Narain scripts a winning Formula

CHENNAI, April 26: Narain Karthikeyan, the 23-year old from Coimbatore, lived up to his title of the fastest Indian in the World'' when...

CHENNAI, April 26: Narain Karthikeyan, the 23-year old from Coimbatore, lived up to his title of 8220;the fastest Indian in the World8221; when he recorded a historic win in the Round 5 of the Autosport British Formula-3 championship at the Brands Hatch circuit on Sunday.

While becoming the first Indian to win a Formula-3 race, Narain also completed a phenomenal week-end. Apart from taking the pole positions for the Rounds 4 and 5, Narain finished second behind Brazil8217;s Luciano Burti in the first race after being nudged from behind, but swept to a spectacular victory in the next in which he spared an incredible 7.277 seconds to second-placed Alexander Yoong of Malaysia, according to reports reaching here on Monday.

The first and second positions in the two races on Sunday put Narain, who is supported by Kingfisher, Mobil, Tata and JK Tyre, in fourth spot in the Championship standings, behind leader Marc Hynes, Luciano Burti and Jenson Button.

Tough circuit: The short, 1.226 mile Brands Hatch circuit is reckoned to be one of the most demanding in Formula racing, and Narain, in the Carlin Motorsport Dallara F399 Mugen-Honda machine, earned accolades from all quarters for his outstanding driving.

In Round 4, Narain was an innocent victim in a mix-up between Matthew Davies and Burti. Davies bumped into Narain and later accused the Indian ace for driving 8220;like an animal8221; 8212; a charge he subsequently withdrew.

Although Narain, despite a couple of driving errors, managed to catch up with race leader Burti Stewart Racing, the Brazilian managed to hold off the challenge to finish first.

In Round 5, the second race of the day, Narain was at his very best and he simply annihilated the field by putting in some blistering laps, leaving the others to chase shadows.

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Record Timings: Incidentally, Narain clocked the fastest laps in both the races 25 laps each 8212; 42.901 seconds at 102.89 mph in Round 4 and 42.617 secs at 103.58 mph in Round 5 8212; over the 1.226 mile circuit. In the process, Narain8217;s lap of 42.617 was said to be the best-ever in a Formula-3 race at Brands Hatch.

After the race, Narain said: 8220;This is a good day for Indian motor sport and my country. Hopefully, people there in India will wake up and support me now8230;I got a good start, and the car was perfect and from then on, I could just do good lap times all the way through the race.8221;

In the past two years, Narain had a trying time in his efforts to rope in sponsorship from the Indian corporate houses few of which displayed even a cursory interest in this talented racing driver. But Vijay Mallya8217;s Kingfisher chipped in with a sizeable sponsorship, followed by the others.

In sharp contrast, the 22-year old Yoong is being sponsored by Malaysia8217;s Ministry of Youth and Sports, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Malaysian Airlines and a host of others, under the banner of 8220;Racing for Malaysia8221;.

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The Results
Round 4: Luciano Burti Brazil 1 18 mins, 18.430 secs; Narain Karthikeyan India 2 18:18.667; Marc Hynes GB 3 18:19.158; Martin O8217;Connell GB 4 18:19.487; Alex Yoong MAL 5 18:20.724; Michael Bentwood GB 6 18:21.000. Fastest lap: Karthikeyan 42.901 secs.
Round 5: Karthikeyan 1 18:00.604; Yoong 2 18:07.881; Burti 3 18:09.414; Matthew Davies GB 4 18:09.525; O8217;Connell 5 18:11.225; Hynes 6 18:12.168. Fastest lap: Karthikeyan 42.617 secs.

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