After a week in which Ireland's soccer World Cup dreams were ended and Jordan Grand Prix's involvement in Formula One came to a close, A1 Team Ireland carries the hopes of Irish fans from both sports as the team heads to Estoril, Portugal, for this weekend's third round of the new A1 Grand Prix series - The World Cup of Motorsport.

Given the fact that Switzerland was instrumental in ending Ireland's quest for the soccer World Cup, it is ironic that Switzerland has also been responsible for controversial incidents affecting A1 Team Ireland in the opening rounds of the series in the UK and Germany. In Brands Hatch it was the Swiss car driven by Neel Jani, which took Dubliner Michael Devaney out of the Feature Race, while in Lausitzring Jani caused consternation by appearing to overtake Ralph Firman under waved yellow flags.

"It's funny how every time we are on the track we seem to be fighting for the same piece of tarmac as the Swiss entry, but it's certainly been the case so far and following the football result last week we'll at least be trying to make amends by beating Switzerland in Estoril this weekend," said Team Principal Mark Gallagher. "The great thing about the A1 Grand Prix series is that we have the chance to take on 24 other nations and A1 Team Ireland isn't just hoping for success, we are confident we can actually take on anyone. We had a solid race in Germany last week, particularly in light of some of the technical problems we faced over the weekend, so we go to Estoril in a positive mood. With 8 Championship Points to our credit, alongside Germany and the Netherlands, we're going to work towards a top 6 result in both the Sprint and Feature Race."

Ralph Firman scored a 9th in the Sprint Race and 6th in the Feature Race in Germany, but the former Jordan Formula One driver arrives in Portugal fresh from a dominant performance in Round 7 of the Japanese SuperGT Championship which saw him secure victory for Team Honda Racing in Autopolis, Japan, on Sunday. The A1 Team Ireland driver now leads the Japanese series with only one round remaining.

"It's been a bit demanding combining my commitments in Japanese SuperGT racing with the new A1 Grand Prix series, mainly from the point of view of the travel and jet-lag, but the win on Sunday has given me a good psychological boost and I can't wait to drive the A1 Team Ireland car in Estoril this weekend. I have raced at Estoril before, when I took in a Porsche Supercup race about 12 years ago, but I won't take too long to adjust to the track. The main thing for me is that we learned a lot about the car in Germany and know we can make a good step this weekend. We are still paying for the fact that I had to miss the first race

in Brands Hatch because of my commitments in Japan, because although Michael Devaney did a good job for the team, I personally didn't have the opportunity to work with the team and learn about the car with our engineers until the second round. Now we are getting up to speed and I'll be pushing for a top 6 qualifying slot at the very least."

The 2.599miles/4.183kms Estoril circuit hosted the Portuguese Formula One Grand Prix between 1984 and 1996, producing some extremely exciting moments including the first Formula One race victory for the late Ayrton Senna and he still holds the lap record. The track gets its name from the nearby Estoril beach resort, close to the delights of the coastal town of Cascais, and the return of International single seater racing to the circuit is a significant moment from Portuguese motor racing fans. Their own national A1 Grand Prix team, fronted by Portuguese footballer Luis Figo, will no doubt be hoping for home success.

Andy Miller, Technical Director for A1 Team Ireland, is familiar with the track and regards it as a good challenge for driver and team. "The Estoril track has a couple of good challenges, such as the second corner which is very quick and you have to get just right, but also the bumps on some of the other turns including the last one, which leads onto the pit straight. You've got to find the set-up which will take those bumps but also give the driver the confidence through the quick bits as that's where you need to find the last fractions of the lap time."

A1 Team Ireland will be joined in Portugal this weekend by Michael Devaney, the 20 year old Dubliner having completed his German Formula 3 season by tying up second place overall in the series. He will be present in his capacity as reserve driver to Ralph Firman, and will be working closely within the team throughout the weekend, observing how the experienced Firman and Andy Miller work together.