Karun Chandhok’s car after the crash at the Monaco Grand Prix

New Delhi: Jarno Trulli, driving his Lotus car over Karun Chandhok’s Hispania, has alarmed F1 fans but the Indian driver says he was merely disappointed and not scared as it denied him a better finish in last Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix.

The Indian was running in the 14th place with four laps remaining when, trying to go past on the inside, Trulli drove his Lotus car over the top of Chandhok, who was seen ducking.

Even though his race ended there, the Chennai driver was later classified 14th.

“It was not scary but very frustrating. It wasn’t a pleasant experience at all. It was not the way I wanted to finish in Monaco which is one of my favourite circuits,” Chadhok said.

“In Monaco, I was driving my best race of the season in terms of pace. I was not only quicker than (teammate) Bruno Senna but I was the best among the new teams. If not for the accident, I could have finished the race a little better,” he said.

“Jarno was trying for a very opportunistic move but he later apologised to me for the incident,” he added.

The accident might have raised serious questions about the safety of Formula One drivers once again, but Chandhok thinks otherwise.

“Such incidents are part and parcel of racing. Being a driver you cannot worry about safety. Otherwise you cannot drive. I feel F1 is more safe than driving on the streets,” he said.

Chandhok said his performances in the first six races of the season has earned him respect from fellow drivers with the likes of McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and eventual Monaco winner Mark Webber of Red Bull inquiring about his well-being after the accident.

“After the accident, Lewis, Mark and Jenson Button came to me and asked me if I was fine,” he said. “Now there is enough mutual respect between me and other drivers. Now they feel that I deserve to be in F1. Now when we talk we talk as F1 drivers and not as one F1 driver and the other rookie,” Chandhok said.

Chandhok said not only his team but the entire F1 fraternity was happy with his showing and that for him every race was a learning experience.

“I am very satisfied with my performance so far. Malaysia and Barcelona were very satisfying because I got passed Bruno and competed against (Lucas) di Grassi of Virgin.

“The team is also happy with the job I am doing. You know people in F1 tend to be very critical about your performance but so far everybody seems to be happy with me,” he said.

“But I feel I am still rookie. Every passing day I feel I am learning new things about F1. So far, everything is very positive,” Chandhok said. (PTI)