I am more confident this time around: Karthikeyan

Paris: The suspense surrounding the second driver at HRT has finally ended with the team confirming Narain Karthikeyan as the teammate of Pedro de la Rosa for 2012. Karthikeyan, who made a comeback to Formula One last year, spoke to IBNlive.com about the season ahead.

Congratulations on being confirmed as the second driver at HRT. Your reaction.

I am obviously excited. Continuity is something I never had before in my career. Continuing with the same team therefore is good. There have been management changes. It's a completely new car and there is no carry forward from the 2011 car. The team has a very experienced driver in the form of Pedro de la Rosa. He has lots of knowledge from his vast experience with a front-running team. It's a serious team which has been structured in a great manner.

You will be pairing up with Pedro de la Rosa. How do you see him being your teammate?

I don't know Pedro much but my first ever F1 test was in a Jaguar in 2001 when Pedro was the team driver. He is a good and experienced driver. We will push each other for the team to move forward.

What has changed from last year and now as far as you and the team are concerned?

Last year was the first time for me in F1 after five years. At the end of the day, it was a very tough thing. At the Indian GP, I proved how fast I was even when teamed up with a fast, young driver. It was a big boost for my confidence. This year, I go in as a much more confident driver. As far as the team is concerned, there have been lot of management changes. There is lot of stability in the team as well.

How is the 2012 car shaping up?

It will be a completely new car. It is shaping up quite well. There are some final crash tests that have to be passed. After that we are all set to go.

What are your targets for this year?

The target is to do better than last year. The other objective is to have a consistent year and achieve the maximum possible result. We all believe that this year's package will be an improvement over last year. However, we won't be able to find out how much of an improvement there has been till the first race.

You are the only Indian driver on the grid. How important is this for increasing the interest in F1 in India?

Indian fans do relate to Indian drivers. Being the Indian driver on the grid is a fantastic feeling and motivates me to give my best.