21/03/2005
NEWS STORY
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Team Honda Racing has announced that former Jordan driver Ralph Firman will race the Autobacs Honda NSX in the 2005 Japanese Super GT Championship. For 29 year old Firman this will mark a return to Japan where he won the 2002 Formula Nippon title and finished 2nd in that year's GT series.
"I am absolutely delighted to be working with Honda and have already enjoyed testing the Autobacs Honda NSX over the past 10 days. The car is extremely well designed and put together so I am sure we can achieve significant results this season. The Japanese GT Championship is very competitive due to the involvement of all the major Japanese car manufacturers. Driving the Honda NSX gives me a great opportunity - I know the circuits, I have had great results in the past in Japan and I really appreciate the commitment that Team Honda Racing has shown me."
Firman's team mate will be the Japanese driver Daisuke Ito and the first race of the season will be held on 27th March at the Oakayama International Circuit, formally known as 'TI'. The Championship consists of eight rounds, with seven in Japan and one in Malaysia.
This announcement marks Firman's return to full time racing since driving for Jordan Grand Prix in the 2003 Formula One World Championship. A former McLaren Autosport 'Young Driver of the Year', Firman previously won both the British Formula 3 Championship and FIA Formula 3 Cup in Macau.
"From a career point of view I am extremely happy to have secured a works drive with a major manufacturer team this year," said Firman. "After driving for Jordan in 2003 I was hopeful of securing a race or test role in Formula One last season, but ultimately I was let down and missed any opportunity to race regularly in 2004. That was immensely disappointing, but I enjoyed racing at Le Mans and testing the exciting new A1 Grand Prix car in recent months."
"I have never been more motivated and used the months of extra training last year to compete in the London Triathlon and participate in the BBC Superstars programme which was great fun. My objective is to give Team Honda Racing and the Autobacs Honda NSX the best possible results and also re-establish my career in single seaters for later this year and into 2006. That includes testing or racing again in Formula One and A1 Grand Prix."