Catchfence

Long before he was known as The Fastest Indian Alive, before he became the bridge to a massive untapped market, Narain Karthikeyan was a kid with a dream of driving in Formula One.

One major roadblock stood in his way: Karthikeyan grew up in India, where there were no tracks, no infrastructure, seemingly no avenue for reaching his goal.

“It was almost like a guy from the Sahara Desert wanting to become a downhill skier,” Karthikeyan said.

Turned out to just be a speed bump.

Karthikeyan overcame the restraints of proximity by using his tenacity and skill behind the wheel to become the first Indian-born driver in Formula One.

Now, he’s driven himself to another, perhaps even more unlikely destination: NASCAR.

- The Canadian Press