Ace Indian driver Karun Chandhok is set to return to the historic Le Mans 24 hours race in June this year for his third successive appearance for Murphy Prototypes team.
Chandhok, who was the first Indian to drive in the Le Mans 24 hours in 2012, will compete in Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) category alongside GP2 driver Nathaniel Berthon and Mark Patterson.
“Le Mans is one of the greatest races in the world and my ambition to be the first Indian on the podium is still burning strongly within. I am happy to be back with Murphy Prototypes as we have always worked really well together,” Chandhok said.
“Nathanael (Berthon) was very quickly up to speed last year and now has a year of sportscar racing under his belt and Mark (Patterson) has improved a great deal from when we raced together in 2013 so I think we have got a strong line up.”
Chandhok will add the Le Mans 24Hours to his existing program in the FIA Formula E series with Mahindra Racing.
“We are still half way through the Formula E season and there’s plenty of work to do there with Mahindra Racing, but equally, pursuing my career in Sportscars is still very important to me. There are more and more manufacturers coming into Sportscar racing and having a good result in LMP2 is the perfect way to put yourself back in the shopping window for a full factory drive.”
Team owner Greg Murphy was excited about having Chandhok back with the team.
“We work well together and we also drive each other mad, but it’s because we have an equally strong ambition to succeed at the biggest race in the world. Apart from obviously being quick, Karun has proven to be a real team player for the past two years at Le Mans for us and this is the main reason I keep pushing for him to join the team,” he said.
“For the first time, we are heading to Le Mans with all three drivers having previous Le Mans experience and this is very important I think.”
