Ocean Racing Technology has secured a top driver contract for the GP2 Main Series with Indian driver, Karun Chandhok joining forces with the Portuguese team, making him the first driver confirmed for the outfit directed by former F1 driver Tiago Monteiro. Karun has two seasons in the series under his belt, which saw him secure several podium finishes and therefore brings great experience with him that will be decisive for the all new team in the GP2 Main Series.

“It is very important for Ocean Racing Technology to guarantee the presence of a talented driver such as Karun Chandhok. He is fast, a hard worker and already has some great results on different kinds of tracks. From what we hear, he always had an excellent working relationship with engineers and team principals that he has previously worked with and has won two races in the GP2 Main Series. It is extremely positive that he signed this contract well before the championship starts because this way we can immediately begin work for the Main Series.

For us, it is important that an experienced and fast driver like Karun puts his confidence in Ocean Racing Technology, which is a very young team. He is the driver we need to achieve our goals, which are to be competitive right away and consistently into the points,” Tiago said.

In 2007 Karun Chandhok triumphed in Spa, one of the most demanding circuits of the season, in just his first year in the championship with the Italian Durango team. In 2008 he raced with iSport International where he established himself as a front-runner with several good races, the highlight being victory at Hockenheim. He also received a distinction at the end of the year for the “Best driving style” voted by the fans of the series. Previous to that, Karun became the 2006 Asian Renault V6 Champion and was also at the front in British Formula 3 after becoming the Formula Asia Champion in 2001.

ORT is a new team in the GP2 series for 2009. It is the first Portuguese race team to compete in GP2 and is based at the all new Algarve Circuit in Portugal. Shedding light on his reasons for signing with ORT, the Indian ace said, "I'm very happy to have concluded a deal with Ocean Racing Technology. I've known Tiago for a few years now since we briefly raced together in World Series and of course he was Narain’s team-mate at Jordan. I really believe that having an ex-F1 driver running a team is a big plus as he understands what is needed from our perspective.”