Narain Karthikeyan: Street circuits aren’t my favorite

After a highly disappointing Spanish Grand Prix, Narain Karthikeyan is hoping for better luck as the F1 fraternity prepares for the 70th running of the glamorous Monaco Grand Prix. The Indian driver failed to qualify within the 107% rule in Spain, however he was eventually allowed to race. Karthikeyan retired on lap 22, bringing an end to a dismal race weekend.

However, with the Spanish Grand Prix in the past, Narain Karthikeyan is hoping for a change of luck this weekend, even though the HRT driver dislikes street circuits. With his team-mate Pedro de la Rosa expecting to be closer to the leaders this weekend, there is optimism within the HRT paddock that a promising result could be on the cards.

"Street circuits aren’t my favorite but Monaco obviously has a special place on the calendar.” Explained Narain Karthikeyan, “It’s one of the toughest races because you’re so close to the guardrails that you know you can’t make one single mistake. Coming away from a disappointing weekend in Barcelona, I am hoping for better luck this time and to get a proper chance to work with the updates we brought in Spain and have a trouble-free weekend.”

Following on from the updates that were introduced on the car throughout the Spanish Grand Prix weekend, HRT’s team principal Luis Perez-Sala has confirmed that several more ‘minor’ updates will be added to the car this weekend.

"Monaco is a very demanding track mechanically, where drivers need great ability and suffer physically and psychologically because you can’t make any slip-ups. It’s a tough test for the car’s reliability and even more so if it is hot. We have minor upgrades for this race which we hope will help us to close the gap to the front pack. The team is really looking forward to taking on a beautiful race as is Monaco.”

n a race which could feature many safety-car periods, the HRT’s of Narain Karthikeyan and Pedro de la Rosa could well close the gap right up to the Marussia’s of Glock and Pic. However, the first hurdle for the Spanish team will be qualifying, with the tight and twisty nature of the Monte-Carlo street circuit meaning blue flags will be a common recurrence throughout Q1.

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