Race of Champions: Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandhok in RoC qualifier
Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandhok will attempt to earn India qualification for this year's Race of Champions event by winning the RoC Asia title
Neither of India's two most prominent drivers have competed in the RoC before, but after respective seasons in Formula 1 (Karthikeyan) and the FIA World Endurance Championship (Chandhok) they have agreed to compete in the RoC Asia qualifier.
The pair were last team-mates back in 2004, when Chandhok contested four races of the World Series by Nissan, in which Karthikeyan finished sixth overall.
Three other teams will enter, including China and RoC hosts Thailand, with the winners set to progress into this year's main competition. Both the RoC and its Asia counterpart will be held at Bangkok's Rajamangala Stadium.
"It's a fantastic honour to receive an invitation to participate in the Race of Champions," said Karthikeyan.
"The competition is the strongest in the world, with the best of the best from many different forms of motor sport all competing against each other. The added benefit of representing your country is a real privilege.
"Karun and I are definitely going to enjoy ourselves, racing against our peers in some pretty cool machinery, but we will also be gunning for victory, and with a bit of luck, we will bring glory to our nation."
Chandhok, who finished 10th in this year's WEC, added: "It's fantastic that the organisers have decided to have an Indian team and Narain and I had the dates free to do it.
"The event looks like a lot of fun while obviously being very competitive."
Should they win the RoC Asia event, Team India will then compete against the likes of Sebastian Vettel, Michael Schumacher, 2012 IndyCar champion Ryan Hunter-Reay and 2012 MotoGP champion Jorge Lorenzo.
Previous article
Jorge Lorenzo to make Race of Champions debut
Next article
Michael Schumacher: 2012 Race of Champions unlikely to be last
About this article
| Series | General |
| Author | Sam Tremayne |
LEGO Ferrari 488 GTE
Why Campos Never Made It Into Formula 1
The F1 and Indy 'nearly man' that found contentment in Japan
Having had the door to F1 slammed in his face and come within three laps of winning the Indianapolis 500, the collapse of a Peugeot LMP1 shot meant Japan was Bertrand Baguette's last chance of a career. But it's one which he has grasped with both hands
The female all-rounder who arrived "too early"
From Formula 3 to truck racing, Dakar and EuroNASCAR via a winning stint in the DTM, there's not much Ellen Lohr hasn't seen in a stellar racing career that highlights the merit in being a generalist. But she believes her career came too early...
How Radical's latest machines fare on track
The lightweight sportscar manufacturer has not rewritten the rulebook with its latest machines, but the new SR3 XX and SR10 still provide a step forward on its previous successful models
The real-life racing rogues stranger than fiction
The forthcoming Netflix film linking the world of underworld crime and motorsport plays on a theme that isn't exactly new. Over the years, several shady figures have attempted to make it in racing before their dubious dealings caught up with them
How a GP is thriving in a COVID-free territory
The New Zealand Grand Prix's mix of rising talent and big-name stars thrilled the crowds (yes, remember crowds?) assembled for the Toyota Racing Series meeting at Hampton Downs last weekend and left distant observers craving a repeat
How a much-changed Macau GP kept the party going
OPINION: The 67th edition of the Macau Grand Prix might have been a largely muted affair to the outside world without its international influx and star line-ups, another victim to the COVID-19 pandemic, but organisers deserve huge credit for keeping the party going
Engineer's view: Motorsport's revolutionary braking tool
Although brake pressure and temperature logging is commonplace, measuring and understanding braking performance hasn't been so straightforward. But that's about to change following the introduction of a groundbreaking new sensor
The high-tech materials helping Renault in its F1 rise
The Renault F1 team is at the vanguard of innovative solutions pushing development of the V6 turbo hybrid engine rules, embracing the full potential of material science in its bid to get back to the top
