HOT: A1Team.Monaco for A1GP S4
The Principality of Monaco is famous worldwide for its racing heritage, so A1GP World Cup of Motorsport is delighted to announce A1 Team Monaco will be competing in the series in Season Four. Not only will the red and white colours of the Monaco flag adorn the car, but the venture also has the personal blessing of His Serene Highness, Prince Albert II of Monaco.
The team will be headed by joint seat holders, Clivio Piccione and Hubertus Bahlsen. A former F3 and GP2 race winner, Piccione will also be only the second person in the series’ history to take on the dual role of being the race driver as well as seat holder.
Changes to A1GP Season 4 Schedule
We were already aware of some changes to the A1GP Season 4 Race Schedule when Mugello, Italy, was postponed and Zandvoort, Netherlands, promoted to first round of 'powered by Ferrari' series.
Now it seems more shuffling is taking place with the announcement that the A1GP China Round has been moved forward to 7-9 November 2008 at the Chengdu International Circuit. Although the race in China was originally scheduled for the 12-14 December, a date change was necessary to ensure the best possible weather conditions in the region, which is in the south west of China.
So the A1GP Indonesia Round, originally planned for this date in Jakarta, will now take place on 6-8 February 2009, becoming the fifth round of the series.
A1GP Silverstone Test Report
The new A1GP Powered by Ferrari cars were in testing action again over three days last week - on UK soil for the first time at Silverstone International Circuit in Northamptonshire. The new black A1GP liveried machine made its debut running alongside the yellow test car as the first real comparisons could be seen on a circuit where the previous A1GP cars had clocked up extensive testing miles.
On Monday and Tuesday Danny Watts was at the wheel of the car, so becoming the first driver to have tested both the old and new A1GP cars. “It has noticeably more power,” he commented. “The new aero package helps driving through the high speed sections of the track even quicker. The carbon brakes work extremely well meaning you can brake a lot later than you ever could before. It’s much more like a thoroughbred racing car. Overall the performance is a step up in every department. I thoroughly enjoyed driving the car.” FIA GT Champion, Thomas Biagi, drove all three days while Jonny Kane was also in the car on Wednesday.
Zandvoort Promoted Round 1 for Season 4
A1GP World Cup of Motorsport has moved A1GP Mugello, Italy from the opening round of the 2008/09 championship following a delay in the build schedule of the new chassis. The first time all the nations will be seen in action will now be on the 4 - 5 October at A1GP Zandvoort, Netherlands.
The series set itself a tight schedule with less than 11 months to design, build and test the new car and make sure all the teams received identical machinery. Any delays in the schedule were always going to impact on the ability to deliver to all the teams. “It was always going to be an optimistic programme but we were confident we could achieve it. This in no way reflects on the work undertaken by the technical team and our partners, as it was due to circumstances beyond their control. I also want to thank all our technical partners for their support during our intensive testing programme, and especially Ferrari for the supply of engines,” said A1GP Chief Executive Officer, Pete da Silva.
New Sporting Regulations for Season 4
The pressure will be even greater for the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport national teams when they go to Mugello, Italy for the start of season four in September. An extra mandatory pit stop is among the changes to the series’ Sporting Regulations planned to make the racing even more exciting with the extra stop having to be taken in the A1GP Sprint Race between laps four and eight.
“We never stop looking for ways of improving the action on the track. The two pit stops in the Feature Race have proved to be the really high pressure points of the events. We felt an additional one would not only add another variable into the Sprint Race mix, but also give the crews another opportunity to display their team work. When we sat down to discuss ways of improving the series from every viewpoint this was a popular addition. However, we have also made other changes that will give the teams greater flexibility in certain areas,” said Tony Teixeira, A1GP Chairman.
Michelin - Official Tyre Supplier to A1GP
Although we have all realised that Michelin have been contracted to supply the tyres for the new A1GP 'Powered by Ferrari' car since the release of the first photo of it A1GP have announced today that Michelin is to become the exclusive tyre partner to A1GP World Cup of Motorsport starting with the 2008/09 season. The French company which has a vast motorsport heritage has signed a three year deal to provide tyres for the new A1GP Powered by Ferrari car.
Feedback from testing, during which A1GP has been able to tap into the vast experience of Andrea Bertolini, Patrick Friesacher and Marc Gene, has been very positive. All drivers commented on the tyres' consistency and that they were able to feel the difference between the various sets.
Michelin's involvement in motor racing has always been the result of a careful mixture of passion and reason for numerous decades. A commitment always combined with full responsibility for the design, manufacture and use of products during a competition, as well as the spirit of co-operation with their partners. The tyres' technological development therefore results from close co-operation between A1GP and Michelin engineers.
The tyre design stems from Formula One technologies seeking to offer both optimal performance and safety to the driver. Full rubber serration tests were performed on various tracks including Fiorano, Imola, Jerez and Mugello resulting in the best possible compromise between grip, endurance and wear.
Michelin will be present in the paddock to guarantee high-quality service throughout the season. The use of this high-technology product by all A1GP teams shall be supervised under the watchful and expert eye of a skilled Michelin technician.
A New Era ~ A Fresh Start!
Most of you will have read about our problems with A1GP at the end of Season 3 so we won't go there again.
We have a Brand New Season 4 with Ferrari helping to design a New Car and supplying a New Engine, with a new Electronic System, and now Michelin are the tyre suppliers.
So we have decided to have 'A Fresh Start' to go with the 'New Era' -- This will be a radical update over our old website designs which has a down side -- You will need a modern browser but they are free so go get one of your choice -- We hope you will enjoy the new A1podium.com.
