Ireland

A strong performance from Michael Devaney in the inaugural A1 Grand Prix of Nations ended in disappointment for A1 Team Ireland when the Dubliner was pushed out on lap one of the Feature Race while in 6th position. Earlier in the day Devaney finished 10th in the Sprint Race, rising from 12th place on the grid to score A1 Team Ireland its first championship point, the team delighted with his pace and the car's performance.

Michael Devaney: "Although I scored that point in the Sprint Race I am absolutely disappointed with what happened in the Feature Race because we were confident of doing well. I made a really good start from 10th to grab sixth through Paddock bend and I knew from the first race that we had the pace to be really competitive. Unfortunately as I came down into Graham Hill bend someone ran into me from behind – Switzerland I think – and put me out of the race. I feel like we've come away with little to show that in reality we are right there in terms of performance. But at least A1 Team Ireland can go into the second round knowing it can be right there at the front."

Andy Miller, Technical Director: "It's been a very promising weekend all round and Michael did an excellent job in both the Sprint Race and the start of the Feature Race. Considering this was his first time here he did everything that was asked of him and we were right there on the pace. It's a shame that we were taken out by Switzerland but incidents happen and you just have to pick yourself up. At least we go to Germany knowing we can be on the pace and that with Michael and Ralph Firman we have a strong driver line-up for the season ahead."

Mark Gallagher, Team Principal: "The sense of disappointment in the team shows how high the expectations of A1 Team Ireland are, but in reality we should be delighted with the fact that we scored our first championship point and showed that we can be highly competitive. Michael Devaney has established his credentials here this weekend and I'd like to thank him for the job he did. At 20 years of age it's a lot of pressure to make your debut at this level and representing your country, but he took it all on his shoulders and did the professional job we expected."

Brazil

Nelson Piquet Jr put in an outstanding performance for Team Brazil this weekend in the inaugural A1 Grand Prix of Nations at Brands Hatch. He completed a perfect quad of accolades, with pole position, fastest lap and two stunning race wins. Nelson's performance for his nation gained a maximum point haul from the weekend of 21, putting Team Brazil firmly at the top of the table.

After securing pole position in a commanding display in yesterday's four-part qualifying, Nelson dominated the 18-lap sprint race, scoring a lights to flag victory for Team Brazil, and finishing some 2.440s faster than the France entry with Alexandre Premat at the wheel. It was a fantastic win for the 20-year-old Brazilian, who has been able to demonstrate his driving talent on a completely level playing field, amongst former F1 drivers and several of his closest GP2 rivals.

Using the results from the sprint race to form the grid, today's 38-lap feature race therefore began with Brazil on pole. The second race looked set to be a tough battle for the drivers, as compulsory pitstops came into play, in which teams are required to change all four wheels. Nelson got off to a fantastic start and by lap 13 was almost 11 seconds ahead of his nearest challenger, Australia. On lap 14 the safety car was deployed and Brazil chose that moment to carry out its pitstop. This proved costly as Australia and GB also pitted at that time, but a stuck wheel for Brazil meant Nelson emerged in third place. On lap 17 the GB car piloted by Robbie Kerr pulled to the side of the track and retired, leaving only Australia in front.

The two pulled away from the rest of the pack and from then on it was a fight which saw Nelson all over the Team Australia entry of Will Power. It looked set to be only a matter of time before Brazil regained the lead, and sure enough, with ten laps to go, Nelson pulled off an awesome overtaking manoeuvre at Surtees, and pulled away at the front. He built up a commanding lead, and crossed the finish line 11.330 seconds quicker than Team Australia.

Nelson Piquet Jr: "I am very very happy. The first race felt like it was my first ever win! I had some oversteer but I just concentrated on keeping the car on the track, I knew no-one would overtake me. Then between the races we changed the set-up quite a lot for the second race. The team struggled in the pitstop when the wheel got stuck and I had a few complications after the first safety car when New Zealand was ahead of me but I was a lap in front but he didn't get the blue flag, which I think lost me around ten seconds. I was a little bit lucky because Robbie Kerr fell off for Great Britain then I just started to push very hard on Australia. I was faster than him and the team said to me to keep pushing because he would make a mistake, which he did. I was very close to him, had a better exit and when he went to the inside, I knew there was nothing behind me so I took the risk, went on the outside and braked as late as I could and passed him. It was just a perfect weekend for the team and I'm so happy to be able to do this for Brazil. I think to do well on an A1 weekend, everything needs to work well within the team from qualifying. That's what happened with us this weekend so I see no reason why we can't continue when we go to Germany in two weeks time."

USA

With its distinctive red-white-and-blue colors of its "We the People" car whizzing past a sold-out crowd at Brands Hatch, A1 Team USA had its sights set high going into the first ever A1 Grand Prix, The World Cup of Motorsports. Early on team driver Scott Speed delivered, taking Team USA from near the back of the pack in 17th place up into the top five in the early stages of today's race. The success was short lived, however, when Speed was unable to avoid a collision in front of him between two other race cars.