15/04/2007
NEWS STORY
Team Brazil
It was an action-packed afternoon in Shanghai at the penultimate round of the 2006/07 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport, with thrilling on track action, no less than three safety car periods, and the crowning of Germany as the champions after Nico Hulkenberg finished third in this afternoon's feature race. The race followed this morning's 10-lap sprint race, which was won by Team Great Britain, its debut A1GP win. Unfortunately things were not as good in the Team Brasil garage, as the squad endured another trying day, with Vitor Meira finishing the sprint and features races in 14th and 19th respectively.
Vitor began this morning's sprint race from 15th on the grid, but dropped to 18th after the rolling start. On lap three he passed Team Portugal for 17th and then moved past Mexico or 16th. After a collision between France and Canada, Vitor was up to 14th, a position he retained until the chequered flag, setting him up for a seventh row start in the feature race.
Team Brasil had a good start to the feature race, immediately up to 13th after passing a slow-moving China. However, on an eventful first corner, Vitor was forced to drive off track to avoid a spinning Team Mexico and fell down to 20th. After progressing up the order, he was closing in on Team Mexico on lap ten, but with the Team Australia car appearing behind and no space for the three cars, Mexico made contact with Team Brasil, forcing Vitor into the pits for a nosecone change. Once in the pits, the team also discovered suspension damage, and so Vitor came back out on track four laps down. He crossed the line in 19th position.
Vitor Meira: "When a weekend starts in bad shape, it can easily end in bad shape. It began on Friday when we missed practice, that's not an excuse, but after that we were behind an hour all the time. It was so hard to make progress in the sprint race, it's so short that it's over before it has begun really. I was really disappointed as I wanted to move up the order for the feature race so it was frustrating not to be able to do that. In the feature race, Mexico had a little better start than me but then he was on the outside on turn 1 and Australia came out of nowhere and there just wasn't space for three cars. I think Australia pushed a little bit more than he should have, Mexico left me no space and I touched with both of them. My front suspension was bent so my race was really done. The guys did a really good job fixing the car and we went back out to get some valuable track time so that we could learn as much as possible. I'd really like to thank Emerson for the opportunity and the Team Brasil crew for their hard work over the weekend."
Emerson Fittipaldi: "We lost Friday which was a very important day for Vitor to get used to the car and learn the track, so as a result we were one day behind the whole weekend. I'm happy with Vitor as he did a very professional job all weekend and he's a good driver. The team now needs to look forward to Brands Hatch."
Team Canada
Sean McIntosh capped his return to the 2006-07 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport with a brilliant drive for Canada from the rear of the field to sixth place at the checkered in Round 10's Feature race, hosted on Sunday at China's stunning Shanghai International Circuit.
In a performance reminiscent of his last-to-first Feature race victory for A1 Team Canada last February in Indonesia, the 21-year-old from Coquitlam, B.C. recovered from the disappointment of being taken out of Round 10's Sprint race in the morning, France's Jean Karl Vernay the guilty culprit, to steer his way from the final row of the 22-car grid through to a points paying finish in sixth in the Feature.
McIntosh had high hopes for the 10-lap Sprint race in Shanghai, an opinion shared by the Canadian team as they qualified ninth the day before, their first top-ten start since January's sixth round at the Taupo Motorsports Park in New Zealand. Sean grabbed a spot at the start of the race and was looking to secure a front-running starting slot for the afternoon's Feature race when France came steaming up the inside of the Canadian entry on the main straight with three laps to go.
Vernay's tricolor car rammed into McIntosh's right rear tire, the pair spearing off-track in the process. While the rivals rejoined it quickly became evident that punctures to both cars would curtail their participation in the final laps of the Sprint race, the two drivers to meet again on the back-row of the Feature grid. Great Britain's Robbie Kerr captured the team's second straight A1GP victory followed at the flag by New Zealand's Jonny Reid and Germany's Nico Hülkenberg.
Sean wasted little time in moving though the field from 21st as the lights flicked to green to start the 70-minute Chinese Feature race. By the end of the first tour of duty the Canadian had charged his way up to 16th and by lap 10, the opening of the mandatory pit-window, he had successfully broken into the top-ten running order. McIntosh climbed as high as fifth before he too darted into the pits on lap 15 for a full tire change, the pit-crew performing flawlessly under the pressure of maintaining their strongest showing in several starts. Losing virtually no ground to his rivals, Sean returned to the track in ninth and by the halfway marker on lap 20 had passed India's Narain Karthikeyan for seventh.
With the demise of Jonathan Summerton in the American entry, and the subsequent safety car period on lap 25, McIntosh broke back into the top-six. From sixth he comfortably held off Italy's Enrico Toccacelo while giving chase to Ireland's Richard Lyons ahead, the gap between the pair less than two seconds as they raced through to the checkered on lap 39. Sean's sixth place rewarded the Canadian team with five valuable points, the team now just two points out of the top-ten with one round remaining. New Zealand's Reid beat Great Britain's Kerr to the flag while Hülkenberg's third place performance was enough for Germany to be crowned 2006-07 A1GP World Champions.
"It's a great return to form for Canada," commented McIntosh. "The car was much better in the Feature race, probably the best it's been all weekend, and our pit-stop was phenomenal. We made some changes following the Sprint race and as a result I had the speed to overtake in a straight line. Overall I'm pleased with our performance and can't wait to get to Brands Hatch in two weeks time!"
Team France
It was a Sunday of mixed emotions for A1 Team France's Jean-Karl Vernay at the Shanghai circuit. In the first race he fought a fierce battle with Canada until he was hit and both cars went out of the race at the end of the seventh lap.
Speaking about the accident, Jean-Karl Vernay said, "Sean McIntosh hit me ¬ it was completely his fault. As of the first corner he was extremely aggressive. I was trying to pass, but he was being very risky in suddenly closing the door all the time. Then we were running down the pit straight at high speed and I was going faster and already pulling up alongside when he moved across hitting my left-front wheel causing a puncture and breaking my front wing. Thankfully my mechanics were able to put the car back together with some very hard work. In the feature race I was determined to move up the field and was already up to twelfth on lap ten. Then I completed my pit stop. Indonesia blocked me a bit and I lost time. But then I was able to get back in the rhythm. The end of the race was tough, Sebastien Buemi and I were fighting quite hard. It was good to salvage some points in the end for all my effort, but the position wasn't ideal for the team's championship ambitions."
Eric Boullier, General Manager - A1 Team France commented, "We were very competitive and are disappointed not to have scored a lot more points. We've got a lot of work to do in the final race of the season. Our qualifying position let us down and if we'd have had better grid position, we could have made more of our strong race pace. Three points is a good result having started from 22nd on the grid, but in Brands Hatch were determined to finish the season on a much stronger note."
Team Germany
Tremendous championship victory for Willi Weber and his A1 Team Germany: The German motorsport manager's team won the A1 GP World Cup of Motorsport at the tenth and penultimate round in China. Two third-place finishes in Shanghai were sufficient to leave the team with an unassailable lead of 23 points before the finale in Great Britain. As a result, Germany is the second winner of the Nations World Cup title in the 2006/2007 season after France in the debut 2005/2006 season.
A1 Team Germany started the sprint race from fourth position on the grid. Nico Hülkenberg made a move on American Jonathan Summerton entering the sixth corner around the Shanghai GP circuit, but he calmly fended off the challenge. In Turn 13 the waiting was over: The German claimed third position. Hülkenberg regularly posted faster lap times than the leading duo but was unable to find a way past Briton Robbie Kerr and New Zealander Jonny Reid before the finish of the ten lap sprint race.
The 19-year old Rheinlander from Emmerich started the feature race from third position. The leading group held station up to lap nine before the first cars peeled off into pit road to start the first round of stops. A1 Team Germany opened the round of mandatory pit stops together with Italy, Ireland and South Africa. A small problem while changing the left-rear wheel cost the team several seconds. Hülkenberg rejoined the race in 17th position after the tyre change. After all the competitors had finally made their stops by lap 17, it was clear that the German team had lost a position – Jonathan Summerton was again third. However, Germany moved one place up the leader board when the American retired on lap 25. Nico Hülkenberg crossed the finish line in third place behind New Zealander Jonny Reid and the Briton Robbie Kerr. With its 23 point advantage and only 17 left to be awarded, A1 Team Germany travels to the finale in Brands Hatch, Great Britain as champions.
Nicolas Hülkenberg: "I'm relieved that we have won the title. A big thank you to the entire David Sears team! We arrived in China with a 27 point lead, but it wasn't as easy as it looked. In the meantime, I have both the Formula 3 and A1 GP programmes swirling around in head, which doesn't make things easier. I was able to out-brake Jonathan Summerton in the sprint, even though he was running less wing and was quicker on the straight as a result. We did make some aero or mechanical changes to the car before the feature race, but the balance was not perfect. Also, the third Safety Car period fell just as things were going better for me. I lost a little momentum afterwards, so it was only good enough for third. I hope that we will be at the front again during the finale at Brands Hatch."
Willi Weber: "Congratulations and a huge thank you to the team for winning the World Cup title! I"m absolutely delighted that we achieved our target for the season ahead of schedule. We can travel without pressure and completely relaxed to the finale at Brands Hatch, where tens of thousands of spectators are expected and who will hopefully see the title-winning team in top form again. It was the correct strategy today to drive tactically and secure the points for a brace of third places. It was clearly visible that the car's set-up here in China was not absolutely perfect. In the previous races Nico demonstrated that he can regularly fight for victory. He can achieve better results that the one we recorded today. I'll be at Brands Hatch in a fortnight and perhaps we can round off the season on a high."
Team Great Britain
Robbie Kerr steered A1 Team Great Britain to its second consecutive A1GP World Cup of Motorsport victory today as the Burbage racer capitalized on his first pole position of the season to dominate Round 10's Sprint race at the Shanghai International Circuit in China.
Kerr, having watched Oliver Jarvis score the team's maiden win at the previous round in Mexico City, finally broke his A1GP duck to savor his own top step podium triumph having come so close on numerous occasions. His biggest rival all weekend, New Zealand's Jonny Reid, denied Kerr a clean sweep of the podium in the afternoon's Feature race, Great Britain forced to settle for second place behind the Kiwi team after a fighting drive but finishing ahead of newly-crowned A1GP World Champions A1 Team Germany in third.
Kerr's efforts in Saturday qualifying, where he snatched pole from Reid in the dying seconds of the fourth and final run, would ultimately pay dividends in Sunday morning's 10-lap Sprint race. With a clear track ahead of him Kerr controlled the pace to the line and fired himself into the first turn with his finger planted firmly on the PowerBoost button. New Zealand and Germany gave chase but Robbie wasn't to be denied his moment of glory for Great Britain as he coolly led the 22-car field all the way to the chequered flag for the team's second straight A1GP victory and his own personal best!
The afternoon's 70-minute Feature race would again see Kerr in commanding form early on despite two brief safety car periods disrupting proceedings. Robbie won the battle to the first turn and held the lead through to his mandatory pit-stop, the team calling him in at the end of lap 10. A well executed stop looked like giving Kerr the lead once the field had cycled through but a pass by New Zealand's Reid on lap 16 held the Brit in third with the leading car of A1 Team USA still to pit.
With the Jonathan Summerton pitting the American entry on the next lap Reid assumed the lead with Kerr placed second two seconds behind the Kiwi racer. At the halfway stage the gap had increased but a third safety car period on lap 25 eradicated Reid's five second advantage over Kerr in second and Germany's Nico Hülkenberg in third. The final third of the race turned into a sprint to the chequered with Robbie putting in a determined display to keep New Zealand firmly in his sights. Gradually closing the gap, Kerr's hopes of a last lap move were dashed as the race was called on time, one lap short of the predicted 40 laps.
Reid scored his third win of the season for New Zealand with Kerr second for Great Britain ahead of third placed Nico Hülkenberg – the German's performance, combined with his eight series wins to-date, enough to guarantee his country's first A1GP World Championship crown.
Reflecting on his best-ever weekend in A1GP Kerr said, "Well it's great to finally get a win, I'm really happy! It's a shame I couldn't get the double but second in the Feature's still a good result and helps cement our standing in the points. The Sprint race was really all about making no mistakes and controlling the pace which I did. We definitely had a quicker car towards the end of the Feature but I just couldn't quite get close enough."
"All in all it's been a good weekend," commented Team Principal John Surtees. "Robbie drove a very controlled Sprint race off the back of a very special pole-winning lap yesterday. He was very strong towards the end of the Feature but we just didn't quite have the top speed to make a move. Overall his performance today was faultless; the win's great for his morale and our recent successes bode well heading to Brands Hatch for the home finale."
Team India
The bad luck that has plagued A1 Team India in recent rounds was still evident today, when the team suffered from a first lap incident in the A1GP Shanghai Feature race. The team began the weekend well, setting times consistently in the top four all weekend, and qualifying fifth for the Sprint race. Karthikeyan went on to bring the Indian car home in seventh place, just outside the points. However, a great start in the second race of the day was soon spoilt by contact with another car, the long term damage of which led to Karthikeyan's retirement on the last lap of the Feature race.
Karthikeyan had a good start from his fifth place grid slot for the 10 lap Sprint race, but as the field closed up to head round turn one, the India racer was squeezed and A1 Team Switzerland found a way past. Karthikeyan then came under attack from Alex Yoong and the two former F1 racers enjoyed a battle for position, with the Malaysian car finally finding a way past India. Karthikeyan maintained his position to equal the team's previous best finish and cross the line seventh. With points only awarded for the top six in A1GP's sprint race, the team were left to hope for points in the Feature race.
Taking his finishing position from the Sprint race as his grid slot for the Feature race, Karthikeyan lined up seventh for the second race of the day. The A1 Team India driver had a good start to pass the Malaysian car off the grid, but as the cars filed through the tight first corner, the Indian car made contact with the Swiss and South African cars. The damage sustained in this first lap accident would eventually end India's race.
Speaking about his weekend, Karthikeyan said, "The Sprint race was ok, but it was frustrating to finish just out of the points. The Feature race was a bit more dramatic! On the first lap, someone hit me and my car was damaged. Obviously the floor and the side pod were damaged, but I couldn't tell how bad it was from inside the car. Then after a piece of the side pod came off, the car became very imbalanced and difficult to drive; it lost a lot of downforce and was slow down the straights. We were just going backwards so the team called me in and we changed the body work. Then on the last lap, I came around the final corner and the car just snapped to the left, there was nothing I could do and it hit the tyre barrier, I think something broke on the car. My races in China don't seem to go well, I always seem to walk away from a destroyed car!
"I hope our luck changes in Brands Hatch, I like the circuit and I've won races there before, but we'll have to see, you never know with racing."
A1 Team India seatholder Yohann Setna was equally disappointed after a good start to the weekend, "The Feature race was very frustrating, Narain managed to get past Malaysia at the start, but I think there was some contact between us, Switzerland and South Africa. When Narain came in for the pit stop we could see there was a crack on the side pod, but it was still intact. Obviously the vibrations through the car exaggerated the crack and a huge section fell off which badly affected the handling and straight line speed, which is why we were losing a place every lap. During the third safety car period we took the decision to bring the car in and change the side pod to try and salvage something from the weekend by going for the fastest lap. But coming out of the last chicane something seemed to break on the car, maybe the suspension, which could have been a long term result of the contact with South Africa earlier in the race."
Looking to the next race, Brands Hatch is a good track for Narain and we're looking to finish the season on a high note. We've had more than our fair share of bad luck; it's about time some good fortune came our way."
Team Ireland
A1 Team Ireland surged to 5th place in today's Shanghai A1GP race, driver Richard Lyons making the most of a new car built overnight by the team's mechanics after the A1GP organisers allowed the team to swap chassis.
Lyons, who had qualified a disappointed 17th yesterday in the car with which Team Ireland has struggled all season, finished 12th in this morning's Sprint Race to determine the starting grid for the main event. In the Feature Race he moved into 10th at the start and then overtook teams including Italy and Australia as a result of his speed on the track and the Team Ireland mechanics executing a fast and faultless pit stop. As the Irish A1GP car moved up through the field it closed on Team Netherlands for 4th and held off a challenge from Canada, Italy and last year's Champions France.
The decision by A1GP to provide Team Ireland with a spare car was made after team drivers John O'Hara and Richard Lyons had endured another series of uncompetitive performance throughout practice and qualifying. The Team made a formal request to A1GP to be given the opportunity to demonstrate that the car with which it was provided this season had an underlying problem, and so it proved.
Richard Lyons, Driver; "I am absolutely delighted and would like to thank team bosses Mark Kershaw and Mark Gallagher for showing faith in me during recent months while the team was trying to find the problem with the car. Also the mechanics did an amazing job building up the spare car for me to race last night. It was fast and reliable, so I had the tool with which to do the job. It was a really good race and we showed our ability."
Mark Gallagher, Team Principal; "Having been uncompetitive since the beginning of the season, with the exception of either wet conditions or slow stop-go tracks, it was evident in Mexico and here that there was something very wrong. We'd had our race chassis checked out by A1GP after Brno, which did not show up anything untoward, but there is no doubt that car did not work in higher load corners whatever we did. Our mechanics have worked brilliantly, our current drivers John and Richard have been loyal, positive and encouraging, and today the evidence of Team Ireland's situation was clear for all to see. This is a long overdue and well earned result for the team."
Team Lebanon
The A1GP World Cup of Motorsport completed its tenth round of competition this season in Shanghai today, with A1 Team Lebanon finishing in 14th position in the Feature race, the team's best performance since Beijing last year. The team took 18th place in the Sprint race earlier in the day.
The main race of the day, a 39 lap distance Feature event, was one of the strongest A1GP races for the Lebanon team this season. At the start, the grid raced hard to the first corner and Khodair was in the thick of the field. The team's mandatory pit stop was fast and the Lebanon driver was able to return to the field in 18th place, but having deemed to have had made a jump start, Khodair had to return to the pits to serve a drive through penalty. Returning to the race back in 21st place, Khodair again made progress and as the race continued, with a number of safety car period interruptions, Lebanon steadily improved on track position, with Khodair passing a number of cars, which included a bold move on home nation, China, which put the team into 14th place. The Lebanese car crossed the line in this place, to record the second best result of the year for the Arab team.
The earlier Sprint race took place in hazy clouds with the rolling start seeing the field power down to the first corner of this expansive Formula One circuit. With the A1GP Series opting to race on the shorter circuit the field snaked around the first long right hand corner and through the chicane with the cars shuffling around. Khodair dropped to 21st from his 19th grid slot in the opening laps but fought back, finishing in 18th position after the ten laps of the Sprint race.
Khodair summed his races saying, "For the sprint race we dropped back a little at the start but made back the places and then held position until the end. For the Feature race we made a quite few changes to the car, which was a little bit of a risk, but it was the right decision. The car had a much better balance and was easier to drive which gave me the confidence to carry speed through the corners. I'm also getting used to driving the A1GP car, so that's helping me to improve on my performance. I enjoyed the overtaking manoeuvre on the Team China car, that's fun! I'm pleased with our result and I think we can continue to make progress for the next race weekend."
Tony Snook, Team Principal, A1 Team Lebanon commented, "We're very pleased with Team Lebanon's performance this weekend, and particularly in the Feature race. It was a shame that we had a drive through penalty as it was likely that we would have finished in the points this afternoon. However, Allam drove well with a strong consistent pace that would have put him in the top ten on merit and from this weekend we leave having made significant progress and a definitive step forward."
Team Malaysia
A1 Team Malaysia were able to add another World Cup of Motorsport point to its tally with a sixth place finish in this morning's Sprint race, but missed out on further points by a whisker, finishing 11th in the Feature race, with driver Alex Yoong at the wheel of the team's car.
The Sprint race began with a rolling start, with Yoong using this to his advantage with daring overtaking through the first corners to pass the French and Indian cars to move up to sixth spot. Through the first lap he defended his position with India attempting to retake the place, but the experienced former F1 driver was able to keep his Asian rival behind him. The Malaysian team was able to hold position through the remainder of the Sprint race to take the chequered flag with another point-scoring finish.
In the Feature race Yoong started from his sixth place, but first lap incidents behind the Malaysian team brought out the safety car for three laps. On the return to green flag racing Yoong made a rare error, out braking himself in the run down to the first corner and needing the marshals to restart the Malaysian car in order for him to return to the track. Dropping to 21st place after this incident, Yoong began his fight back through the field. He made headway as the race progressed; climbing to tenth, but the mandatory pitstop put Team Malaysia back down to 17th. With the racing continuing at a strong pace, Yoong pushed hard, working his way back through the field again to finally finish in 11th place.
Yoong said, "The Sprint race gave us another point, which is important for us at this stage in the season, but I would have hoped to have finished higher. I made a mistake on the restart after the first safety car period, but luckily I was able to get back on track. As the track is good for overtaking we were able to make up some places, but we just didn't have quite enough pace to break into the top ten. The team, as always, did a good pitstop and we made up some time there, but it wasn't enough today and we'll be looking to improve for our final outing in the UK."
Jack Cunningham, Chief Executive, A1 Team Malaysia, commented, "Adding to our points tally and keeping in sight of Team France and ahead of Switzerland and Netherlands was the aim of this weekend as we strive to finish the season in as high a position as possible. Earning another point was important as this has kept us in fifth place in the standings. The Feature race was a hard fought race, with Alex driving well to recover from falling off the track early on and dropping to the back of the grid. We'll now turn our focus to the next race and prepare ourselves for the final battles of the season now. Wherever we finish this season in the top ten will be quite an achievement but our aim for Brands is to maintain our 5th spot if at all possible."
Team Netherlands
A very strong race has brought A1 Team Netherlands the fourth place and seven points. With this the team made up completely for the somewhat disappointing qualifying on Saturday. It was the debut for A1 Team Netherlands Rookie Renger van der Zande in an A1GP Feature race.
In the Sprintrace Van der Zande laid the foundation for points with a ninth place finish. From a fourteenth grid position Renger, who had a good start, immediately passed China and Italy and climbed more places after Canada and France retired.
From ninth on the grid Renger van der Zande was caught out a bit at the start after a battle with Malaysia of which Italy took advantage, but from that moment on the A1 Team Netherlands Rookie steadily moved towards the front of the field.
The start of the race was marked by multiple safety car situations after South Africa, Mexico and Malaysia went off. Because of the retirement and setback of some teams A1 Team Netherlands was able to make up more places. A super quick pitstop by the team brought A1 Team Netherlands even more spots forward. After USA Van der Zande was in fourth, right behind A1 Team Germany. At the restart of the race it became tense briefly because of Ireland, but Van der Zande kept his cool and brought the A1 Team Netherlands car across the finish in fourth.
Of course Renger van der Zande was very happy after the race; "This is great. With this result we more than made up for the qualifying. From P14 to P4 in two races, that is just super cool! I think that this was the maximum result for us. The changes to the car together with the team were superb, the race pace was there. When Italy went in I drove a couple more laps and that worked very well, tactically it was also perfect. I did push like mad, right until the last lap. Then you see that you are gaining places, also because of the pitstop. I think that the stop has never been this fast before, it felt I was only standing still for 9 seconds. The rest was staying out of trouble, grabbing the opportunities and setting fast lap times constantly".
Robert Hoevers, General Manager and again part of the pit crew; "We are very happy and also relieved, the whole weekend felt good, but that did not show during the qualifying, then you will see some doubts sneaking into the team. Fortunately Renger and the rest of the team kept working in a calm way and kept the faith. In the end the lap times in the Sprintrace, which were constantly around the 6th fastest time, gave a positive boost. In the Feature race Renger really got going and drove very consistent times which were around third of fourth fastest. The team also helped a hand with the fastest pitstop because of which we gained two places. Renger has shown that he is a true racer, very serious and determined, something we all already thought but now we know".
Team New Zealand
New Zealand driver Jonny Reid has won the Feature Race in the penultimate round of the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport in Shanghai to cement a top three finish in the overall championship.
The third win of Reid's stellar A1GP season followed a second place finish in the Sprint Race and an additional point for setting the day's fastest lap, scoring the New Zealand team 16 points out of the maximum 17 on offer in China.
Germany has taken the A1GP crown from France after scoring enough points to establish an unassailable 23-point lead on the points ladder.
New Zealand remains second in the championship, but Great Britain, 14 points behind, is still within striking distance heading into the final round on home soil at Brands Hatch in a fortnight.
Great Britain, with a win in the Sprint Race and a second behind Black Beauty in the Feature, was the weekend's other success story.
A1 Team.NZL head of engineering David Sears said the effort was quite staggering given high drama on the Feature Race start line. "We had to contend with a gear-box leak that only became apparent at the start of the warm-up with smoke billowing everywhere. Two bolts had sheered off and we were only able to get one replaced properly. We jury rigged the other with wire and could only hope it would stay on. We managed to finish up just 30 seconds before we had to hit the start line, yet Jonny stayed composed and focused throughout and the last ditch repairs proved incredibly effective.
Reid said the problem raised his heart rate, but he simply tried to stay cool. "Everyone was open and honest and let me know what was going on and the team did a great job in getting us out there on the front row, rather than starting from pit lane. I knew I had to nurse the car wherever I could and once I was in front I controlled the race and managed the tyres and gearbox to get us through."
Reid's confident passing of Great Britain into the first corner on the 16th lap of the race was described by Sears as "inspired" and the 23-year-old also survived a safety car period before taking the chequered flag.
Team owner Colin Giltrap was thrilled with Reid's effort and pleased to see his maiden win in person after missing Reid's two first placings in Indonesia late last year. "This feels pretty special," Giltrap said, "and we couldn't have asked for more from Jonny, his driving was faultless. We have to congratulate the Germans for their impressive season-long campaign. It would've been exciting to be heading to Brands Hatch still with a chance of winning the championship, but there will be plenty of motivation to fend off Great Britain and secure second place overall."
Team Pakistan
A1 Team Pakistan took part in the penultimate round of the A1GP season today, at the Shanghai International Circuit in China. On the long and technical track, Nur Ali brought the car home in 18th place in the Sprint race, but was forced to retire from the longer Feature race with an apparent technical failure.
Painted in national colours, the Pakistan car started the morning's Sprint race from the 11th row of the grid and did well to avoid numerous clashes on the first lap. Ali benefited from the mistakes of drivers ahead of him and crossed the line in 18th, the place he would also take for the second race of the day.
Today's Feature race was a typically eventful affair, with many more experienced motorsport nations such as Australia, Mexico and Brazil spinning off or failing to finish. Ali was pushing hard towards the end of the race when he spun off track, but managed to recover. However, just one lap later, the Pakistan car was forced to pull off track permanently with a suspected clutch problem.
Nur Ali commented, "I was very comfortable in the car during the Sprint race, my main aim was to finish the race, work on some areas we had talked about and improve our position for the Feature race. The Feature race was a little more difficult, my car was oversteering a little and the track surface seemed to change, I think it was a little dirty and lot of guys seemed to be going off. Unfortunately on the last lap I had a small spin, but managed to rejoin the track. Then we suffered further bad luck when something seemed to break on the car, which prematurely ended our race."
The Karrachi born driver has enjoyed his first race at the Shanghai circuit, commenting, "Every single track is new for us. But I enjoyed this race, there's a lot of long straights, some tight corners and it's given me the opportunity to learn yet another type of track. I'm racing in Star Mazda Series in the US next week on a street circuit and I'll be able to take the skills and experience I learnt at the A1GP street race in Durban and apply it to this race."
A1 Team Pakistan Manager Bobby Issazadhe added, "The Feature race was quite dramatic, with quite a few safety cars which I think helped Nur refocus and keep up with the pace of the rest of the field. Unfortunately we lost radio communication in the early stages of the race, which compromised our race strategy. We had planned to do an early pit stop, but we had problems communicating this to Nur and he didn't pit until quite late. However, the boys did a fantastic job with their quickest pit stop of the season, so I must say thanks to them for their hard work once again this weekend.
"Unfortunately we didn't manage to finish the Feature race, Nur was complaining of a problem with the clutch and had to pull off track. We have since found there's a bit of clutch oil leaking, so maybe a cylinder broke or something, but hopefully the car won't need a new clutch. The clutch pedal seems to be loose, but we're not sure what the problem is and we're still looking into it and hope to solve the problem before we head to Brands."
Team Switzerland
Sebastien Buemi finished the sprint race in fourth position missing the podium and achieving the goal he had set to himself finish in the points. In the 40-long feature race, Buemi was classified 9th.
Sebastien Buemi commented, "The sprint race was not easy. I took fourth place after two laps and had some fast cars ahead of me Great Britain, New Zealand and Germany. I was lining up to pass Germany, but USA was threatening from behind and I had to deal with them first and lost the opportunity to overtake Hülkenberg. I missed the podium but I do not think that I could have done better.
Buemi continued: "I had a good start in the feature race and I am glad to have scored another two points for the team. I completed my pit stop relatively late. I had a misunderstanding with one of my mechanics. We lost too much in the pit stop. I rejoined in 17th place. We had a lot of trouble with the rear right wheel and lost up to 20 seconds. It was a shame because we had good pace and I set the fourth fastest lap of the race. I really feel like in the feature race we could have made it to the podium had we not had the problem.
Max Welti, team principal, A1 Team Switzerland added: "Sebastien finished both the sprint and feature race in the points and scored five points for the team this weekend. He did a very good job in the sprint race. At that point we were expecting rain and the track was still a bit damp from last night. Sebastien's race was excellent and the car was fined-tuned for a good feature race. I feel equally sorry that a misunderstanding with a mechanics costs Sébastien such a long time. Sébastien is a tough racer. I am impressed by his qualifites. Well done Sebastien for this Chinese A1GP leg."
Team USA
A1 Team USA raced up front in both the sprint and feature races today, yet left the circuit with only two points for their hard work.
Rookie driver Jonathan Summerton made a good start in the ten lap Sprint Race, holding 3rd uncontested into the first corner. The flying German Nico Hulkenberg tracked down the We The People car, and made a diving pass to the inside. Summerton held firm, and repassed at the next corner. However it was Hulkenberg who ultimately took the spot, and was followed through by Team Switzerland. Summerton fought hard throughout the race, and finished 5th, taking two championship points.
"I had a good start, followed by a small problem," said Summerton following the Sprint Race. "We ended up fighting hard and holding on to 5th."
Starting 3rd in the feature, Summerton repeated his great standing start as in Mexico. He was in 4th place at the first corner. After two safety car incidents, the German car pitted for tires. The We The People car took this opportunity to lay down some flying laps before pitting at the end of lap 16. A great stop by the Team USA crew saw Summerton emerge from the pits in 3rd place, a spot which he held firmly until lap 25. Then, in traversing the chicane at turn 5, Summerton edged a wheel onto the grass, and lost control. The car pirouetted into the gravel. It was undamaged, but was buried too deeply to rejoin the circuit, ending a great run for the We The People car.
"We had a good start, and gained a spot before the Safety Car came out--that was to our advantage," said Summerton. "I was running quick lap times. That coupled with a great pit stop put us into 3rd position. I was holding firm until lap 25. I just touched the curb in the second part of the chicane as I put the throttle on. This threw me into a spin in turn six, and I ended up in the gravel."
"It was a tough way to end a great week, but we are pleased to be walking away in ninth place with two championship points as we go into the final race of the season," said A1 Team USA owner Rick Weidinger. "What happened to Team USA today on lap 25 is all part of motorsports. As an owner you learn quickly to expect the unexpected. We were running so well with a fantastic pit stop that moved us up one position. A short time later we were in the gravel. Jonathan continues to learn through these experiences. We will move this result behind us quickly and focus totally on Brands Hatch. There is still opportunity to move up in the championship points. We congratulate Team Germany on winning the championship this year-a job well done."
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