Chandhok - 2011 chances?

Hatari · 30th September 2010, 18:22

With the 2011 Indian GP, Karun is going to get a lot of media exposure

New rumor doing the rounds that Lotus are showing some interest in our fellow countryman. He could replace Trulli.
Doesnt seem logical though, if they wanted a rookie they would have done it this yr.
Instead they opted to pay both their drivers.

Hope Mallya is rethinking his driver lineup.
Luizzi has been a bit of a let down.

HRT looks unlikely.

What do u guys think?

mgh · 30th September 2010, 19:07

HRT has been unfair to him.
Mallya needs to strengthen his technical team more than his drivers. Even Sutil seems to think so, see
Adrian Sutil misses ex-technical director James Key | Bettor.com
Chance with FI for Chandhok is only likely if Sutil moves to Mercedes( in case MS quits) or Renault,. FI test driver Paul di Resta is rated as highly promising by experts, so even Sutil moving does not necessarily mean Chandhok gets a chance.
Replacing Trulli is possible.

nitrous · 30th September 2010, 19:17

IMHO, He's proved his worth, this year. I think that's mission accomplished.
He's not a C'ship contending rookie like Hamilton. But, he's really good and aggressive with that HRT contraption.
I'm quite sure he's bagging a drive for next year.

ajmat · 30th September 2010, 19:28

From what I hear on various pod casts, the F1 fraternity seem to have a good impression and rapport with him and he is highly regarded.

Only issue too many drivers, too few teams and too little sponsorship opportunities

McLaren Rulez · 30th September 2010, 20:31

Well to be brutally honest, Karun Chandok simply hasn't shown enough pace to warrant a drive in Force India.

He has been more or less equal on pace with Senna throughout the year. But in Singapore, Christian Klien, who hasn't driven an F1 car in ages, was able to get straight in and go between half and a full second a lap faster than Senna. And that was consistently the case throughout the weekend.

I hope, for Chandok's sake, that there were some extenuating factors that caused Senna to be so slow. But I doubt it...

Mpower · 30th September 2010, 20:59

Let me put it this way. If Chandok was a Brit or a Brazilian he should have been looking for an career change long time ago (like the first season of GP2).

But since he is Indian and Bernie/sponsors/media want an Indian driver, his chances are still good.

Grafin · 30th September 2010, 21:15

Heard that as many as 30 drivers has been signed for the 2011 season, so its highly likely that Karun is one of them.

Promising driver with a not so promising car i'd say.
I wonder how he'd fare with a potent car like the RBRs and Mclarens.

IIRC, he drove a RBR car around the Korean circuit(i guess) dint he?
Any development on that front?

Hatari · 1st October 2010, 10:59

Its very apparent that he's quicker than Bruno.
I feel he just needs only 1 complete season in a team with a budget for the entire yr
(Lotus & above) to prove his worth and get crucial experience.

Teams are so advanced technically that shining like Webber did in a Minardi (finished 6th in Australia!) is just not possible

HRT even dropped Yamamoto and brought in Klien due to funding issues! Yamamoto falling ill is rubbish

Newpunter · 1st October 2010, 11:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hatari

Its very apparent that he's quicker than Bruno.
I feel he just needs only 1 complete season in a team with a budget for the entire yr
(Lotus & above) to prove his worth and get crucial experience.

I don't know how you came to that conclusion but in the 9 races that they did together Bruno outqualified Chandok 7 times to 2. Ofcourse, Chandok seemed to do better in the races coz Bruno's car finished the race only 3 times out of those 9 race, while Chandok finished 5 times. Most of the times, Bruno was nearly half a second quicker in quali than Karun.

If you look at his GP2 performances compared to his teammates, he was no where on the pace either to warrant a seat in F1 :
2009 : Teammate Alvaro Parente ( championship position 8, points 30 )
Karun Chandok ( Championship position 18, points 10)

2008 : Teammate Bruno Senna ( Championship position 2, points 64 )
Karun Chandok ( Championship position 10, points 31)

2007 : Teammate Borja Garcia (Championship position 10, points 28)
Karun Chandok (Championship position 15, points 16)

I think if he wasn't indian and he ( and his father ) didn't have close relations with Bernie and others, Chandok wouldn't have got anywhere near an F1 seat.

I would like to see an indian driver in F1 too but I would prefer if that driver made it to F1 based on talent rather than connections and money. IMO, Narain is a much better driver than Karun, but even Narain didn't deserve a seat in F1 based on his talent.

KRf1 · 1st October 2010, 21:59

It is IMHO impossible for Karun to get a drive with Force India next year . Force India seem to preparing Paul di Resta in case Sutil leaves for another team . Liuzzi is already contracted for next year .

Lotus and Virgin might look at drivers which get sposorship but then again there might be people in GP2 with good money and better track records . There is also the army of ex F1 drivers like De la Rosa .

Even Petrov might be a free agent if Raikkonen returns with Renault , though it looks unlikely for that situation to arise.

I do like to believe Karun was faster than Senna . Its the race which counts in the championship and not qualifying , though qualifying might be a better indicator of outright speed on a single lap .

I hope he gets a drive next year . A team , a driver and a GP would make India quite a powerhouse in Formula 1 !

PAVAN KADAM · 1st October 2010, 22:22

Ferrari are more or less comfortable with Alonso and Massa

RedBulls are lethal with Webber and Vettel

Mclarens are doing fantastic with Button and Lewis

Mercedes would not drop Schumi and Nico for 2 more seasons.

Where does other drivers shuffle in the mean time. Sutil might not move out of Force India, But Force India needs someone better than Liuzzi.

bottle · 1st October 2010, 22:34

I remember reading somewhere that he has a chance at Lotus if he can bring in sponsorship money

Mpower · 1st October 2010, 22:45

FI might bench Liuzzi & do a one race special with him next year for Delhi-GP...just for the PR it can generate.

avi550m · 2nd October 2010, 06:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mpower

FI might bench Liuzzi & do a one race special with him next year for Delhi-GP...just for the PR it can generate.

I agree. That seems to be the most likely option for Karun. Isn't it strange that we keep seeing relatively recent ex-F1 drivers on commentary on Star Sports. (Alex Yoong and Karun)

anachronix · 2nd October 2010, 13:14

He might replace Liuzzi at Force India. I am sure FI is looking at options against Liuzzi, it would be great if its Karun.

30th September 2010, 18:22	#1
Hatari Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Calcutta Posts: 1,872 Thanked: 874 Times	Chandhok - 2011 chances? With the 2011 Indian GP, Karun is going to get a lot of media exposure New rumor doing the rounds that Lotus are showing some interest in our fellow countryman. He could replace Trulli. Doesnt seem logical though, if they wanted a rookie they would have done it this yr. Instead they opted to pay both their drivers. Hope Mallya is rethinking his driver lineup. Luizzi has been a bit of a let down. HRT looks unlikely. What do u guys think?
	() Thanks

30th September 2010, 19:07	#2
mgh BHPian Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 396 Thanked: 40 Times	HRT has been unfair to him. Mallya needs to strengthen his technical team more than his drivers. Even Sutil seems to think so, see Adrian Sutil misses ex-technical director James Key \| Bettor.com Chance with FI for Chandhok is only likely if Sutil moves to Mercedes( in case MS quits) or Renault,. FI test driver Paul di Resta is rated as highly promising by experts, so even Sutil moving does not necessarily mean Chandhok gets a chance. Replacing Trulli is possible.
	() Thanks

30th September 2010, 19:17	#3
nitrous Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2004 Location: UAE/Lon/Madras Posts: 6,965 Thanked: 325 Times View My Garage	IMHO, He's proved his worth, this year. I think that's mission accomplished. He's not a C'ship contending rookie like Hamilton. But, he's really good and aggressive with that HRT contraption. I'm quite sure he's bagging a drive for next year.
	() Thanks

30th September 2010, 19:28	#4
ajmat Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 14,861 Thanked: 27,962 Times View My Garage	From what I hear on various pod casts, the F1 fraternity seem to have a good impression and rapport with him and he is highly regarded. Only issue too many drivers, too few teams and too little sponsorship opportunities
	() Thanks

30th September 2010, 20:31	#5
McLaren Rulez Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Mysore Posts: 3,390 Thanked: 5,107 Times	Well to be brutally honest, Karun Chandok simply hasn't shown enough pace to warrant a drive in Force India. He has been more or less equal on pace with Senna throughout the year. But in Singapore, Christian Klien, who hasn't driven an F1 car in ages, was able to get straight in and go between half and a full second a lap faster than Senna. And that was consistently the case throughout the weekend. I hope, for Chandok's sake, that there were some extenuating factors that caused Senna to be so slow. But I doubt it... Last edited by McLaren Rulez : 30th September 2010 at 20:34.
	() Thanks

30th September 2010, 20:59	#6
Mpower Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 10,409 Thanked: 1,730 Times View My Garage	Let me put it this way. If Chandok was a Brit or a Brazilian he should have been looking for an career change long time ago (like the first season of GP2). But since he is Indian and Bernie/sponsors/media want an Indian driver, his chances are still good.
	() Thanks

30th September 2010, 21:15	#7
Grafin BHPian Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 218 Thanked: 2 Times View My Garage	Heard that as many as 30 drivers has been signed for the 2011 season, so its highly likely that Karun is one of them. Promising driver with a not so promising car i'd say. I wonder how he'd fare with a potent car like the RBRs and Mclarens. IIRC, he drove a RBR car around the Korean circuit(i guess) dint he? Any development on that front?
	() Thanks

1st October 2010, 10:59	#8
Hatari Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Calcutta Posts: 1,872 Thanked: 874 Times	Its very apparent that he's quicker than Bruno. I feel he just needs only 1 complete season in a team with a budget for the entire yr (Lotus & above) to prove his worth and get crucial experience. Teams are so advanced technically that shining like Webber did in a Minardi (finished 6th in Australia!) is just not possible HRT even dropped Yamamoto and brought in Klien due to funding issues! Yamamoto falling ill is rubbish
	() Thanks

1st October 2010, 21:59	#10
KRf1 BHPian Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: NCR / BLR Posts: 339 Thanked: 3 Times	It is IMHO impossible for Karun to get a drive with Force India next year . Force India seem to preparing Paul di Resta in case Sutil leaves for another team . Liuzzi is already contracted for next year . Lotus and Virgin might look at drivers which get sposorship but then again there might be people in GP2 with good money and better track records . There is also the army of ex F1 drivers like De la Rosa . Even Petrov might be a free agent if Raikkonen returns with Renault , though it looks unlikely for that situation to arise. I do like to believe Karun was faster than Senna . Its the race which counts in the championship and not qualifying , though qualifying might be a better indicator of outright speed on a single lap . I hope he gets a drive next year . A team , a driver and a GP would make India quite a powerhouse in Formula 1 !
	() Thanks

1st October 2010, 22:22	#11
PAVAN KADAM BANNED Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: NAMMA BENGALURU Posts: 5,602 Thanked: 2,549 Times	Ferrari are more or less comfortable with Alonso and Massa RedBulls are lethal with Webber and Vettel Mclarens are doing fantastic with Button and Lewis Mercedes would not drop Schumi and Nico for 2 more seasons. Where does other drivers shuffle in the mean time. Sutil might not move out of Force India, But Force India needs someone better than Liuzzi.
	() Thanks

1st October 2010, 22:34	#12
bottle Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Chennai Posts: 1,634 Thanked: 274 Times View My Garage	I remember reading somewhere that he has a chance at Lotus if he can bring in sponsorship money
	() Thanks

1st October 2010, 22:45	#13
Mpower Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 10,409 Thanked: 1,730 Times View My Garage	FI might bench Liuzzi & do a one race special with him next year for Delhi-GP...just for the PR it can generate. Last edited by Mpower : 1st October 2010 at 23:29.
	() Thanks

2nd October 2010, 13:14	#15
anachronix Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Madras Posts: 3,286 Thanked: 1,336 Times View My Garage	He might replace Liuzzi at Force India. I am sure FI is looking at options against Liuzzi, it would be great if its Karun.
	() Thanks