Narain not to race for Spyker for the time being

London, July 18 (UNI) Former Indian race driver Narain Karthikeyan will not be driving for Spyker in the European Grand Prix at Nuerburgring, Germany, this weekend, it is confirmed today.

The Dutch-owned team today said Germany's Markus Winkelhock, who has been reserve and test driver for the team, will make his Formula One race debut on Sunday.

Winkelhock, son of the late Formula One driver Manfred, will be the fifth German on the starting grid and Spyker will be the only team in the paddock to run an all-German line-up.

Twentyseven-year-old Winkelhock replaces Dutchman Christijan Albers, whose contract was terminated because of a sponsorship problem.

Winkelhock will partner German rookie Adrian Sutil in Sunday's race, the 10th round of the championship.

However, the team have yet to announce a long-term replacement for Albers, with Narain Karthikeyan and Austrian Christian Klien both in the frame.

''At present Markus is only confirmed for the European Grand Prix and we will review the situation once more after the weekend. We are still considering other drivers for the permanent role, Markus is obviously still one of them,'' Spyker team principal and managing director Colin Kolles said in a team statement.

''It's very much a one-off race at the moment as we need some more time to decide who will be Adrian's partner for the rest of the year,'' he added.

Kolles said Markus was chosen for the time being as he already has knowledge of the car from his tests this year and was already integrated into the team.

'It is very fitting that he (Markus) has the chance to finally race after being the team's reserve driver for the past two years, particularly in front of his home crowd in Germany. I believe that in Adrian and Markus we have a young, dynamic line-up who are hungry for success and will fight to achieve the best results they can.'' ''Obviously it's a dream come true,'' Winkelhock said.

''I haven't had much time in the car this year but I'm physically and mentally prepared. It's a one-off opportunity at the moment and I will make the most of it.'' UNI