Karun Chandhok clings to the reserve driver’s role in Team Lotus
Now standing very close to the beginning of the 2011 Formula One season, Karun Chandhok has hardly any option left but to accept the reserve driver’s role in Team Lotus.
The last season’s disastrous debut with HRT kept the driver from making a good reputation in the sport; hence was unable to ensure a better race seat for this year. The driver as well as his team kept struggling hard all this time, mostly putting the blame
on each other for not being able to live up to the measures. The Hungarian squad suffered badly with management and finance issues, and was not able to produce a competitive car. Moreover, as the team tried no less than four drivers last season, Chandhok was
not seen on the grid after the British Grand Prix which marked only the 10th race of the season.
During his races, the Indian failed to score even a single point and retired at four of the rounds. However, the driver was later seen behind an old Red Bull wheel, as he ran the test drives at the Korean International Circuit, before the track’s inauguration.
Now, as the season has come to an end, the driver hardly has any options to decide his fate in Formula One.
Since India is going to hold the first Grand Prix ever on its soil, this year, many hoped to see Chandhok tied up with the only Indian team in the calendar, Force India. The driver has even expressed his desire to drive for the team, at several occasions,
but got no green signal from the team’s end.
Finally, this Thursday, his former team, HRT, also announced to sign the other Indian driver, Narain Karthikeyan, for the upcoming season, which further disappointed the driver. Seeing most of his hopes dim away, Chandhok decides to cling to the few opportunities
still at his disposal. The recent departure of Fairuz Fauzy, the Malaysian test driver at Lotus, has finally provided him with a vacant seat.
While talking to the media earlier today, the 26-year-old told, “If a third driver role leads to something better for 2012, then that’s what I’d like to see.”
Moreover, the HRT boss, Colin Kolles has also dismissed Chandhok’s former teammate, Bruno Senna from the team. Kolles announced that there is absolutely no chance of the Brazilian driver returning to the race cockpit with HRT next season, while the driver
for the second seat of the team is yet to be announced.
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