Karthikeyan
Kumar Ram Narain Karthikeyan is the first Formula One motor racing driver from India. He has previously competed in A1GP, and the Le Mans Series. He made his Formula One debut in with the Jordan team, and was a Williams F1 test driver in and Like several other former F1 drivers, Karthikeyan moved to stock car racing and drove the #60 Safe Auto Insurance Company Toyota Tundra for Wyler Racing in the0NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. In he returned to with the HRT team, continued with the team in and was expected to drive for them in the season as well. However, HRT was not included in the FIA's entry list, and thus Karthikeyan was left without a drive. In , Karthikeyan raced in the Auto GP series, securing 5 wins and 4 pole positions with Super Nova Racing. ForKarthikeyan has signed up with Team Impul, to race in the Japanese Super Formula series.[3]Karthikeyan was born in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. Karthikeyan did his schooling at Stanes Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School in Coimbatore. Karthikeyan's interest in motorsport began at an early age, as his father was a former Indian national rally champion winning South India Rally seven times. He is also related to the late S. Karivardhan, India's most famous racing driver until Karthikeyan came along. With the ambition of becoming India's first Formula One driver, Karthikeyan finished on the podium in his first ever race, at Sriperumpudur in a Formula Maruti . He then went onto the Elf Winfield Racing School inKarthikeyan started in the Formula Nippon Championship, finishing the year amongst the top ten. In the same year, he became the first Indian to ever drive a Formula One car, testing for the Jaguar Racing team at Silverstone on 14 June. Impressed with his performance, he was then offered a test drive in the Jordan-Honda EJ11 at Silverstone in September. Karthikeyan again tested for Jordan, at Mugello in Italy on 5 October, finishing just half a second off the pace off Jordan's lead driver Jean Alesi.