Chandhok set to part company with Mahindra ahead of second Formula E season - MotorSportsTalk

Karun Chandhok is set to part company with Mahindra Racing ahead of the second FIA Formula E season following a difficult first campaign in the championship, according to a report.

Chandhok raced for Mahindra alongside Bruno Senna in the electric-powered series’ inaugural season, scoring 18 points – all of which came in the first two races – to finish 17th in the final standings.

Speaking to Press Trust of India, Chandhok revealed that he is set to step away from Formula E and will instead focus on sportscar racing for the rest of 2015.

“It is looking increasingly unlikely,” Chandhok said when asked if he’d be continuing with Mahindra.

“Obviously season one was a disappointment for us after a good start. We seem to have differing thoughts on what direction the team needs to go in to improve in season two.

“Ultimately Dilbagh Gill [Mahindra team principal] has decided he wants to experiment with some changes to the overall team.

“From my side I am going to step away and spend the next few months refocusing on my options in sportscar racing and also some new projects.”

Mahindra is yet to officially announce its line-up for season two, but looks set to retain Senna after the Brazilian led the team’s charge in season one and even played a pivotal role in deciding the championship at the final race in London.

PTI’s report also claims that Mahindra will be announcing its line-up for season two on Monday at Donington Park, where the first official pre-season test will take place.

“We are very close to deciding on the drivers for the upcoming season,” Gill said. “We have tested with a lot of exciting drivers in the past one month and we are evaluating who is best for the team.

“Whoever comes on board, the bottomline is performance of the team. Last year was disappointing to be honest. We did not perform to our capabilities. It wasn’t acceptable to anyone in the team.”

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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”