Narain Karthikeyan says he is open-minded about adding more Auto GP rounds to his 2013 programme following his series debut at Monza.
The former HRT Formula 1 driver was a high-profile addition to the Monza grid after striking a late deal to compete with Zele Racing.
Having therefore missed out on pre-event testing, the 36-year-old fought back from being tapped into a first corner spin to finish fifth in the weekend’s opening contest. A brake issue ruled him out after one lap of Sunday’s finale.
Karthikeyan said he could be open to extending his race deal, particularly as the next round takes place on the streets of Marrakech.
“We have to see about Marrakech. I usually go well on street circuits so it should be better,” he explained.
“To be honest, to come into a championship without any testing you don’t expect anything – I had nothing to lose. I thought we were slow in the race, but looking at the times we were right up there.
“I have something else on the cards as well though. I am looking for something that earns money and I can stay in for a long time.”
Karthikeyan admitted his original intention had been to stay in F1. AUTOSPORT revealed last month that he had been in talks with Marussia to replace Luiz Razia before Jules Bianchi landed the seat.
“Obviously, F1 was the main goal but that didn’t happen,” he said.
“Marussia was too late, we talked but no one has that kind of sponsorship just lying around. Bianchi obviously had something.”
Karthikeyan added that he had also evaluated racing in America, where he competed in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series previously, once his chances of making the 2013 grand prix grid dissolved.
“The reason I left America [in 2010] was because the Indian Grand Prix was coming up, so obviously I had to go back to F1.
“Going back would be difficult; you need to live there and be part of it and I had to consider the commitment from my side. I am based in India and I do a lot of road car work for Tata cars.
“IndyCar was an option this year, but again everything happened so late.
“I knew I needed to keep driving something. Driving single-seaters is something I like, so that is why I am racing again [in Auto GP].”
Source: http://www.iracing.com/inracingnews/real-world-racing/3rdparty/karthikeyan-open-to-adding-more-races
Bruno Giacomelli Dick Gibson Gimax Richie Ginther Yves Giraud Cabantous
No comments:
Post a Comment