Karthikeyan wants to be bowled over by home support

New Delhi: Indian Formula One driver Narain Karthikeyan says he is hoping to receive a similar level of boisterous support lavished upon the national cricket team at the inaugural Indian Grand Prix in October.

Karthikeyan, India’s first Formula One driver who last competed in 2005 for Jordan, announced his comeback Thursday after signing a deal with the struggling HRT team for a season and expects his home race to be the highlight of the campaign. “I’ve been through a lot in my career but to be a part of the first-ever Indian Grand Prix will a special moment for me,” Karthikeyan told the Hindustan Times newspaper. “I’ve always seen cricketers playing in front of home fans and how pumped up the support gets them. To experience over 100,000 fans cheering for me will be a surreal experience.“It will also be a great moment for Indian fans who will have a home driver and home team (Force India) to cheer for,” he said. “The chance to race in the Indian Grand Prix will be great moment and is alone worth a return to F1. The closest I’ve come to experiencing home support was in the A1 series’ race in Durban, where there is a large Indian diaspora,” the 33-year-old added. Bureau Report