25/04/2007
NEWS STORY
A nation's expectations rest on Robbie Kerr's shoulders this weekend as the 2002 British F3 Champion gets set to represent Great Britain in the season finale of the 2006-07 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport at Brands Hatch.
A1 Team Great Britain arrives on home soil riding a wave of season-ending momentum that's included two victories, Oliver Jarvis' Feature race triumph in Mexico City last month and Robbie Kerr's Sprint race win in Shanghai last time out, as well as a total of five straight top-two finishes dating back to February's Round 8 Feature race in Durban, South Africa.
Kerr came close to pulling off the double in China earlier this month having captured his first pole of the season at the Shanghai International Circuit. The Burbage racer's domination of the Sprint race followed hot on the heels of team-mate Oliver Jarvis' race win at the previous round, the British team scoring back-to-back victories and almost three-peating had it not been for New Zealand's Jonny Reid beating Kerr to the chequered in a thrilling Feature race in China.
With Germany sealing their first ever A1GP World Cup of Motorsport title with a round to spare, there's still plenty to play for at Brands Hatch with New Zealand and Great Britain battling for the runner-up placing. Slick team-work and some great drives from Jarvis and Kerr have put the British team within 14 points of the Kiwi team, currently sitting second in the A1GP Nations Standings, with a maximum of 17 points on offer this weekend.
Having passed last season's inaugural A1GP Champions, A1 Team France, and holding a 16 point advantage over them, Great Britain is all but assured third place in the standings, matching last year's accomplishment. Kerr, together with Oliver Jarvis's participation in Friday morning's ‘Rookie-Only' session, and the entire British crew will be giving it their all on native shores to reel in A1 Team New Zealand and push for a second place finish. Few would bet against Robbie Kerr and Great Britain becoming the first team in A1GP history to win on home soil given how close they came to achieving this when Brands Hatch hosted the very first A1GP meeting back in September 2005.
Kerr was robbed on that occasion of a potential Feature race victory by a mechanical failure having enjoyed the lead of the race. Buoyed by his first series win in China earlier this month, Kerr's keen to make up for last season's disappointment and take advantage of the home support.
"We're on a roll at the moment," stated Kerr. "We came close to pulling off the double in China a couple of weeks ago but it would be far sweeter to do it at Brands Hatch this weekend. Everything's clicked over the last few races and we've avoided the bad luck that stopped us from having a crack at the title this year. We need to go for the wins to get maximum points to overhaul New Zealand and based on current form I think we've got a great chance of giving the home fans something to cheer about."
A1 Team Great Britain Team Principal, John Surtees, shares Kerr's optimism ahead of the A1GP finale. "Robbie's had his fare share of disappointments in A1GP but he's always been extremely competitive, last season's race at Brands Hatch being a prime example! We're now seeing everything come together with better reliability, better teamwork and of course lately we've had better results including our first A1GP victories. I'm hoping our momentum is carried through into Brands Hatch, I believe it will and that should lead to a strong performance!"