A1GP
Eastern Creek: Team USA Saturday notes
Summerton starting 6th in Sprint, 7th in Feature at Eastern Creek A1 TEAM USA enjoys best overall qualifying performance of season SYDNEY, Australia--Jonathan Summerton drove A1 TEAM USA to an overall season-high qualifying performance Saturday, ...
Published: Feb 5, 2008, 6:28 AM
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Summerton starting 6th in Sprint, 7th in Feature at Eastern Creek
A1 TEAM USA enjoys best overall qualifying performance of season
SYDNEY, Australia--Jonathan Summerton drove A1 TEAM USA to an overall season-high qualifying performance Saturday, qualifying in sixth position for the Sprint and seventh for the Feature in the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport at Eastern Creek International Raceway in Sydney, Australia.
Summerton had also qualified sixth for the Sprint at Taupo, New Zealand and seventh for the Feature at Zhuhai, China, but the effort at Eastern Creek was A1 TEAM USA's best for both races in six rounds this season.
"We're excited about starting inside the top 10 for both races," Summerton said. "We want two top-five finishes and we can get there from where we are. We finally put together strong laps for the Sprint and Feature in the same round.
"We improved the 'We the People' car from practice on Friday and Saturday morning and my hat is off to our team for making the right calls going into qualifying. We had a good car for the Sprint and I drove it hard and we just missed the top five. I drove a little too hard into Turn 7 and Turn 9 in the Feature qualifying and I think it cost us the pole."
Summerton ran 1:18.464 in Sprint qualifying, his best lap of the round and .315 of a second slower than pole winner Loic Duval of A1 TEAM France, on the 2.44-mile circuit.
The 19-year-old from Kissimmee, Fla., ran 1:18.976 in Feature qualifying, .398 of a second behind pole winner Jonny Reid of New Zealand.
Summerton is brimming with confidence going into Sunday's 20-minute Sprint and 70-minute Feature races. Eastern Creek is his fourth A1GP round this season.
"We've been gaining on the competition in every round," Summerton said. "I know we have a car capable of running at the front every race now."
A1 TEAM USA owner Rick Weidinger is pleased with the team's progress.
"We're getting faster, not in one big jump, but consistently and we showed that in qualifying today," Weidinger said. "We're in position to reach our goal of top-five finishes and contend for podiums and wins. I'm proud everyone at A1 TEAM USA for their hard work to get us to this stage, but our job isn't done yet."
-credit: team usa
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