Karthikeyan in Talks with Midland for 2006

"We are still speaking with Midland and a few other things, so we shall see what happens," Karthikeyan said at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Indian's first Formula One driver ended his first season with a bang, clambering from the smouldering wreckage of his Jordan with flames flickering around the radiators and exhausts.

The car lay shattered in the middle of the track, with no marshals in sight.

"I don't know what happened because I can't remember the impact," Karthikeyan told Reuters as he changed out of his overalls after the race.

Karthikeyan's crash gave him a sore neck and brought out the safety car for the second time in the race.

Shanghai also marked the 250th and last appearance of Jordan's history, with the team founded by Irish entrepreneur Eddie Jordan sold to Russian-born Canadian billionaire Alex Shnaider in January.

They will return as Midland, but Karthikeyan may not be with them.

Karthikeyan said the best moment of his first season was the opening race in Australia, where he finished 15th and was mobbed by excited Indian fans. The low point was probably Canada, where he and team boss Colin Kolles had open disagreements and he hit the wall.

"Things got a little bit messy in the middle part of the season with me and Kolles and stuff," he said. "But I think both of us came out and said that they were interpreted in a different way and then everything calmed down.

"I made two mistakes in the season, where I hit the wall in Canada and Monaco, but 11 out of the 19 circuits have been new to me. I think compared to any other Formula One driver this was for me a huge learning experience," he added.

"It was quite a tough season and I had my moments. The qualifying (11th) in Japan was quite good, I had a good race in San Marino and in Spa I had a very exciting race."

Karthikeyan also claimed a little piece of motor racing history by becoming the first Indian to score points in Formula One when he came fourth in the six-car U.S. Grand Prix fiasco in Indianapolis.

"Points are points and I am the first Indian to score them," he said. "I take everything as a positive and hopefully I can build on this for next year."