A1 GP teams and drivers??

Does anyone know what teams are running what countries franchises? and who is driving for what country??

Yes.
I am sure someone knows :)

There is a web page with details...somewhere...

DKGandBH

Arden are running Team GB; I think Carlin are running Portugal's entry, with Pedro Lamy as driver. Not sure about the rest yet!

Greetings :)

Try these:

http://www.a1gp.com and http://www.a1gpdrivers.com

Cheers

Arden are running Team GB; I think Carlin are running Portugal's entry, with Pedro Lamy as driver. Not sure about the rest yet!


Both of those are correct

Isn't Carlin pretty much running everyone except Team GB?

Both of those are correct

Alan Docking running "Australia" and Ombra running "Lebanon" on behalf of Carlin

Racing for Holland running "Holland".

Thats good news, RFH are a crack squad and well capable of doing a good job in running these cars IMO, will be interesting to see just how good Jan Lammers and his team really are compared to guys like Arden and Carlin. :)

The links for the drivers and countries dont seem to work - I get the page but when I click on an individula nothings comes up. Is there an old fashioned list anywhere? Surely Lamy isnt considering driving? His heyday was 10 tears ago.

Lamy is the driver, yes.

He has raced continually for the last 15 years and is still only 33.

Lamy is the driver, yes.

He has raced continually for the last 15 years and is still only 33.

Thats interesting. I think he's a good driver, dont get me wrong. We used to race against him in Formula Opel-Lotus and he was lightning, just it seems a little late. Then again Lammers came back to F1 after 10 years so... It seemed like he was never quite so quick after he parked the remains of his Lotus in a tunnel at Silverstone in 94 tho.

Racing for Holland running "Holland".

West Surrey Racing running "New Zealand"

Alan Docking running "Australia"

or Christian Jones Motorsport?

or Christian Jones Motorsport?
Nope. Alan Docking will run the car, and Alan Jones will be the head of the team.

So a list of teams and drivers - anyone???

What was the point in starting this thread?
I have already started a thread on the A1GP Teams

http://www.ten-tenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=69567

This thread is about the teams who are running the cars, mabs_nsx, rather than the countries they'll represent.

So Kerr and Lloyd then...

Has there been a press release or something then Russfield?

It's on Autosport's site.

I think its pretty clear to see why Kerr and Lloyd were chosen above Rossiter and Firman if you read between the lines of the press release. My interpretation is that they may as well have not bothered with the shoot out as the choice has been made purely on the fact that Kerr and Lloyd havn't been racing this year and deserve a go whilst Rossiter and Firman have had full time programmes in 2005.

But I have to say I at least in one driver agree. Kerr now has a massive opportunity to display his undoubted talents on the world stage and I hope he grabs it with both hands as he's clearly a very gifted talent who for whatever the reasons has never had the opportunities higher up the ladder that he deserves.

Lloyd...mmm...well at least now finally we'll have the opportunity to see just how good he is without any excuses, reasons or whatevers. Every drivers going to be in the same boat with this series come September as its brand new, budgets aren't part of this series and so Lloyd will finally be able to prove if he is as good as some people believe. I have my doubts about this kid....ive never thought him to be in the elite group of young British drivers out there but now he has a massive opportunity to prove everybody including me that he is good enough and so good luck to him!

Kerr and LLoyd are the right choice for the drives. I think they will both do a great job for the team.

I agree they both deserve this break - but I don't think they were chosen over Rossiter and Firman just because they have nothing else going on. Kerr is easily the most talented in my opinion. On paper Lloyd is the clear number 2 so it will be interesting to see how the racing is shared ...

You say you rate Lloyd higher than Firman? I'm not so sure, although there are arguements both ways as you could say Firman's already had his chance to prove himself.

I do firmly believe that the 4 of them couldn't be split and so they based their judgements on the fact that these guys deserve a chance as they aren't racing this year, something that A1 GB have been banging on about since they began.

And also it is fair to say that Firmin has had his chance. A1GP should be about supporting new talent. A number of people have expressed doubt in Alex's ability to get the job done. They must remember that Alex is still only 20 and since his final Formula Renault season has only been able to race spasmodically due to the lack of a proper budget.Whenever he has had an opportunity he has aquited himself well. Robbies CV speaks for itself. It is a fantastic opportunity for both drivers.

Agreed, fantastic opporunity and in the fresh light of this morning I think its the right call considering the four drivers that they had to choose from.

As you say its Alex's big chance, could be the make or break of his career as there can be no excuses this time....I'm really looking forward to seeing if he proves mine and many others views of him wrong!

I know i am hardly impartial being a friend of the family but i have had the opportunity to watch Alex close up in the racing environment and i can tell you he really is the real deal. He interacts well with the engineers, knows how to set a car up and can deliver the goods on the track. He appears at home in cars with more horse power which bodes well for A1GP and is not fazed by the pressure. He is also a "racer", remember the move he pulled at Spa, passing around the outside of Blachemontin an F3000. Finally and something which i believe regretably is more important than ever today is that he is well presented and articulate.It's a great opportunity and with the budgetary pressures of him for a while am sure he will be able to apply himself. Thats it ,no more trumpet blowing, lets hope GB wins the A1GP.

With respect, Foreversideways, and I don't mean to speak badly about an up and coming young man who will race on behalf of Britain (we may actually win something!) but I heard from people at the test that Alex's g.friend follows him everywhere and gets in the way of him working with the team.

Perhaps as a friend of the family you can have a little word otherwise he risks alienating himself before he starts! It is REALLY important he has a good relationship with the team and Robbie.

As I say we will have to wait and see and I'm looking forward to finally having the opportunity to see how good this guy really is minus any of the issues that have affected him thus far.

I havn't seen enough to be convinced yet, yes he's pulled off the odd daring move which were exceptional but during his time in Renault I never saw him as being anything special, good yes....better than average....yes....but nothing special. The special guys are the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Adam Carroll, one of the named easily having seen to Alex during the same stage of their career in a single-make series.

It would be unfair to make many comments on Alex since Renault though as the opportunities certainly have been here and there more than anything...although again in a very weak Euro F3000 series last year once he came in he didn't dominate or at least take control as he should have done against lets face its a very poor grid of drivers. Anybody that stands out as being special certainly would have done in my view...maybe not the first time out but certainly as things proceeded. I know he did win but still he should have been winning every time out and top of the timesheets in every session considering the opposition and considering that he is billed as a future star.

Anyway, roll on Brands Hatch or wherever Alex gets his first drive and lets wait and see!

Robbie should certainly whipp a few butts!

Yesterday on the most respected mexican motorsports website Sporcar.com publish that mexican Champcar star driver Mario Dominguez and Grand-Am points leader before last weekend race Luis Diaz have a foot in the A1GP Team Mexico, this after some of the other 3 selected drivers to dispute the final shootout discard themselves from any chance to became a driver of the team due to undisclosed reasons

Also is becoming more clear that french team DAMS will be carrying the operation of the mexican team

DAMS also invited Hugo Oliveras (2005 Mexican Formula Renault runner-up) and Salvador Duran (2005 British F3 Championship National Class driver) to test the A1GP car next august in a test to take place in Paul Ricard

Hopefully soon we have an official announcement, but it seems that "Super Mario" (Mario Dominguez nickname) and "The Chapulin" (Luiz Diaz nickname) will be the choosen drivers to represent Mexico in the World Cup of Motorsport!!!!... :cool:

Story can be found here:
http://www.sporcar.com.mx

The more i read and hear about this championship, the more it excites me. I think it will be a superb spectacle, can't wait for the first round at Brands.

Is there any rules regarding who can drive and who can't? If not does this mean theoretically Germany could use Michael Schumacher if he wanted to drive?

One thing I haven't noticed on this board is who will drive for Canada? I would like to see Paul Tracy drive, I think he is the best Canadian driver in the world today. If Champ Car drivers are disqualified for whatever reason, then I'd say Michael Valiante should drive.

The more i read and hear about this championship, the more it excites me. I think it will be a superb spectacle, can't wait for the first round at Brands.
I know what you mean. I can't wait to be sitting on the outside of Turn 1 at Eastern Creek as a couple of dozen A1GP cars come blasting through.

Is there any rules regarding who can drive and who can't? If not does this mean theoretically Germany could use Michael Schumacher if he wanted to drive?

One thing I haven't noticed on this board is who will drive for Canada? I would like to see Paul Tracy drive, I think he is the best Canadian driver in the world today. If Champ Car drivers are disqualified for whatever reason, then I'd say Michael Valiante should drive.

Mario Dominguez are doing everything he can to get the seat to represent Mexico and is almost official that he already get it, then why Paul Tracy, Alex Tagliani, Andrew Ranger cannot???

Also take a look to Formula Atlantic, Antonie Bassette is there and as far as i saw he's following Andrew Ranger steps, i really hope that Canada announce their team very soon, and i'm sure the Champcar and Atlantic drivers will be in the list

Is there any rules regarding who can drive and who can't? If not does this mean theoretically Germany could use Michael Schumacher if he wanted to drive?



If Germany wanted Schumacher, and Ferrari allowed him to do it, and he wanted to do it, yes Germany could use him.



One thing I haven't noticed on this board is who will drive for Canada? I would like to see Paul Tracy drive, I think he is the best Canadian driver in the world today. If Champ Car drivers are disqualified for whatever reason, then I'd say Michael Valiante should drive.


Canada doesn't have an entry announced as yet.

If Germany wanted Schumacher, and Ferrari allowed him to do it, and he wanted to do it, yes Germany could use him.But unlikely as no current F1 drivers are allowed to to do any other racing,only demos,and several dates clash.




Canada doesn't have an entry announced as yet.Still 5 vacantcies!

I quite fancy your view also MAC, I suspect the weather might be a little better than at Brands:beer:

The more i read and hear about this championship, the more it excites me. I think it will be a superb spectacle, can't wait for the first round at Brands.

You will be at wet and windy Croft!!!! :rofl:

Malaysia's A1 GP team colour scheme. To be honest nothing special.

I suspect Alex Yoong has appointed himself as the driver.

http://www.zic.com.cn/upimages/200578568267.jpg

The fine print says: Visual is representative only. Colour scheme and placements shall be finalized before the season starts.

:brm: :brm: Chris . i can watch it on TV at a wet and windy CROFT

Hmmm totally didnt expect the malaysian car to look like that ...thought it will have more green in it !!

IMO:

Australia
Christian Jones

Brazil
Antonio Pizzonia

Canada
Paul Tracy/Andrew Ranger

China
Ma Quinghua/Jiang Tenghi

France
Nicolas Lapierre/Sebastien Bourdais

Germany
Timo Glock

Great Britain
Alex Lloyd/Robbie Kerr

India
Karun Chandhok/Armaan Ebrahim

Ireland
Ralph Firman

Italy
Giorgio Pantano/Gianmaria Bruni

Lebanon
Basil Shaaban/Jean-Yves Mallat

Malaysia
Alex Yoong

Mexico
Mario Dominguez/Luis Diaz

Netherlands
Jos Verstappen

New Zealand
Jonny Reid/Matt Halliday

Pakistan
Nur Ali

Portugal
Pedro Lamy/Alvaro Parente/Joao Urbano

South Africa
Alan van der Merwe

South Korea
Gene Lee/Jin Woo Hwang

Turkey
Can Artam

USA
Scott Speed/Townsend Bell/Ryan Hunter-Reay/Jimmy Vasser

France is gonna test with GP2 race and Marlboro Masters winner Alexandre Premat I heard.

A1 Team Malaysia announced that Fairuz Fauzy, current GP2 driver with DAMS, will be its second driver alongside Alex Yoong.

Shaping up to be a good series, don't you think?!

Cant wait for it to start.

Me neither - looking forward to it immensely.

Jeroen Bleekemolen is the reserve and test driver for the Netherlands.
Surprising but talented so after lots of testing could be good.

No problem with Bleekemolen.
Even though he isn't doing too bad this year in Grand-Am so far, anyone think Alex Gurney could get the American slot?
And I hope Damien Faulkner gets the Irish drive.

I think Jonathan Cochet would be a sound choice for the French seat.

I hear adam langley khan is going to be the 2nd driver for pakistan. also aren't will power, james courtney or will davison candidates for the aussie seat ?

Lots of the teams are testing today and tomorrow at Silvertone. Alex and Robbie are there . Mr Jinxx tells me its a who's who of motor racing down there.

I think you will find Christian Jones and Will Davison are the two drivers for Australia! Power and Courtney both have other commitments. Davison would be perfect for the seat, still young, experienced and out of a open wheeler drive at the moment. If Brands GP is the first round i remember Will being on the front row in Brit f3 there in 03.

Official!!!

Today A1GP team Mexico confirm Luis Diaz as it's first driver to race in all the A1GP schedule

Diaz is in full chase for the Grand-Am Rolex Series title this year against the best sportscar drivers of the world such as, Wayne Taylor, Andy wallace, Scoot Pruett, Max Angeleli, and A1GP owner, dutchman Jan Lammers.

The chooice was maiden by the high executives of A1GP Team Mexico and DAMS Team as a consecuence of the testing last week in Silverstone that for team Mexico was a live shootout/trials were more than look for times the work was focused in the integration of the drivers with the team and the car

The announcement of the other drivers that will join Diaz is expected

Personal opinion: Announcent of the other drivers will take place after the second testing session of the team in Paul Ricard... :rotate:

I see Alex Gurney and Adam Langley Khan listed, are'nt they both toilet ( to various degrees) and only in the sport for their parents name/money?

Alex Gurney's a decent though not great driver

I might bbe getting him confused with that plank who hit the back of the field under the pace car at Imola a few years back, was it Derek Hill?

Yes it was.

Official!!!... :cool:

This tuesday morning was published in mexican motorsports website www.sporcar.com.mx that Salvador Duran, young mexican driver in full chase for this year National Class Championship in British F-3 was selected for A1GP team Mexico to be second driver of the team for the european races with the option depending on results of expand their participation to drive more races in the series

The selection was based in their experience and knowlege in several european track, their quick adapt to a car that doubles the power of their F-3 as well their great integration with the team during the shootout last week in Silverstone

The two or three places left in the team will be defined in the last shootout testing to take place in Paul Ricard during this month

Memo Rojas is the next on the radar, sources indicate that is probable he will be announced after Paul Ricard testing

:chflag:

How many drivers is Mexico gonna use? Every race a new one?

How many drivers is Mexico gonna use? Every race a new one?

Nope...

What they are planning is to have two "principals" and two or 3 substitudes maybe, this not confirmed yet but what is pretty clear is that the team plan to use Luis Diaz as it's point man followed by other drivers that have experience in specific racetracks, for example it's pretty probable that Salvador Duran will race in at least one race of the european rounds and will be selected races/tracks where he get good results in the past , his experience in those tracks help the team I think he race in Formula Renault in Brands and Estoril, it's all about team work...and strategy, just like chess, put and use the pieces you want in the right moment and in the right place

Diaz is pretty capable of get consistent and good results for the team, no matter if he know already the track or not, in Grand-Am he show already that a new track is not a problem for him to be always in top 5

Memo Rojas could be called to race in Dubai or Laguna Seca, where he already race successfully in Renault V6's & Barber Dodge Pro Series before

Same for David Martinez who could be called for the home race in his own city, Monterrey, some years ago from the nothing he took a bad prepared car in Barber Dodge round ther and he just took the car to the 1st place...Just look what he done this year there with only a one day of testing a week before the race...

I have no doubt about that other teams might do the same, remember the series is all about team work!!!... ;)

With all these other drivers filling in here and there, it sounds like Diaz will only end up doing about one race!

With all these other drivers filling in here and there, it sounds like Diaz will only end up doing about one race!

Don't think so... :chflag:

Remember that they are two races per round so...i know it look as a mess and a little bit confusing but i think they will do fine... ;)

The sprint race is going to be very short (15-20 mins) and will set the grid for the main race.

Although the rules allow it, I don't think we'll see any countries use a different driver in the sprint as the do in the Grand Prix.

Can anyone update me on which teams will be running each country's car? Here's what I gather so far...

Australia - Alan Docking Racing
Brazil - ART/ASM?
Canada - ?
China - ?
France - DAMS?
GB - Arden International
Germany - ?
Italy - ?
India - ?
Ireland - ?
Lebanon - Ombra Racing, on behalf of Carlin
Malaysia - ?
Mexico - DAMS?
Netherlands - Racing For Holland
New Zealand - West Surrey Racing
Pakistan - ?
Portugal - Carlin Motorsport?
Turkey - ?
South Africa - ?
South Korea - ?
Switzerland - ?
USA - ?

If anyone can fill in the blanks, or confirm/deny those teams I've put question-marks by, I'll be grateful.

Can anyone update me on which teams will be running each country's car? Here's what I gather so far...

Australia - Alan Docking Racing
Brazil - ASM
Canada - ?
China - McDonald Motorsport
France - DAMS
GB - Arden Motorsport
Germany - ?
Italy - ?
India - Akbar Ebrahim
Ireland - ?
Lebanon - Carlin Motorsport
Malaysia - CMS
Mexico - DAMS
Netherlands - Racing For Holland
New Zealand - West Surrey Racing
Pakistan - Super Nova
Portugal - Carlin Motorsport
Turkey - ?
South Africa - BCN
South Korea - Autoracing Korea
Switzerland - A1 Team Switzerland
USA - John Village Automotive

If anyone can fill in the blanks, or confirm/deny those teams I've put question-marks by, I'll be grateful.As per yesterdays 'Autosport'

Thanks for the reply, just picked up Autosport today and answered my own question!

Ireland confirmed today; Mark Gallagher and Mark Kershaw heading up the team management and Ralph Firman to be lead driver.

Solid squad, that.

Firman should change his flag to 'for sale'

As KB said, a good solid squad. Firman is very capable of doing a good job providing he has the right team behind him. Any word yet as to who the #2 driver is?

There's no need to have one!

Ireland confirmed today; Mark Gallagher and Mark Kershaw heading up the team management and Ralph Firman to be lead driver.

I thought Ralph Firman was British.

2003 Drivers Championship
http://www.formula1.com/archive/driver/2003.html

Yep,so did I. Pretty sure he has always apeared under the UK flag in the past. At least he gives us one more decent driver ,with F1 experience racing.

I thought Ralph Firman was British.

He has an Irish passport.

He has dual nationality.

Irish mother, British father.

And the bloke from Pakistan has never even been to the country (yet).

Whatever I hope he does well.

I see Alex Gurney and Adam Langley Khan listed, are'nt they both toilet ( to various degrees) and only in the sport for their parents name/money?
In the case of Alex Gurney, absolutely NOT!

In four Grand-Am starts with the brand-new GAINSCO/Blackhawk Racing organisation, Alex has scored four top-10s, a pole and a second-place finish in the Daytona Prototype class.

He is a very fast and aggressive driver who is proving to be the equal of any sports car pilot in America :cool: and he is committed to the DP program this year.

they have got a good chance with ralf as he has done a big part testing and devlopment on this car

Apparently Ireland will announce a reserve driver after their first test at Paul Ricard (August 24th-26th).

Thought it would be time to consolidate all the teams/drivers/nations in a handy list :) (mods - would it perhaps be useful to have an A1GP FAQ sticky for this forum, with countries, calendar, TV deals so far etc?)

Australia (ADR) - Jones, Power, Davison & Hackett to test at Ricard.
Brazil (ASM) - they want Kanaan to drive ideally. Piquet has tested; also Dirani, Olivieria and Pizzonia rumoured.
Canada - Andrew Ranger? Sean Mcintosh?
China (McDonald) - Ma Qinghua and Jiang Tengyi
France (DAMS) - Alex Premat? Nicolas Lapierre?
GB (http://www.a1teamgbr.com) (Arden) - Robbie Kerr & Alex Lloyd
Germany (SuperNova?) - Timo Sheider
Italy? - ?
India - Karun Chandok & Ebrahim
Ireland - Firman confirmed. Keohane/Faulkner would be a good choice for 2nd seat.
Lebanon (Carlin) - Khalil Beshir and Basil Shaaba
Malaysia (CMS) - Alex Yoong & Fairuz Fauzy?
Mexico (http://www.a1gp.com/racing/teams/mex.htm) (DAMS) - Luis Diaz, Salvador Duran and others.
Netherlands (Racing For Holland) - Jos Verstappen and Jeroen Bleekemolen
New Zealand (WSR) - Reid & Halliday
Pakistan (http://www.a1teampak.com) (SuperNova) - Adam Kahn and Nur Ali
Portugal (Carlin) - Pedro Lamy and Alvaro Parente
Turkey - Artam? Tahinci?
South Africa (BCN) - Simpson? van de Merwe? Scheckter?
South Korea (Autoracing Korea) - ?
Switzerland - Jani?
USA (http://www.a1teamusa.com/) (JVA) - Simmons tested at Silverstone. Speed, Fleming and Jaskol to test at Paul Ricard.

In the case of Alex Gurney, absolutely NOT!

In four Grand-Am starts with the brand-new GAINSCO/Blackhawk Racing organisation, Alex has scored four top-10s, a pole and a second-place finish in the Daytona Prototype class.

He is a very fast and aggressive driver who is proving to be the equal of any sports car pilot in America :cool: and he is committed to the DP program this year.

I think he's in the same case of Luis Diaz, during the last weekend in Watkins Glen he confirm that only in the rounds that don't overlap and after Grand-Am ends, he will take he's place in the primary A1GP seat, in the meanwhile Salvador Duran will take over...:D

I hope that Alex be selected, i saw many times Alex in Atlantic having cool stints against the other drivers, Luis diaz among them...

Germany (Super Nova)
Driver: Timo Scheider
Teammanager: Willie Weber
Source: http://www.f1total.com/news/05082107.shtml

Yep,so did I. Pretty sure he has always apeared under the UK flag in the past. At least he gives us one more decent driver ,with F1 experience racing.

LOL - well according to Mark Gallagher.....

"He raced with an Irish licence in Formula One. He's raced with a shamrock on his helmet. He raced with an Irish team. He has an Irish passport. But, yes, he does have a plummy British accent. :laugh:

To be honest, at the moment, the only way an Irish driver (outside of rallying) can even get a sniff of a professional career is to up stakes and move to mainland UK. We have some very good "home grown" drivers here - but I doubt they would even be looked at for something like the A1GP - no experience driving more powerful cars, probably very little experience at navigating different race circuits either. Ralph is an excellent choice - with his extensive racing experience, he has a good shot at this and it's becoming a source of great interest in the Irish media.

Motorsport in Ireland (outside of rallying) is gradually dying a death. Lack of TV coverage, lack of sponsorship and rising costs are killing it.

What I would love to see come out of this for the future is that it will significantly raise the profile of motorsport in Ireland - both for potential spectators and potential sponsors. We desperately need this if the sport is to survive here. Money is far more likely to be put into motorsport here if there's an Irish team in a high profile series.

So a huge well done to everyone involved in Team Ireland. I'll be there waving the Tricolour! Rah Rah Ralph! :rotate:

Indeed, Ralph is an excellent choice.

For those who think he's a "Johnny-come-lately" to Irishness, he had an Irish flag on his car in Formula 3, a decade ago.

SPEED (http://www.speedtv.com/articles/roadracing/auto/19055/)

Scott Speed (GP2 Series), Colin Fleming (World Series by Renault) and Matt Jaskol (Star Mazda) will share driving duties for Team USA during the three-day A1 Grand Prix group test set to kick off tomorrow (Wednesday) at the Paul Ricard circuit in France.

China (McDonald) - Ma Qinghua and Jiang Tengyi


Who is team McDonald?

Indeed, Ralph is an excellent choice.

For those who think he's a "Johnny-come-lately" to Irishness, he had an Irish flag on his car in Formula 3, a decade ago.

He is as Irish as Ryan Giggs is Welsh. Supprised they don't an American driver as of course everyone is Irish in America !!

He is as Irish as Ryan Giggs is Welsh. Supprised they don't an American driver as of course everyone is Irish in America !!

:rolleyes:

Whatever. I'm sure he'll be British if he wins and Irish if he loses. That's the way it usually goes.

Indonesia and Russia also signed up now.

Team USA was officially launched today with a very patriotic looking car!
http://www.******************/a1gp/

Having looked more into it, I reckon the Korean seat will most probably go to An Suk Won (http://www.crash.net/uk/en/news_view.asp?cid=82&nid=116414). Gene Lee (who I mentioned earlier) is the other of the "2 Koreans racing abroad". He once competed in the Korean F3 Super Prix, and is now racing in the Asian Porsche Carrera Cup.

More on this Nikolay Fomenko chap here (http://www.cirtekgt.com/lmes/html/nikolay_fomenko.html). Seems Paul Ricard was his first ever run in a single seater! Perhaps Viktor Maslov (ex-F3000 driver) would make a good choice for the race drive?

And now that Indonesia is announced, there's only really one choice - Ananda Mikola.

USA car looks good

What's surprising and disappointing is that John Village is no longer running the USA team

Having looked more into it, I reckon the Korean seat will most probably go to An Suk Won (http://www.crash.net/uk/en/news_view.asp?cid=82&nid=116414). Gene Lee (who I mentioned earlier) is the other of the "2 Koreans racing abroad". He once competed in the Korean F3 Super Prix, and is now racing in the Asian Porsche Carrera Cup.

If you look at the A1GP site you wil see that the flags of Indonesia,Germany & Russia have been added and those of South Korea,Turkey & Italy removed.Looks like those franchises have been cancelled? 20 cars ran yesterday leaving Canada the only country with a flag but no car.

Although I like the idea of the whole series with equal material, there is one thing that the creators missed and that is the teams themselve. The GB team is actually the Arden team (I believe), who will have a lot more experience than a team like Pakistan or the Republic of South Africa. I know in the end the driver will have to do the job, but the set-up of the car still have to be achieved by the team.

I'm sure the Arden team will overcome set-up problems quicker than an unexperienced team like Pakistan...

You'd think so, but I've heard that the car had some SERIOUS setup issues at Silverstone - respect to Robbie for putting it at the top of the timesheets on Day 1

Although I like the idea of the whole series with equal material, there is one thing that the creators missed and that is the teams themselve. The GB team is actually the Arden team (I believe), who will have a lot more experience than a team like Pakistan or the Republic of South Africa. I know in the end the driver will have to do the job, but the set-up of the car still have to be achieved by the team.

I'm sure the Arden team will overcome set-up problems quicker than an unexperienced team like Pakistan...

Pakistan are being run by SuperNova, a team of a similar level to Arden. Most of the franchise holders have enlisted F3000/GP2/F3 teams to run the cars.

Pakistan are being run by SuperNova, a team of a similar level to Arden. Most of the franchise holders have enlisted F3000/GP2/F3 teams to run the cars.

Correct, see this (http://www.ten-tenths.com/forum/showthread.php?postid=1387846#post1387846) list.

If you look at the A1GP site you wil see that the flags of Indonesia,Germany & Russia have been added and those of South Korea,Turkey & Italy removed.Looks like those franchises have been cancelled? 20 cars ran yesterday leaving Canada the only country with a flag but no car.

There are 23 countries confirmed so far but only 21 are on that list. The 2 countries which are not on that list are South Korea and Turkey. Italy is not one of the 23 confirmed countries.

I hope Italy does get a team.

Expect to see more a couple more Medeterenian countries (Italy not included)

(Italy not included)

Why?

There are 23 countries confirmed so far but only 21 are on that list. The 2 countries which are not on that list are South Korea and Turkey. Italy is not one of the 23 confirmed countries.

I hope Italy does get a team.You seem to have missed my point.The fact that the flags of Korea,Turkey & I think, Italy were there before,but are no longer would seem to indicate that these countries have been UNconfirmed?

how many cars will be on track? isn't it 25? so only a country gets to race one car? i read in a PR report for team australia that their 2nd car is nearly completition...

how many cars will be on track? isn't it 25? so only a country gets to race one car? i read in a PR report for team australia that their 2nd car is nearly completition...Each country is supplied with 2 cars,one as a spare. 25 was the number of franchises mentioned,but there is room for 5 more flags...

I've learned a little bit more about A1GP today:

Practice session: 3 in total. 2 on the Friday: 13.00 and 16.00. 1 on the Saturday: 11.00.

Qualify session: 4No. 15min sessions from 14.15 until 15.45.

Sprint Race: 50 Miles (max 30minutes) on the Sunday: ROLING start @ 13.30.

Main Race: 100 Miles (or 1hour) on the Sunday: STANDING start @ 15.00. The teams are obliged to make 1 pitstop. I don't know if the sprint race has a factor in the grid for the main race...

Or is this old news already?????

I am a bit dissapointed with the length of the races.

It is old news already!

Qualifying sets the sprint race grid, and then the sprint race finishing order sets the "Grand Prix" grid.

Why?
Here is why but you will need a web translator:
http://www.italiaracing.net/pezzi_commenti/news.asp?id=93

Ok apparently Spain is out and it remains to be seen whether or not Greece will make it.

...

The Czech Republic flag has been added on the A1GP website.

Tomas Enge or Jaroslav Janis to drive, I imagine.

The Japanese flag has also been added. Why aren't the Turkish or South Korean flags on the A1GP website?

Because Turkey and South Korea don't have teams?

There are now 23 flags on there, and 3 spaces, which I assume will be Italy, Finland and AN other.

Autosport are suggesting that Carlin may be running the Japanese team, and Carlin have strong links with Mr Sato, so he may be in the frame for the seat

Autosport are suggesting that Carlin may be running the Japanese team, and Carlin have strong links with Mr Sato, so he may be in the frame for the seat


pls say ur kidding me!! fair enough Japen coming in with Sato but another A1 team being run by Carlin.. surely that will have some misplaced loyalties.

In bmw and f3 u have team portuagal so thats a natural progression u could argue to the a1 team, lebanon?? no links from what i can see. Japan i can see but 3 teams thats a wee bit OTT.

DAMS are running three teams also.

It makes a lot of sense - I'm sure the countries concerned will ensure they operate separately.

Each country can contract whoever they want to run the car.

Keiko Ihara?

Would be good PR, to have the only female driver in the "world cup of motorsport". But obviously (outside Carlin) there are plenty more Japanese drivers more up to the job...

According to Autosport, Satoshi Motoyama is the likely driver.

crozier ... one of the great songs of all time on your signature thingy

Autosport are suggesting that Carlin may be running the Japanese team, and Carlin have strong links with Mr Sato, so he may be in the frame for the seat

That would be great so see Sato in A1GP because he may be out of F1 next year. I hope he stays in F1.

Tomas Enge or Jaroslav Janis to drive, I imagine.
The Czech licence is bought by Antonin Charouz. Drivers: Tomas Enge, Jarek Janis en Jan Charouz (son of team owner?).

Source: www.verstappen.nl (http://www.verstappen.nl)

pls say ur kidding me!! fair enough Japan coming in with Sato but another A1 team being run by Carlin.. surely that will have some misplaced loyalties.

In bmw and f3 u have team portuagal so thats a natural progression u could argue to the a1 team, lebanon?? no links from what i can see. Japan i can see but 3 teams thats a wee bit OTT.
I think Lebanon is actually run by the Italian team, Ombra, albeit under the Carlin umbrella.

They might do something similar with Japan, although they have always had very strong connections with that country. Don't forget, either, that 'running a team' in A1GP terms is not the same as in other formulae.

nippon and supergt clash with A1 week ends so motoyama and firman may miss some off the opening rounds????

Correct.

The Team Ireland car is being demonstrated at the this weekend's British F3/GT meeting at Mondello Park. It will be interesting to see who drives it. Michael Keohane, if Ralph Firman may not be available?

The Team Ireland car is being demonstrated at the this weekend's British F3/GT meeting at Mondello Park. It will be interesting to see who drives it. Michael Keohane, if Ralph Firman may not be available?
The Dutch car is being demonstrated at the DTM race in Lausitz.

The Dutch car is being demonstrated at the DTM race in Lausitz.Why? Would have thought that the Trophy of the Dunes at Zandvoot would have been more appropriate?

You are right. The Dutch car at Zandvoort and the German car at Lausitz would be more logical.

Next monday there's a test session at Silverstone for the teams who didn't test in the previous sessions. These teams are Canada, Czech Rep., Ireland, Germany, Japan and Italy.

Who will be driving for Canada at Silverstone?

Ireland & Germany DID test at Paul Ricard.

Yes, but they didn't test at the first Silverstone test

Fantastic to have Czech Republic on board, I hope they do well. They should do IMO providing the team can get a good setup, they certainly have 1 of the best drivers on the grid IMO in the shape of Tomas Enge, another big name ex F1 driver joins A1 GP. :)

looks like miichael devaney will be driving the team ireland car at brands hatch as firman is contracted to race in gt. hes the best irish driver out there at the moment and is in 2nd in german f3 even though he missed the first two races due to sponsership problems. i doubt michael keohane will be involved. hes still looking at a cart seat and id rate deaney over him anyhow. hes a smooth driver and is not erratic.

Does anybody know for sure who the South African drivers will be? I found a couple of A1 sites, but can't seem to find what I am looking for.

Stephen Simpson seems to have done all the driving, but I'd have thought that Alan van der Merwe was the obvious candidate if Tomas Scheckter isn't interested.

Stephen Simpson seems to have done all the driving, but I'd have thought that Alan van der Merwe was the obvious candidate if Tomas Scheckter isn't interested.
Yeah id go with Simpson if you cant have Thomas racing because Van Der Merwe hasn't exactly performed to the level at which most thought he would. He is still a good steerer for sure, but more than likely if Thomas isn't driving at all the races will be shared like most countries. Maybe they will do a practice session each and the quickest gets to do the final practice session and qualify plus race, who knows.

Bit harsh the comments about Van Der Merwe. He's had very little opportunity to impress since he won the British F3 title but he certainly won that in style against a pretty strong field so he's not the tugger you make him out to be. Certainly I would have him down as a better prospect than Simpson who I stand to be corrected has yet to win a race in Renault yet? Certainly this season anyway because the one at Snetterton was taken away.

Just reading today's motorsportnews and reading between the lines Mr Surtees isn't giving the impression he's mightily impressed with Alex Lloyd. Reading is that he's unsure when Alex will drive and that he's considering guest drivers as an option during the season. He's told Alex to go and get some running somewhere and then come back to him.

Agree on the comments about AvdM. He has had pretty bad luck over the past couple of years and IMO deserves the seat more than Stephen due to his record but by all accounts Stephen's times have been pretty impressive. Both really great guys. Would like to see them share the drive.
As I mentioned in the marshals forum, anyone seen the impressive hospitality set up for the Sheik and guests built on South bank for the race? It will include a footbridge over the bottom straight into the pit area.

I believe we'll see Scheckter in the seat once the IndyCar season is over.

Source: F1-live.com

The Australian Grand Prix Corporation said Friday it would launch legal action against the A1 GP championship, just days ahead of the breakaway competition's first race.

Corporation chairman Ron Walker said he had authorised legal proceedings following a breakdown in talks in London with A1 GP's lawyers over the use of the term 'grand prix.' The Australian Grand Prix Corporation believes that the use of the phrase "A1 Grand Prix" infringes on its intellectual property rights.

"It is unfortunate that the matter has come to this, however, the corporation must protect its valuable intellectual property in relation to the Grand Prix," Walker said in a statement.

The A1 Grand Prix, the brainchild of Sheikh Maktoum of Dubai, has been billed as the ‘World Cup of motorsport’ because drivers compete for their countries as opposed to Formula One where they represent car manufacturers. The inaugural A1 GP series is due to begin in Britain on September 25. The London race will be followed by races every second Sunday in various countries until the 12th race in Beijing in March 2006 decides the overall winner.

The term ‘Grand Prix’ it must be noted is used in athletics, snooker, ballet, chess, tennis, dressage, volleyball, motorcycling, Champ Car and a whole host of other sports and disciplines and is not just a Formula One motor racing term. In fact the term was first used for the Grand Prix de Paris horse race dating back to 1863….

I think there could be 27 or more countries that will have a A1GP team in the 2005/2006 season. Here is a list of all the countries that I think will have a team.

Australia :)
Austria
Brazil
Canada
China
Czech Republic
France
Germany
Great Britain
India
Indonesia
Ireland
Italy :)
Japan
Lebanon
Malaysia
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Pakistan
Portugal
Russia
South Africa
South Korea
Switzerland
Turkey
Usa

Strike South Korea and Turkey from that list and you have the actual line-up.

What about adding in Spain for 2006/2007 season.

As rumoured earlier, it has been confirmed that Ralph Firman won't race at Brands. Michael Devaney is taking the seat.

I think there could be 27 or more countries that will have a A1GP team in the 2005/2006 season. Here is a list of all the countries that I think will have a team.

Australia :)
Austria
Brazil
Canada
China
Czech Republic
France
Germany
Great Britain
India
Indonesia
Ireland
Italy :)
Japan
Lebanon
Malaysia
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Pakistan
Portugal
Russia
South Africa
South Korea
Switzerland
Turkey
Usa
There's also interest from Belgium

I read in Russian mass-media that Russia won't drive in first races - the team and drivers are busy in GT and LMES.

Strike South Korea and Turkey from that list and you have the actual line-up.

I thought they were 2 of the 25 confirmed teams.

I thought they were 2 of the 25 confirmed teams.They were deleted from the website a couple of weeks ago,together with Italy ,which seems to be back?

Astromega is running the Chinese team.

Who are running Malaysia, Czech, Ireland and Russia?

Astromega is running the Chinese team.

Who are running Malaysia, Czech, Ireland and Russia?

Strange, all these are supposedly run by "A1 Team [insert country name]". Does that mean they're all new teams started from scratch??

Here's a list of Drivers, seat holders and race teams:

http://www.pitpass.com/fes_php/pitpass_news_item.php?fes_art_id=25910

Some team changes/discrepancies I noticed:

Brazil to be run by Arden?? I thought it was ASM.
Team Ghinzani to run Italy? I thought Coloni bought the franchise.
CMS to run Indonesia? I thought they were running Malaysian team.

Team Ghinzani to run Italy[/QUOTE]

Toccacelo racing for A1GP Italy at Brands

Watched the programme on Sky ealier, interesting.

Does this series have anything to do with that series called Premier1 or something that Robin Webb was involved in? Werent they going to have a Football team associated with each team? What happened to that?

Am I understanding this correctly....please jump in and correct me.

All the drivers named in various reports on the Web, are contracted on a race by race basis...not for a full season?

Each team doesn't have to name it's (up to) 3 contracted drivers for each event until the Thursday before the race?

One driver can qualify the car while another does the sprint race and the 3rd does the main - as long as all 3 have had 1 practice session over the weekend?

The 3 drivers at Brands Hatch this weekend could be replaced by 3 totally different drivers at Lausitz and 3 more at Estoril etc?

I belive that to be the case.

Makes it more of a "Team sport"

A1 GRAND PRIX OF NATIONS, BRANDS HATCH, GREAT BRITAIN

Brands Hatch, 23 September – The inaugural event in the World Cup of Motorsport is underway with every national A1 Team nominating their drivers for the A1 Grand Prix of Nations, Brands Hatch, Great Britain.

With the pride of their nation at stake, each A1 Team will take to the track for the first official practice session this afternoon at 13.00 local time. A second official practice session will follow at 16.00 before a final practice session and qualifying tomorrow and the Sprint and Feature races on Sunday.

A1 Team Driver 1 Driver 2
Australia Will Power Christian Jones
Austria Mathias Lauda
Brazil Nelson Piquet Jr. Joao Paulo de Oliveira
Canada Sean MacIntosh
China Qinghua Ma Tengyi Jiang
Czech Republic Jan Charouz
France Nicholas Lapierre Alexandre Premat
Germany Timo Scheider Adrian Sutil
Great Britain Robbie Kerr Alex Lloyd
India Karun Chandhok Armaan Ebrahim
Indonesia Ananda Mikola
Ireland Michael Devaney
Italy Enrico Toccacelo Nino Piccoli
Japan Ryo Fukuda
Lebanon Basil Shaaban Khalil Beschir
Malaysia Alex Yoong Fairuz Fauzy
Mexico Salvador Duran
Netherlands Jos Verstappen Jeroen Bleekemolen
New Zealand Matt Halliday Jonny Reid
Pakistan Adam Khan
Portugal Alvaro Parente Joao Urbano
Russia Alexey Vasiliev Nikolay Fomenko
South Africa Stephen Simpson Gavin Cronje
Switzerland Neel Jani
USA Scott Speed

Adding an additional layer of excitement to the A1 Grand Prix series, A1 Teams can nominate different drivers for each race weekend. With all series points going to the national team, the A1 driver line-up will not only vary between qualifying, the Sprint race and the Feature race but also from week to week.

Watch the black cars!. Go Kiwis.

Brazil and Piquet very impressive.

They were - obviously got the setup spot on ... wish i could say the same for GB

GB not to far away. No needto be despondant just yet !.

I'd have hoped for more from Arden - it sounded like they made a change to the car very late to get Robbie on the pace (in the dry). Brazil, Australia, etc. were spending their time cleaning the car and didn't seem to be making any significant changes!

Have anybody seen the livery of Russian car? If there are any photos in the Internet, please give the link.

Andy, have a look here. (http://www.a1gp.com/gallery/index.php?year=2005&flashNavId=5|29)

Who will be driving the Australian A1 car in the race at Brands.Hope it will be Will Power.

South Africa seem to be way off the pace,any idea why Alan van der Merwe is not driving?
He outperformed both Scheckter and Simpson in a shoot out and is not on the driving strength of A1 South Africa.

Some say its because he is not available this weekend?

Who is Gavin Cronje,can't wait to see how far off the pace he will be.

The Team Ireland car is being demonstrated at the this weekend's British F3/GT meeting at Mondello Park. It will be interesting to see who drives it. Michael Keohane, if Ralph Firman may not be available?

i hope they turn up the right week

South Africa seem to be way off the pace,any idea why Alan van der Merwe is not driving?
He outperformed both Scheckter and Simpson in a shoot out and is not on the driving strength of A1 South Africa.
I don't understand this either, he was the obvious choice for Brands. It may be because he's working on this 400 km/h project for BAR Honda. Brave man...

Oh, and to Plonkey: The Team Ireland car was demonstrated at Mondello last weekend, driven by the Sheikh himself, although both Ralph Firman and Michael Devaney were present.

Lebanese club drivers trying to block Italian F1 wannabees... hmmm!

Who is Gavin Cronje,can't wait to see how far off the pace he will be.

World karting champion (Rotax Max Challenge) a few years ago. Not too sure what he's been doing for the last few years though.

Scott Dixon could drive for NZ at Laguna Seca, while Jonny Reid will drive this weekend -
http://www.pitpass.com/fes_php/pitpass_news_item.php?fes_art_id=26084

I don't understand this either, he was the obvious choice for Brands. It may be because he's working on this 400 km/h project for BAR Honda. Brave man...

Oh, and to Plonkey: The Team Ireland car was demonstrated at Mondello last weekend, driven by the Sheikh himself, although both Ralph Firman and Michael Devaney were present.
Hi

Yeah he's been busy on that project, shame it got rained out thou. He will be driving in Germany and that should c a PODIUM AT LEAST!

Cheers