Karthikeyan returns to F1!

The Fastest Indian in the World has made his return! Narain Karthikeyan is back at the pinnacle of four wheeled motorsport, after his fresh deal with the Hispania Racing Team (HRT) as a race driver for the 2011 Formula 1 season. The news comes as a hearty one, given that India will be hosting its first ever F1 GP later this year.

Karthikeyan last raced in F1 five years back with Jordan Grand Prix, after being the first Indian to race at the foremost open wheel car racing championship in the world. While he managed the test-driver's seat with Williams F1 in 2006 and 2007, the heat of on-track battles in F1 had eluded him since then. An elated Narain said, “I have worked really hard to come back to F1 and it will be a dream come true to race in the first ever Indian Grand Prix in front of my fellow Indians. I hope that they will spur me on with their blessings and good wishes."

The man has kept his game up meanwhile however, racing competitively in international motorsport. From 2007 until 2009, he was the lead driver for A1 Team India in their quest for National honours in A1GP, The World Cup of Motorsport, where he won races for his country. In 2009, he raced for the Kolles Audi Team in the Le Mans Series and the Le Mans 24-Hour race, again becoming the first ever Indian to participate  in that legendary event. 2010 was one of Narain's busiest racing years ever, as he raced in NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series in the USA, as well as in the Superleague Formula in Europe, where he won a race at his favourite circuit, Brands Hatch in the UK.

"It's been a while in the making, but I am delighted to be racing again in Formula 1 in 2011. I have always maintained that I have not given up on my desire to return to the top level of motor sport. I am confident that I have the pace, the fitness and the will to succeed in Formula 1”, said the man who will be in the hot seat, come the start of the 2011 F1 season. Here's wishing him a great season, with the secret hopes of hearing Jana Gana Mana on the podium at the first ever Indian Formula 1 Grand Prix.