to the team and do my job in the best way I can. I feel 100% ready and I can’t wait for the moment I step into the car and hit the track”.
Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal HRT: “I’m very proud and happy that this moment has arrived and that we’ve given Dani the chance to get in the car on Friday’s first free practice session at such a special and important Grand Prix as is a home Grand Prix. In this first contact he will drive next to Pedro de la Rosa and will have the chance to drive the new F112 for the first time. It’s an important session given the short amount of time on track that we have and more so when you take into account the various aerodynamic upgrades which we have brought. Dani is a great driver and I have no doubt that he will do a good job. Besides, this debut also represents another step forward in our desire for HRT to serve as a platform for young drivers to make it into F1”.
DANI CLOS – PROFILE AND CAREER SUMMARY
Dani Clos was born in Barcelona on the 23rd of October 1988. With a renowned trajectory in karting, Clos made his debut in single-seater racing in 2004 in Formula Renault Italia 2.0, going on to win the Championship in 2006. A year later he joined Renault’s F1 programme and took part in the Formula Three Euroseries. In 2008 he entered Williams F1’s young drivers’ programme and finished in 2nd in the 24H Barcelona race. In 2009 he made his debut in the GP2 series, with a 3rd place finish in Portimao being his best result. In his second year in GP2 he achieved his first win in Turkey alongside various podium finishes. Last year, Dani Clos took one win and two podiums in what was his third season as a GP2 driver. Also in 2011, he took part in the Young Driver Test in Abu Dhabi with HRT F1 Team, completing total of 377.67km in one day and leaving a very good impression on the team. In 2012, Dani Clos joins the HRT Formula 1 Team as its official test driver.
Career Summary:
2012 F1: test driver, HRT Formula 1 Team
2011 GP2: Racing Engineering, 9th in the Championship
F1: Young Driver Test with HRT F1 Team
2010 GP2: Racing Engineering, 4th in the Championship (1 win)
2009 GP2: Racing Engineering, 21st in the Championship
2008 F3 Euroseries: Prema Powerteam: 14th in the Championship
2007 F3 Euroseries: Signature Plus: 13th in the Championship
2006 Fórmula Renault 2.0 Italia: Champion (8 wins)
Renault 2.0 Eurocup: 7th position in the Championship
2005 Renault 2.0 Eurocup: 32nd in the Championship
File picture of Karthikeyan at Bahrain GP with an Engineer. HRT F1 team photo.
Madrid, 4 of May 2012: With the first stage of the season completed in distant lands, it’s time for Formula 1 to head much closer to home with the first European event of the Championship taking place precisely at home for HRT Formula 1 Team in Spain. It goes without saying that the Spanish Grand Prix is a very important date for the team as nothing beats the sensation of racing in front of your home crowd. The team has taken a step at every Grand Prix so far this year and will be even keener to do so in Barcelona to give the fans something to shout about.
The Circuit de Catalunya is a haven for preseason testing given the nature of the track and mild weather conditions and that is why the teams know the circuit inside out. It’s made up of a mix of slow and fast corners, which added to the bumpy surface, make the race mechanically and physically demanding. Tyre degradation is high, especially on the left side of the car since all high speed corners are right hand turns, and aerodynamics are also decisive in Montmeló.
Pirelli have elected their soft and hard tyres for this Grand Prix.
Pedro de la Rosa: “The Spanish Grand Prix is the most important trace for a Spanish driver, but this time it will be even more special for me because I’m racing with a Spanish team in my city of birth. At this circuit aerodynamics are important and it will be an important test for our upgrades. The track is also very tough on the tyres. Not going to Mugello wasn’t an easy decision but it was important to go to the headquarters for the first time and work calmly because it’s the first time my car is in Europe. For the first time the mechanics have had the time to dismantle the car, build it and assemble it. In Barcelona we are going to try and do the best we can, as always, but even more so at this Grand Prix. We’re playing at home in front of the best fans in the world. We’re looking forward to it and it’s something historic for so I’m going to enjoy it as much as possible”.
Narain Karthikeyan: “Catalunya is a great all-round circuit, highly demanding and aero dependent. It is a track I know well, and it is the first time this season we have the hard and soft tyre allocated, so the gap in lap times will be significant and strategy will play a deciding role. We don’t know the specifics of tyre behaviour since we didn’t test pre-season, but as the compounds are softer this year, the degradation, especially on the soft, will be high because of the high-lateral loading through corners like turn three. The circuit is aero sensitive too, because of the high amount of winds which often change direction so getting the setup right early on will be crucial. There are a few upgrades coming as well which will help us unlock some more performance from the car and give us the ability to compete with our closest rivals. It is the first of our team’s home races so we are motivated to do ou r best.”
Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal: “We’re really looking forward to taking part in this Grand Prix, which is the first time we’ll be racing at home this season. Showing our cars and our team in Spain is an added motivation and we’re looking to have a good weekend and finish the race without any trouble to continue in our process of improving little by little. After the first four races we’re heading into this one with much more calm. We arrive more organized and better prepared after having rested a bit this week. We’re bringing some updated to Montmeló which we hope will take us one step forwards in terms of performance and reliability. It’s the first Grand Prix we travel to after having moved into our new headquarters, starting a great new chapter in the history of the team”.
Shanghai 12 April 2012: Sahara Force India looks ahead to the third round of the 2012 season in Shanghai, China.
After two races the 2012 season appears to have all the ingredients needed to serve up a spectacular year of racing. Already the fans have enjoyed two thrilling races and the intensity of the competition across the grid is sure to capture everybody’s attention.
“I said last year that the competition in the midfield was close, but this year it seems to be even more so with the majority of the grid capable of fighting for points. It’s a good situation for Formula One, but it also means points are harder to come by. It’s encouraging that we have scored points in both races and that will be our aim once again in China,” says Team Principal Vijay Mallya.
“I have to congratulate Paul and Nico on their excellent drives in Malaysia. They are only in their second full seasons of Formula One, but they both showed their maturity in the difficult conditions. At times Paul was one of the fastest cars on the circuit, excelling in the conditions, and it’s clear that we can expect another strong season from him. I was also delighted to see Nico pick up his first points with us after such a strong showing,” he added.
In terms of car development, the factory at Silverstone continues to work at full capacity to improve our performance. The first two races have given us a great deal of information to work with and we will put it to good use in the coming races.
Paul on Shanghai
Following points finishes in the first couple of races, Paul Di Resta sets his sights on more of the same in Shanghai this weekend.
Paul, you must be pretty happy with your start to the season…
I think the whole team is pleased to have nine points on the board after two races and it was important that we picked up some good points on such an unpredictable day in Malaysia. We’ve seen how close all the teams are this year and getting points isn’t easy, so it feels good to start as we mean to continue.
Do you enjoy visiting China and experiencing the different culture?
China is a great place and Shanghai is a city I enjoy visiting. It’s such a big place, there is a lot to see and I enjoy it even more each time I go there.
Tell us about the track…
It has some unusual features. Turn one is very long and feels like it goes on forever. The key to getting it right is how much entry speed you can carry into the corner. You also have to look out for one of the biggest bumps of the year at the corner entry, which makes it difficult.
And what about the overtaking opportunities?
The best chance is turn one or into the very tight hairpin of turn 14, which widens on the entry and makes it difficult to defend. We also saw the effectiveness of DRS last year, which helped produce some good racing and it should be the same this year.
Nico on Shanghai
Nico Hulkenberg looks ahead to racing in Shanghai following his points finish in Malaysia.
Nico, after the disappointment of Melbourne, you finally got some racing miles under your belt in Sepang…
Yes, I’m happy with the race we had in Malaysia, which was basically the first proper race I have done since the end of 2010. It wasn’t an easy race and I was never in any clean air, but it was good to pick up a couple of points – my first points for the team.
Did you learn much about the car given that the conditions were so changeable in Sepang?
You always learn something and a race distance is always valuable for your knowledge of the car, even racing in the wet. The most difficult part of the race was just after the restart when I struggled for balance on the wets and intermediates, but when I switched to slicks the performance was pretty good.
Does the team have a better idea of the pecking order yet?
We’re only at the start of the season – we’ve only had two race weekends, so we still need to wait and see. Because the midfield is so compact nobody can afford to relax. We all need to push hard to improve performance and with 18 races still to go there’s plenty of time to do that.
What are your thoughts ahead of this weekend’s race in China?
It’s not my favourite race of the year, but they’ve done a good job to build a really impressive facility and it’s a fun track to drive. It’s difficult to predict how well we will do there, but given how close the grid is at the moment I think it should be a good show for everyone who is watching.
Banbury (UK), 27 Jan 2012: The Marussia F1 Team is pleased to begin the new year with the announcement of a brand new partnership with Sage, a global market leader in business software, said a Press Release from Marussia F1 team on Friday.
Sage is the third largest Enterprise Resourcing Planning (ERP) provider to business worldwide, with some 6.2 million companies using Sage products and services across 100 countries.
In the UK over 11,000 businesses use Sage’s ERP software, and the Marussia F1 Team is the latest addition following the rollout of Sage’s ERP X3 system at the team’s new Technical Centre in Banbury, UK. This system brings every part of the business together in one powerful, easy to use and quick to deploy solution.
The global business is decentralised and the company’s success has been built on understanding ‘local’ markets, empowering ‘local’ leaders, developing ‘local’ products for ‘local’ customers, and supporting them ‘locally’.
Marussia F1 Team has already begun the integration of an effective factory management solution that will track the team’s race car parts all the way through the entire process from their conception to the racetrack.
Andy Webb, CEO, Marussia F1 Team
“We are pleased to welcome Sage on board at such an exciting time for us, as we prepare for the start of a new Formula One season at the Marussia Technical Centre in Banbury. The new software solution we have developed with Sage will enable us to achieve improved time-critical control of the 3,500 parts that will be used to manufacture each of our race cars. This is all part of our drive towards the enhanced integration of all aspects of our business in pursuit of our long-term ambitions within the Championship.”
Bob Anderson, General Manager, Sage’s Enterprise Business
“At Sage, we’re hugely passionate about helping our customers to drive new levels of business success and are confident that our Sage ERP X3 solution will do just that for the Marussia F1 Team. We wish them every success as the 2012 season gets underway and are confident that our software will help them to achieve new levels of speed and efficiency both on and off the track.”
It has become his trademark – a raised forefinger to signify he is number one following another clinching of pole position or after a grand prix victory.
Now, Sebastian Vettel has every justification to stick up two fingers, and not only to mark the achievement of becoming the youngest back-to-back and double world champion in Formula One history.
But two fingers also to the sport’s establishment who last season questioned his arguably fortuitous title triumph, his temperament at times, and even his on-track ability.
Yes, Vettel has the car beneath him, a beast of a Red Bull that in its design infancy is crafted not by fancy computer gizmos, but by the fine hand of Adrian Newey.
The most successful engineer F1 has seen relies on paper and pencil to initially weave his magic that ultimately translates into one of the sport’s most “phenomenal” machines, an over-used word employed by team principal Christian Horner, but apt nonetheless.
Still, it requires a driver with incredible ability to produce the kind of mesmerising performances we have witnessed this season from Vettel.
In 2010 the 24-year-old came of age, the campaign a learning curve with such an acute incline that this season there can be no doubt he took everything on board last year and moved up another gear.
Last season was proof, if it were needed, of a title race being a marathon and not a sprint, with Vettel making a dash for the line over the closing stages, outpacing Fernando Alonso and Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber.
On pole 10 times, he only won five races, a poor statistic that undermined his championship ambitions, and underlined why he failed to win his debut crown far earlier in the season.
The most crucial of those victories, of course, was in the final race in Abu Dhabi, giving him the lead in the championship for the first time, and when it mattered the most, at the death.
The build-up to his moment of glory, though, was marred by talks of favouritism over Webber, the Australian pulling no punches at times that he felt he was a number two driver.
And then there was their bust-up in Turkey, the on-track collision that sparked a feud that in turn prompted suggestions Red Bull had a pecking order within their team.
Later in the season, when Vettel rammed into Jenson Button in the Belgian Grand Prix, McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh cruelly labelled the German the “crash kid”.
Come the denouement, Vettel deserved his accolade as the youngest world champion in F1 history – just, but you can see why question marks lingered coming into this season.
So in becoming a two-time champion, Vettel has achieved the feat a year younger than Fernando Alonso managed in 2006, and pertinently, coming as close to perfection as can possibly be achieved in F1.
From 15 races this season he has been on pole 12 times, moving to within two of Nigel Mansell’s 1992 record, the Briton achieving his feat in just 16 races, but in a Williams that carried so much technical wizardry the FIA outlawed it the following year.
And with nine wins to his name, only one driver has managed more – the seemingly incomparable Michael Schumacher, whose 2004 tally of 13 could yet be equalled.
No-one has come close to holding a candle to Vettel, certainly not team-mate Webber who has yet to take the chequered flag this year, and certainly neither Button nor Lewis Hamilton as the former has rightly stated McLaren have made too many mistakes this year.
As for Alonso, he has shown flashes of genius, but in fairness he had no chance due to being handicapped at the start of the year by a Ferrari many claimed was too conservative.
So Vettel again stands looking down on his adversaries, and as a backdrop to his triumph, one of the finest tracks in F1 in Suzuka in Japan where some of the greats of the sport have also been crowned – Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost, Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher.
So what next for Vettel? Ahead of him are Schumacher’s records of seven world championships, 91 grands prix victories and 68 poles to conquer, milestones that will undoubtedly seem light years away right now.
But he is young, has time on his side, and given the right car in the years to come – and remember he signed with Red Bull through to 2014 earlier this season – who is to say the seemingly unbeatable cannot be beaten?
