After his Bahrain debut ended inside two laps, India's lone Formula One driver Karun Chandhok reckons finishing the race at the Australian Grand Prix would be a strong result for his rookie F1 outfit.
It took nearly a miracle for Karun and Hispania racing team to overcome huge odds, financial and otherwise, to put the car on the starting grid.
A bump on the Sakhir circuit prematurely ended Karun's F1 debut and the Chennai driver now is looking forward to a less roller-coaster outing in the March 28 Australian Grand Prix.
"I am really looking forward to my second F1 race this weekend. I have never driven in Melbourne, but I am a very quick learner," Karun said.
"Our next step with the team's engineers is to make the car reliable for the race. The secret of good preparation is to complete as many laps as possible on Friday to see where we are with the car. Finishing the race would be a fantastic achievement we will strive for," said the Indian.
The newest F1 team in the paddock, acquired by Jose Ramon Carabante in February and led by team principal Colin Kolles, joined without having completed any pre-season testing.
Kolles said the team goal was now to improve steadily.
"We have worked extremely hard since the Bahrain season opener. We have successfully repaired the damage sustained by Karun Chandhok's car and focused on building our car's reliability," Kolles said.
