26/09/2006
NEWS STORY
A1 Team Indonesia will be the first and only team in A1GP with a pair of drivers who are also brothers. Moreno Soeprapto, younger sibling of the team's regular driver, Ananda Mikola, will participate in the new Rookie Session at each A1GP World Cup of Motorsport event this season.
Soeprapto, 22, was given his first taste of the A1GP car at last month's official pre-season test session and enjoyed the challenge of driving the 500 bhp racer, particularly with the support and assistance of his older brother. Following the test and the confirmation of A1GP's new rule to develop young driving talent with a rookie-only practice session, A1 Team Indonesia confirmed the addition of Soeprapto to the team.
Soeprapto says of joining A1 Team Indonesia, "It is an honour to be representing my country in this international motor racing series and it is an added bonus to be joining my brother. I've been closely following the progress of A1GP and my brother's performance with our national team and I have been hoping that I would have the chance, one day, to race for my country in this series.
"I didn't expect the opportunity to come along so quickly, but this new initiative from A1GP is a great chance for me to develop my racing skills and learn more about the A1GP car. I hope I will also be able to help my brother with useful information and feedback for him to use in his preparations for the races. When I am more experienced maybe I can challenge Ananda for the race drive!"
Mikola, 26, returns to A1GP racing buoyed by a strong test session at Silverstone where he ran comfortably in the top ten on the first day and is looking forward to the challenges of the new A1GP season.
He says, "I'm getting impatient, having to wait another week before I get in my A1GP car, and in fact my brother will get to drive it in the new Series before I do, as the rookie session is the first of the weekend! I'm very proud that I am being joined by my brother for this season. He is very talented and passionate about his motor racing career. I think he will be able to help us as a team to develop the car a little more quickly and learn from his session, while also giving him valuable driving experience in the most powerful car that he's driven."
John Allen, Team Manager, A1 Team Indonesia adds, "A1GP must be commended for introducing this rookie initiative, which is particularly helpful for teams such as the Indonesian one, where there are limited opportunities for young drivers to be exposed to this level of motorsport, on an international platform. Young Indonesian drivers can aspire to join the team at an earlier stage in their career and I hope that this will encourage more youngsters to become involved in the sport."