India’s ace Formula One driver Narain Karthikeyan from Coimbatore will partner former F1 driver Kamui Kobayashi at Team Le Mans for the 2016 Super Formula season in Japan this April.
Le Mans is one of the front-running teams in what is the fastest motor-racing championship outside of F1. It has had the likes of Keke Rosberg, Riccardo Patrese and Johnny Herbert, to the Schumacher duo (Michael and Ralf) in its roster over the years.
Narain grabbed the opportunity to race in his third Super Formula season with Team Le Mans just after New Year.
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The squad’s experience and resources will allow Narain to be a consistent Super Formula front-runner.
But his best result so far has been a third place finish at the 2015 season opener at Suzuka after qualifying on the front row.
“It was a good, busy off-season for us — trying to make things happen and soon we were able to come to a conclusion for the 2016 campaign and I am really looking forward to getting back in the car,” said an excited Narain.
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“Le Mans is one of the top Super Formula teams with a rich history and I want to use all their experience and know how in Japan to deliver a consistent and winning campaign,” he added.
Of course, being team-mates with Kamui Kobayashi will be a highlight as well — the Japanese F1 driver is known for his aggressive style particularly in the races and has already impressed the paddock on his Super Formula debut last year.
“Kobayashi is an extremely fast driver and will be a good benchmark, he was on the F1 podium at Suzuka [2012] and coupled with his experience on other Japanese circuits, will be a formidable team-mate and rival,” Narain stated.
“Of course we will work together to get the best results for the team, pushing each other throughout”, he said.
Thanks to the Karthikeyan-Kobayashi duo, Team Le Mans will be the only team on the grid boasting of F1 drivers on both sides of their garage.
Super Formula pre-season testing will commence in March while the season is set to kick off on April 24 at Suzuka Circuit. The season will run through seven rounds held across six venues, with three of them — Suzuka, Okayama and Fuji — being F1 tracks.