Narain Karthikeyan will be the only Indian at 2012 Formula One season that begins at Melbourne on March 18.

Deccan Chronicle can confirm that the Indian has been finally signed up by Hispania Racing Team to solve the last piece of puzzle in the 2012 drivers line-up which has six would champions in the fray.

The announcement from the Spanish team is expected soon and Narain will be holding a press conference in New Delhi on Friday afternoon.

It was learnt that Narain has a strong backing from his Indian sponsors to complete a full season unlike last year where he had to sit out in the second half of the season except Indian Grand Prix.

Spanish veteran Pedro de la Rosa is Narain’s teammate at HRT. The team is expected to start their pre-season test at Jerez in 2011 car and their new car will be revealed in Barcelona on February 21.

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Last year, the Hispania F111 did not make its debut until practice for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, meaning neither of their drivers (Narain and Vitantonio Luizzi) qualified for the race.