Karthikeyan to IndyCar in 2014 (Update)
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| Narain Karthikeyan is an Indian. Does IndyCar have a clue how to market him to the large Indian population in the USA? |
Ex-Formula 1 driver Narain Karthikeyan is aiming for an IndyCar test this winter in a fresh bid to secure a seat in the series in 2014 reports Autosport.
After the collapse of the HRT F1 team last December, Karthikeyan has kept his hand in by racing successfully for David Sears' Super Nova squad in Auto GP.
But prior to settling on Auto GP, the Indian had made efforts to get an IndyCar seat for 2013, as Autosport revealed earlier this year.
He is now making another attempt to fulfill his ambition of returning to North America, where he competed in the NASCAR Truck Series in 2010.
"It's looking like I could test an IndyCar before the end of the year," said Karthikeyan. "David Sears also has some good contacts in America, so perhaps that could help."
Sears believes Karthikeyan was never able to show his potential in F1 and deserves a chance to do so in IndyCar.
"Narain still managed to win five races in five [Auto GP] events, which can't be bad," said Sears.
"My sentiment is, if Narain had had a chance in a decent Formula 1 car, like a Force India, things would have worked out different there as well.
"Hopefully he can find that in IndyCar." More at Autosport
07/31/13 Recent Formula 1 driver Narain Karthikeyan has been mentioned as a possible candidate to turn his attention from Europe to focus on an IndyCar Series program in North America, but tells RACER he'll hold off on making any decisions until after his first test is completed.
"The chances of continuing in Formula 1 became very hard for me with the high costs and the unrealistic chance of earning good results, so I began racing in Auto GP which I enjoy, but I am intrigued by IndyCar and want to see what the cars are like.
"I know some people that drive in IndyCar, and they tell me the downforce is quite good and they are very demanding to drive, so I will test one after the season has finished to understand if this is a direction to take my career."
"I've been competitive against guys like [Takuma] Sato and [Justin] Wilson, so I'm confident I could do the same in IndyCar racing," he said. "If you want to race competitively in single-seaters, it's very competitive and a high-profile series to consider. And it has not been dominated by the top two teams, so that's encouraging.
"There are good teams to speak to that can provide a winning car. If you have a good test, maybe you can get picked up by a good team, although I know some backing will be required."
"I've always done well in [spec] cars, and I'm winning again in Auto GP, so let's see where this leads with the [IndyCar] test. I think some good things could come from it." Racer.com