Narain Karthikeyan: a switch to IndyCar in 2013?
If the Indian driver makes HRT and Formula One his priority, he does not close any doors and does not hide his interest in the IndyCar championship. Karthikeyan had already conducted tests during the IRL period and had participated in 9 races in the NASCAR Truck Series.
In September, Narain Karthikeyan told the Trust of India that he hoped to stay with HRT next season: “That’s my plan and it seems to be the right one. But if it doesn’t happen, the Indian driver might find refuge across the Atlantic, like other drivers before him. We have not yet decided, but I have several friends who race in IndyCar. We will have to see when the Formula One season is over,” the Indian driver told Speed.com.
The man with 41 Grand Prix, a series still ongoing, became the first Indian to race in F1 in 2005, before participating in the A1 GP championship, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as well as the NASCAR Truck Series championship. In 2004, before joining the Jordan team in Formula One, Karthikeyan had participated in a test on the Phoenix circuit for the Red Bull Cheever Racing team in the Indy Racing League.
According to *Speed.com*, the HRT driver has shown some interest in the rewards, driver salaries, and television coverage of the 2013 championship, which will feature a significant number of road courses and will experimentally introduce standing starts in a series typically known for rolling starts. While Karthikeyan makes HRT and Formula One his priority, he wants to keep all his options open. « I know that IndyCar is competitive, Dallara has always made good cars. It depends on what I want to do and if my family allows me to return to America. [In Formula One,] I’m always at the back of the grid, but in IndyCar, with a mid-field team, I think I can be competitive. We will see what happens next. I am keeping all my options open, » concluded the Coimbatore native.
