ON-TRACK
INCIDENT ENDS NARAIN KARTHIKEYAN’S SUPER FORMULA WEEKEND ON A LOW NOTE
·
The
Indian had qualified on the front row for his debut race at Suzuka Circuit.
·
An
incident with Loic Duval while running sixth scuppered chances of a strong
finish.
Suzuka Circuit (Japan) April 13: After a sensational start
to his 2014 Super Formula season at Suzuka Circuit with a front row qualifying
result, Narain Karthikeyan’s maiden weekend in the series came to a premature
end after an on-track incident with eventual winner Loic Duval ended his
chances of a top five finish.
The
Indian, supported by Tata Sons and Tata
Motors, had qualified on the front row on Saturday but had to start fifth after
being slapped with a three-place grid penalty as he was adjudged to have
impeded another car during free practice.
“It
has been a disappointing end to the weekend after a promising start. We should
have started on the front row but were fifth on the grid and then the incident with
Duval scrapped any remaining hopes”, remarked a disappointed Narain.
Elaborating
on the penalty he said, “During the drivers’ briefing, the organisers were
clear that a three-place penalty will be awarded in case a driver is found
impeding others during qualifying, but in my case it was during the start of
the practice session which doesn’t really count towards anything. So the
penalty was quite harsh and unfair in my opinion and such miscommunication
needs to be avoided in the future.”
The
completely revamped Super Formula series
(erstwhile known as Formula Nippon) has switched to a new Dallara SF14 chassis this year; powered by two-litre, 550 bhp
turbocharged engines – similar to the new
2014 F1 regulations.
Despite
starting fifth instead of second Karthikeyan, driving for Lenovo Team Impul was still harbouring the hopes of a strong finish
given qualifying pace but it wasn’t to be.
Having
made a decent getaway off the line, the Indian retained his position during the
opening minutes of the 43-lap race and concentrated on maintaining his pace
while managing the cold tyres on a full tank of fuel.
“The
pace was four seconds or so slower with full tanks [compared to qualifying], so
we obviously had to be careful during the earlier stages and track temperatures
were considerably lower as well”, explained Narain.
But
Frenchman Loic Duval who was on an early charge seemed to run out of patience
and a hasty move at the final chicane saw the two cars coming together, which ended
up taking Narain’s right rear tyre out of shape.
“The
car became undriveable after the hit and there was massive oversteer in left
handed corners. I thought of continuing but it was just not possible given the circuit
has several high-speed left handers”, he elaborated.
Narain’s Lenovo Team Impul teammate João Paulo
de Oliveira finished seventh.
“We
know that we have the pace which is very important, we need to work a bit on
the race strategy since it is new for everyone – me and the team, with
refuelling and so on.
“At the next race in Fuji, we need to have
a more rounded weekend and take our qualifying advantage into the race and put
some solid points on the board to start our season in earnest”, he concluded.
2014 Super Formula Calendar
April 13 Suzuka Circuit
May 18 Fuji Speedway
TBA Korea
July 13 Fuji Speedway
Aug 24 Twin Ring Motegi
Sept 14 Autopolis
Sept 28 Sportsland Sugo
Nov 9 Suzuka Circuit
May 18 Fuji Speedway
TBA Korea
July 13 Fuji Speedway
Aug 24 Twin Ring Motegi
Sept 14 Autopolis
Sept 28 Sportsland Sugo
Nov 9 Suzuka Circuit
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Super
Formula 2014 specs
Chassis: Dallara SF14
Engine: 2.0-litre turbo with Hybrid system
Engine: 2.0-litre turbo with Hybrid system
Power: 550bhp
Weight: 650kg (inclusive of driver)
Gearbox: Ricardo six-speed paddle shift
Brakes: Brembo
Weight: 650kg (inclusive of driver)
Gearbox: Ricardo six-speed paddle shift
Brakes: Brembo
Tyres: Bridgestone
