A1GP news

Title rivals grab Sydney poles

The 2007/08 A1GP title race continues to be exciting, with the main protagonists all at the front of the grid for both races at tomorrow's A1GP Sydney, Australia.

A1 Team France put in a superb performance to qualify in pole position for tomorrow morning's Sprint race while the Feature race will be led off the grid by championship leader New Zealand. 

Sprint race qualifying
Loic Duval continued to impress the packed grandstands at Eastern Creek, clocking the fastest lap during the first 15-minute qualifying segment which was good enough to take pole for France in tomorrow morning's Sprint race.

'The top step of the podium is our target,' Duval said. 'This is maybe my last weekend in A1GP so I would like to leave the series with a win. We are in the best position for the Sprint race which makes it easier for the start. We are quite competitive and we are always fighting from the front. If we can get a good start tomorrow morning it's going to be difficult for the other drivers to attack us.'

Switzerland's Neel Jani, who has been struggling with grip levels and tyre wear this weekend, returned to his usual fine form to set the second quickest time during Q2 and line the Swiss car up alongside Duval on the front row.

South Africa's Adrian Zaugg qualified in third position while New Zealand's Jonny Reid will start the race from fourth place on the second row. China's Congfu Cheng and USA's Jonathan Summerton will line up on the third row of the grid in fifth and sixth place respectively.

Feature race qualifying
Having completed qualifying for the Sprint race in cloudy and humid conditions, the drivers were greeted by sunshine and blue skies when they took to the track five minutes later.

New Zealand's Jonny Reid put in a sensational performance to snatch pole position from title rival Switzerland's Neel Jani by 12 thousandths of a second. Reid was one of the first drivers on track in Q4 and set a time that claimed the first Feature race pole of his A1GP career and his fourth pole position overall. 'We struggled to get a gap in qualifying one for the Sprint race and after that we changed our game plan and made sure we got clean, clear runs,' Reid said.

'The car's great and I'm extremely satisfied we've taken pole position. I was only able to qualify second here last year but this year we're on pole and I'm really pleased. Qualifying is one thing and racing is another but the car feels good and I'm confident with the team and I'm sure we can put in a strong performance tomorrow.'

Jani's second place in both races was an strong turnaround in form, considering poor lap times in practice. 'Basically I was on average one and a half seconds slower than the guys next to me on every lap,' Jani said.

'We tried everything, we changed everything on the car and the mechanics had a long night session to see what the problem could be. The last thing we changed for qualifying was the tyres and my first lap on new tyres was two and a half seconds quicker than I ever was on the circuit so far. It was a shock to me in those first laps to feel that grip and how different the car was. In the end we still missed pole but we were close so it was a big change for me.'

After failing to set a time in the first qualifying segment due to being held up by the Lebanese car spinning off at turn four, Great Britain's Robbie Kerr, who is without his race engineer this weekend, made a good recovery to qualify in third position for the Feature race.

GBR race engineer James Goodfield suffered a broken leg on Friday night when he was hit by a tyre gun hose that became disconnected when the Portuguese crew in the next door garage were practicing their pit stops.

A1 Team China's Congfu Cheng, who is having a great weekend, will line up in fourth place on the second row. A year on from the team's first podium finish at Eastern Creek, China enjoyed one of its most competitive qualifying sessions to date, topping the time sheets in the third qualifying segment.

Sprint race pole-sitter France's Loic Duval took the fifth spot ahead of South Africa's Adrian Zaugg, who will start from sixth.

Home nation A1 Team Australia's John Martin will start the Sprint race from ninth, the nation's best qualifying performance so far this season and first top ten start on home soil. Martin will start the Feature race from 15th.

more news

• 23 Jul.
  • A1GP Team Italy presents new car
• 22 Jul.
  • Mugello looking forward to season opener
• 21 Jul.
  • South Africa race to be in Gauteng
  • Michein become ofice tyre supplier to A1GP
• 03 Jul.
  • Team Portugal signs Albuquerque
• 27 Jun.
  • Brazilian President backs plans for A1GP in South America
• 25 Jun.
  • Cheng: A1 Team China should find a partner
• 23 Jun.
  • HD quality for A1GP fans
• 13 Jun.
  • Ferrari's A1GP car continues testing
• 09 Jun.
  • A1GP reveals new calendar
  • Two big tests planned for A1GP teams
• 29 May
  • Ammermuller looks back at interesting season
• 27 May
  • First shakedown for Ferrari powered A1GP chassis
• 13 May
  • A1GP reveals first drawing 2008/2009 chassis
• 06 May
  • Jani: Greatest moment in my career
• 04 May
  • Germany left deflated at Brands Hatch
  • Britain snatches championship bronze at home
  • France loses third to Britain in finale
  • Dutch hope for more than seventh next year
  • India takes dramatic victory in feature race
  • Photos: Sunday at Brands Hatch
  • Britain takes home sprint victory
  • Switzerland clinches 2008 title
• 03 May
  • Ireland confident starting from second row
  • Disappointment for Dutch
  • Germany hoped for more from qualifying
  • Kerr fancies chances after taking pole
  • Britain and India clinch poles
  • Photos: Saturday at Brands Hatch
  • China sets surprise practice pace
  • Photos: Friday at Brands Hatch
• 02 May
  • Team GBR lifted by practice pace
  • Netherlands happy with first day
  • France looking for improvement
  • Britain on top at home
  • Mallya hits back at A1 GP boss
• 24 Apr.
  • Martinez to race at Brands Hatch
• 20 Apr.
  • A1GP to hit streets of London next weekend
• 14 Apr.
  • A1 Team Korea to join World Cup of Motorsport next season
• 13 Apr.
  • Switzerland moves in on title, despite gearbox problem

Homepage