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  • F1 offer for India driver.....

    Karthikeyan gets F-1 offer from Jordan
    Tuesday, 01 February , 2005, 11:42
    New Delhi: India's motorsport icon Narain Karthikeyan received an offer on Tuesday to drive for Jordan in the Formula One Grand Prix this season.

    Karthikeyan said the offer 'looked good' and he was very much hopeful of making it to the top rung of the game this time around after having missed out on a chance last season.

    "I can say I am 90 percent hopeful of making it this time," Karthikeyan told PTI. However, he did not reveal what figure had been quoted by Jordan, which has been taken over by the Midland group, owned by Russian tycoon Alex Shnaider.

    "At the moment I cannot reveal how much my sponsors have been asked to shelve out but the Tatas, J K Tyre and Bharat Petroleum have come forward (in support). The process is on," said the ace driver.


    YAY!!!
    A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

  • #2
    Nice! Keep an eye out for follow ups on this one...
    No man is free until all men are free - John Hossack
    I agree completely with this Administration’s goal of a regime change in Iraq-John Kerry
    even if that enforcement is mostly at the hands of the United States, a right we retain even if the Security Council fails to act-John Kerry
    He may even miscalculate and slide these weapons off to terrorist groups to invite them to be a surrogate to use them against the United States. It’s the miscalculation that poses the greatest threat-John Kerry

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    • #3
      Dudes , this is BIG !!
      He is from my town and a distant relative too .

      And guess what , Coimbatore is the mecca of motor sports in India.


      Me << Proud Coimbatorean
      Jay is a neighbour.

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      • #4
        Let's wish him luck.
        Jhingalala-Jhingalala, Hurr-Hurr!!! :eek:

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        • #5
          Congrats to Karthikeyan! After all these years of watching F1, it'll be great to cheer an Indian racing on the circuit.

          Oh blimey, anything to get my hands on one those cars! :)
          Last edited by Karthik; 02 Feb 05,, 07:42.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by SamudraGupta
            Dudes , this is BIG !!
            He is from my town and a distant relative too .

            And guess what , Coimbatore is the mecca of motor sports in India.


            Me << Proud Coimbatorean
            Jay is a neighbour.

            Vanakkam Perianaicker Samudragupta,

            You bet your rear bumper !.

            This will be real big in Kovai. I only took up regularly watching F1 there so as to be able to sustain social small talk and got hooked on.

            A completely car obsessed town.

            Had an occasion to pose the question as to why this was so to a prominent local resident.

            He looked me in the eye, paused and then posed the rhetorical question, “ What’s on a mans mind ? “ And without pause stated, “Fast Cars and fast women, and you certainly don’t have fast women in Coimbatore”.

            I’ll reserve comment on the second bit though, as some other parts of India seem convinced a stint in the town is enough to luck out on a “Chinna Veedu” and far be it for me to detract from the towns mystique.

            Anyway I’m sure the pealing of bells at the Coimbatore aka English Club, would have been deafening ( You get a real dirty look if you call out to the bar tender instead of ringing a bell ) and the orders would not have been for “Siruvani thanni” alone.

            Now what’s this business about Coimbatore ? Surely you mean Kovai !

            Aha…………..I’m nostalgic.

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            • #7
              Ah, Hari adhan mattera...so you've been to Covai and kongu mandalam ;) interesting :)

              Yea, this is pretty big...hopefully he shud get in this time...Also he's getting old. (FYI...He just got married last year).
              A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

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              • #8
                Jay

                I know Covai , but what is Kongu Mandalam ? ;)

                Hari

                Fast cars , yes and fast girls , a yes too.
                Not only fast , we also got prolly one of the best vintage car collection in G.D.Institute.

                The English clubs are too keen to prove they are more English than Lord Mountbatten.Dress code is a good and clean pair of shoes , a shirt with a collar (can you imagine a shirt without collar ) and more.

                And oh i just learnt this.

                You guys all better thank us Coimbatoreans to have clean F1 circuits all over the world.Because its a firm from our city that does the job of making sure the F1 cars dont suffer from FOD damages.Its Roots Hako Multiclean Ltd from here. :)

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                • #9
                  kongu mandalam is the whole area adjoining covai, erode, namakkal, salem, karur districts.

                  Actually you have to thank a lot of companies in covai start with Pricol and go on... ;)
                  A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    India waiting for F1 lift-off
                    By Ayanjit Sen
                    BBC News in Delhi

                    In India, where people swear by cricket and worship leading cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar as demi-Gods, the idea of a career in motorsport is only just beginning to attract interest.

                    But the news that the country's top racing driver, Narain Karthikeyan, is on the verge of being the first Indian to race in Formula One is making a big splash in the country's newspapers.

                    Karthikeyan's talent should stand him in reasonable stead as he seeks to establish a long career in F1.

                    But how big an impact the 28-year-old's presence in the world's richest sport will have on India's huge population remains to be seen.

                    Karthikeyan's presence in the high-profile, glamorous world of F1 is sure to enthuse youngsters to take to this sport.

                    Live coverage of F1 Grands Prix has generated big revenues for private television channels in India, where drivers like Michael Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya are the new youth icons.

                    Indian newspapers covering Narain Karthikeyan's prospective drive with Jordan
                    Karthikeyan's F1 opportunity has attracted media interest
                    And motor racing is, according to Akbar Ibrahim, a former Indian driver in the junior Formula Three category, "one of the most highly-watched sports in television after cricket in India".

                    But while motor racing may be nearly 50 years old on the subcontinent, it remains the bastion of the rich. The common man is largely unaware of it.

                    Inevitably, then, those seeking to promote the growth of motorsport in India have run into problems.

                    A plan to host F1 in the eastern city of Calcutta (Kolkatta) had to be shelved when the state government realised the huge amount of money required to commission the project.

                    And a similar plan in the business centre of Hyderabad fell foul of a change in state government last year.


                    India's F1 hopes stall
                    The southern Indian city of Madras (Chennai) has the only international racing circuit in the country.

                    And after Karthikeyan the two brightest hopes for Indian motor racing are Karun Chandok and Parthiva Sureshwaran, who have yet to make a big impact on the international motorsport scene.

                    Indian villagers in Jammu and Kashmir state
                    F1 has yet to make much of an impact in India's villages
                    Though two tyre companies, MRF India and JK Tyres, have long been involved in sponsoring motor racing here, there is a huge effort required on the part of business and the government if the sport is to extend its reach across the country.

                    Experts say this may be the reason why motorsport has not yet progressed as much as it should have in India.

                    "Hopefully, Karthikeyan's achievements will help the government to get up from its slumber and build facilities required for hosting F1," says Ibrahim.

                    Motorsport in India has not come that far since it sprang up on the many airstrips left deserted in various parts of the country following independence in 1947.

                    Just as in the UK at Silverstone - itself a former military airfield - enthusiasts used these strips to pursue their passion for the sport.

                    Competitors on the Indian Desert Storm rally, posing in front of the Gateway to India in Mumbai (Bombay)
                    Rallying is the most popular form of motorsport in India
                    But annual race meetings did not start in India until the 1970s, and the machines used were not of the same standard as their international counterparts either in technology and design.

                    In the next decade, Karivardhan became the backbone of Indian motorsport, with the modern single-seater open-wheeled racing car.

                    But his death from injuries sustained in an air crash left a void in Indian motorsport.

                    Then Karthikeyan burst on to the scene in the '90s.

                    He was unusual in that he chose circuit racing instead of rallying, which remains the most popular form of motorsport in India.

                    And it seems others are beginning to follow his lead.

                    "More and more youngsters are taking an interest in the sport," says Vicky Chandhoke, the president of the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India.

                    "It has really picked up in the last three years. Several go-karting tracks are being laid in different parts of the country."

                    Fans at the inaugural Chinese Grand Prix in 2004
                    Will motorsport ever attract a big following in India?
                    Even so, in the absence of a Grand Prix to raise the profile of motorsport in India, those wishing to take up a career in the field struggle for funding.

                    "Money is a big hindrance in youngsters taking up this sport as a career," says Eshwar, a motorsport journalist in India.

                    There is a long way to go before India can challenge the infrastructure that has produced generations of top drivers in South America and western Europe.

                    But the Indian motorsport fraternity see a ray of hope in car manufacturers like Ford and Hyundai, who are increasing their presence in India and exploring sponsorship opportunities.

                    With a population of over a billion, and a growing and aspirant middle class, motorsport has great potential in India.

                    But the challenge lies in making the common man part of the sport and sorting out the financial constraints, say experts.

                    Though optimists like Eshwar feel many Indians will go to Australia to see Karthikeyan perform, the sport still has a long way to go before it becomes truly popular in India.

                    From BBC Sport
                    A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

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                    • #11
                      In the next decade, Karivardhan became the backbone of Indian motorsport, with the modern single-seater open-wheeled racing car.
                      Yet another product of Coimbatore !
                      Sadly , the air crash happened just a kilometer from where i live.

                      Just last year the motor sporting clubs in Coimbatore were successfull in bringing the London Sydney Marathon Rally to Coimbatore...its was whoooo !

                      Some other big shots from here Leelakrishnan(our school alumni),Naren Kumar,Arjun Balu..
                      Should say all the guys mentioned are related to one another someway.(includes Karthikeyan and Kari)

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                      • #12
                        kongu mandalam is the whole area adjoining covai, erode, namakkal, salem, karur districts.
                        Ah , i think i knew.
                        But hey you guys from Karur aint gonna say Naren belongs to your town , because its part of kongu mandalam , Okay ? ;) :)
                        Last edited by Samudra; 03 Feb 05,, 06:02.

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                        • #13
                          Originally posted by SamudraGupta
                          Fast cars , yes and fast girls , a yes too.
                          I always knew a drivers profession took one to great places, a pity my parents never allowed me.

                          Cheers!...on the rocks!!

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by SamudraGupta
                            Ah , i think i knew.
                            But hey you guys from Karur aint gonna say Naren belongs to your town , because its part of kongu mandalam , Okay ? ;) :)
                            Relax, we wont
                            A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by lemontree
                              I always knew a drivers profession took one to great places, a pity my parents never allowed me.
                              I'll remember that when i drive in the driver school racing this spring
                              A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

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