Karthikeyan lands LeMans 24 Hour ride

Narain Karthikeyan

India's most famous and successful racing driver, Narain Karthikeyan, has been successful in clinching the Le Mans 24 hour seat with Team Kolles after having been invited to test the Audi R10 TDI LMP1 Sportscar. Narain will also compete in the European Le Mans series (LMS) with Team Kolles, the next race is at Spa 10 May 2009.

Along with the Monaco GP and the Indianapolis 500, The 24 Hour Le Mans endurance race is one of the holy trinity of international motor races. Held annually since 1923, over the 2nd weekend in June, it is the ultimate test of automotive endurance. There are four categories of cars which participate in the race. Two classes of purpose built prototype racers (LM P1 & LM P2) and two categories of Gran Tourisimo cars (LM GT1 & LM GT2), which are started their lives as street legal sports cars, but have been specifically modified to meet the rigorous demands of endurance racing. The value of this racing is so great, that even in these times of a worldwide financial crisis, no fewer than eight manufacturers (Audi, Peugeot, Aston Martin, Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini, Chevrolet & Mazda) are directly involved with entries in the 2009 24 Hour Le Mans race.