The Hindu : Sport : Narain finishes creditable 14th

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 25, 2005

Sport

Sport

Narain finishes creditable 14th

Vijay Parthasarathy

Rates today's drive higher than his 11th place finish in Sepang

CHENNAI: As he positioned himself on the starting grid in Imola, Narain Karthikeyan might have briefly gone back in his mind to the graveyard that was Sakhir, before refocussing with grim determination on the immediate job at the San Marino track.

For several drivers like Narain, Michael Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve this was always going to be a tough race, a race for redemption. Each had his priorities, yes - Schumacher was looking for an improbable win after a disastrous second qualifying session; Villeneuve, the 1997 champion, had endured a poor start to the season and was desperately in need of points.

As for Narain, he entertained no such pretensions. He was merely looking to finish; plain and simple.

As it turned out both Jordans finished, with Narain ahead of Tiago Monteiro, despite the Indian having no prior racing experience at Imola. Narain finished a creditable 14th in cool, overcast conditions - very different from those in Malaysia and Bahrain - a lap behind Fernando Alonso, the eventual winner, but comfortably ahead of Monteiro; which is what matters.

Speaking to The Hindu over the phone from Imola, Narain said he was very happy with his performance; in fact he said that he rated this drive higher than his 11th place finish in Sepang. "I'm pushing closer and closer to the pace and by finishing races I'm gaining a lot of experience and simultaneously proving my ability to last," Narain said.

As the season progresses, Bahrain (where his car gave out after two laps) is appearing like a blip as far as Narain is concerned; he's now finished three of his first four races.

Good start

Narain had a good start on Sunday and maintained his position in the middle, just behind the two Red Bulls. He drove aggressively, bouncing over the kerbs and, for a while, even managed to push Coulthard. The Scotsman managed to pull away; but by then, Narain had proved a point.

Meanwhile, the race finished in an anti-climax for the new-look Minardis; neither managed to finish. Both went out relatively early, and overall it was a bad weekend after the stutter during qualifying.

Narain said that he was convinced the Minardis wouldn't be able to pose much of a challenge for the remainder of the season. "Initially I was a little concerned that their new car could really push us," he said, "but after watching them here I don't think they can get too close to us. Their drivers made a couple of mistakes, yes, but crucially the car isn't much quicker than it was before; and certainly not quick enough to do us any damage."

Unfortunately Narain could only catch very little of Schumacher's brilliant drive today, from 13th on the grid to a second-place podium finish. "He lapped me only once, so I barely got to see him in action," said the 28 year-old, who makes no secret of his admiration for the great German driver.

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