31/01/2007
NEWS STORY
A1 Team Malaysia will return to A1GP World Cup of Motorsport racing action this weekend, with the seventh round of the Series taking place in Sydney, Australia. Alex Yoong will be making a return to the Eastern Creek raceway, a track that the series visited in the first season of A1GP.
The team were on strong form in last year's event and are determined to repeat this level of performance for their return visit. A tough weekend in New Zealand two weeks ago may have left the Malaysian team without any points but it hasn't deterred the team from pursuing their goals.
Yoong enjoys the Sydney track and previews the weekend saying, "I was quickly able to get to grips with this track last year and I'm expecting this to be an advantage for us this time. Tyre pressures were really important here and that's one thing we'll be concentrating on. Apart from the all-important car setup, it's my job to get the most from the car and it's a track that I can attack on and, although overtaking isn't easy, there are some places which offer good opportunities and I'll be using these wherever possible."
Says A1 Team Malaysia Chief Executive, Jack Cunningham; "New Zealand was a small setback for us, although we managed to maintain our 6th position in the overall standings. There are quite a few teams challenging us for sixth, but we're also in touch with the leaders, so the competition is fierce. We need to respond to the challenges and this weekend will be totally focused on putting in the level of performance that we've shown earlier in the season. Our team is one of the best in the paddock, so we can take the fight to our rival nations, and we all hope to be leaving Australia with more championship points.
Fairuz is not available this weekend, which is a shame for us but he is needed in Europe this week to complete his arrangements for the upcoming season in Europe. We hope to have him back, perhaps in Durban, as his commitments allow."
Fauzy says, "As much as I would love to be in the car on this exciting tight, twisty track, assisting the team, I have some commitments in Europe that need my attention and therefore I will not be at Sydney. I wish Alex and the ream all the very best and I will be watching the results as they come in even if it is late at night for me in Europe."
Eastern Creek Raceway, situated 40 kilometres from central Sydney, is a circuit popular for Australian V8 races. At just under four kilometres in length, running anticlockwise with 12 turns to challenge the field of drivers, the track is another exciting challenge for the A1GP field. Last year's event produced some spectacular racing and the strong crowd, with one of the most diverse range of nationalities seen in A1GP, were enthusiastic supporters of the Series.
This weekend features historic racing, Australian Formula 3 and GT championship races alongside the A1GP Sprint and Features races. The 50 A1 racing cars have been air-freighted from New Zealand and will be out on track for practice on Friday, with qualifying on Saturday and race day on Sunday.