Karthikeyan returns for India
Ex-F1 driver Karthikeyan broke the team’s duck last season, scoring its first two wins after taking the checkered flags in both the Feature races in Zhuhai and Brands Hatch.
The announcement, made at a special pre-season launch in New Delhi, is a boost for fans of India, who hope that it could become the first non-European nation to lift the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport this season.
"This year holds a lot of expectations from India and I am looking forward for a consistent performance for A1 Team India," said Karthikeyan. “Hopefully, the new season brings more interesting and challenging paradigms for us to prove our capability to the motor racing world."
The team also confirmed that Armaan Ebrahim will be recalled to the squad to act as lead rookie driver, with Parthiv Sureshwaren also coming back to compete in selected rookie sessions. Ebrahim competed for the team in the first two seasons, and still holds the record for being the youngest driver ever race in the sport, at 16 years 5 months and six days.
“Today is a momentous day for all of us here," said Andaleeb Sehgal, chief executive officer of A1 Team India. “We had a phenomenal third season with two wins at Zhuhai and Brands Hatch, and we are all geared up to make this forthcoming season even better. We have a lot of expectations from the new structure of the team and hopefully India will emerge as on of the best performing countries participating in the races."
A1GP races will be broadcast live on ESPN Star Sports in India, in addition to repeat showings at peak hours.