The dream for any track racer is to be in the highest form of motorsport – Formula One. The path to get up there is arduous and only a determined character can make it in the big, tough world of motor racing. There may be failures and acid tests of a person's capability. Ultimately, the one who keeps a cool head is sure to reach the summit.

Formula One is exactly where Karun Chandhok aims to reach. The young man is determined to make his mark in the GP2 Series in which he is participating for the second year in succession. With Durango Racing, Chandhok finished 15th which includes a win during a Formula One racing weekend at Belgium last year.
It is more than necessary to prove one's worth in the GP2 Series, which is the direct stepping stone to Formula One. Many of the current drivers in F1, including Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, are those who did well in GP2. Chandhok is well aware of the realities.

Moving to iSport International for the 2008 season was a big boost for the 24-year-old. There have been some good performances from the 'Madras Missile'. In the GP2 Asia Series, Chandhok was seventh and third in the Dubai race but went down fighting to record a DNF and 13th place in the Sentul (Indonesia) event. At Sepang, which also hosted the F1 race last weekend, Chandhok was forced off after a collision in the first but finished seventh in the second race. He had qualified second for the first race but a software problem on his four-litre, V8, Renault car saw him start at the back.

What does he think of his show so far in the 2008 season? "There is no doubt that we have the speed. It was there to see in the qualifying rounds. To get good qualifying results needs a lot of effort and I have done that. However, that speed is not getting converted to race results," he said.

Confident
"I was really confident of doing well in Sepang after topping the timecharts during the test at the Paul Ricard circuit early in March. And in Sepang, all the big guys of F1 were there too and it was a good chance to be noticed. But then, I could consider myself slightly unlucky. Who could predict software problems in the car or going off the race after slipping due to rain. It just happens," he added.

These trying times have not dented Chandhok's determination one bit to make it to Formula One. That is the place he wants to be in the 2009 season. "I am hoping to make it to Formula One for the 2009 season. Again, this year, the car has the speed in qualifying but things are not working out so well in the race. It is very important to translate speed into results," Chandhok, who has tested for the Red Bull F1 team twice, said.
The next Formula One race is in Bahrain and there is also a GP2 Asia Series support race during the weekend. After that come eleven grueling rounds of the GP2 Main Series races in Europe. "I have to keep doing what I can to get noticed," he said.

Chandhok has raced in several series like the British F3 national class, British F3 Championship, A1 Grand Prix, Renault World Series, Asian Formula Renault V6 (the champion in the series in 2006) apart from several series in India. He is definitely enjoying racing in the GP2 Series since it is only one step below F1 racing. "There is very little difference between an F1 and GP2 series car. It is very technically advanced and good to drive. You get nearly the full feel of driving an F1 car except that the power is a little less here," he said.

Big leap
"Moving to iSport was a big leap in terms of performance of the car. The team has a totally different mentality, concept and engineering department. So, it is good to be part of a professional team," he added.
Chandhok is keen to put the disappointments behind him. "I am gunning for some race wins during the year. I need to prove myself and get ready for F1," he remarked.

It's now a mixed bag. Chandhok is showing speed but is falling short. Hitches are part and parcel of every race driver's career, a phase which Chandhok is going through. But make no mistake, the young man is focused, knows what is expected of him and is ready to do what it takes to be in F1, the series of his dreams.
Vivek Phadnis