In only his second Formula One start, Karun Chandhok, driving for HRT F1 team, managed a 14th place finish at the 2010 Australian GP at Albert Park. This is the second race for the team and to finish in 14th position is a commendable achievement. Chandhok managed to avoid all the mayhem around him in the first lap sticking to the inside line into the first corner.
An elated Chandhok commented “A big thank you to the team. To finish was very difficult today, and we are extremely satisfied to finish in our second race. I dedicate this finish to all the mechanics and engineers who worked so hard for this result since Bahrain, without any pre-season testing. This is a great day for the team and a great step forward. I am proud to have ended our first race. At the start, I could see a big accident happening in front of me and tried to keep to the inside to avoid trouble. I was able to avoid getting caught up in the aftermath and was in 16th. I pitted on the eighth lap along with the Ferraris and after that it was just about bringing the car home. Our aim was to finish the race and we achieved the best result we could do today. We have to keep pushing and working hard to ensure that we can fight with the other top teams.”
After a disastrous first GP weekend for Chandhok and HRT this race would have definitely boosted their confidence ahead of next week’s race in Sepang, Malaysia. Chandhok has been in impressive form this weekend excelling in both qualifying and the race. The changing conditions during the race made it hard for all drivers and with many drivers falling by the wayside, Chandhok drove brilliantly to make sure his car reached the finish line. It is hard to believe Chandhok is only in this second F1 race, given the maturity with which he drove.
Dr. Colin Kolles, Team Principal, commented, "This result, having Karun ending up the race in 14th position is a great step forward. We reached the goal with one of the two cars in the finish. I´m sorry for Bruno because he did a good job all weekend. Karun Chandhok drove the team’s first full race and finished in 14th position, which was really fantastic, especially in these difficult conditions. The team did a great job and brought two very competitive cars on the grid. Now we will keep on pushing and just focus on our preparation for Malaysia, where our season will really begin.”
