A1GP

Zhuhai: Team USA Saturday notes

A1 TEAM USA's Summerton to start 7th in Feature at Zhuhai "We the People" car 2nd in Saturday practice Jonathan Summerton qualified seventh, the best starting position of the season for A1 TEAM USA, Saturday for the Feature race in the ...

Published: Dec 18, 2007, 2:13 PM

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A1 TEAM USA's Summerton to start 7th in Feature at Zhuhai

"We the People" car 2nd in Saturday practice

Jonathan Summerton qualified seventh, the best starting position of the season for A1 TEAM USA, Saturday for the Feature race in the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport at Zhuhai International Circuit in the Republic of China.

"I am really excited about lining up seventh in the 'We the People' car for the Feature race," Summerton said. "We have a good chance at finishing in the top five. I am also pretty pleased with qualifying 11th for the Sprint, but I made a few mistakes and we lost a few tenths (of a second) and we dropped about four places at the end."

Summerton had his fastest lap of the weekend in the second 15-minute qualifying session for the Feature, running 1:23.992 on the 2.7-mile, 14-turn circuit. The 19-year-old from Kissimmee, Fla., an 1:24.459 in the first Feature session running on previously used Cooper tires. The team saved its final fresh set for the second Feature session.

Summerton's first run in the Sprint qualifying was ruined by running through oil put down from a support race. But in the second session, on new tires, Summerton ran 1:24.104 for 11th in the 22-car field.

A1 TEAM USA fitted new brakes to the car following Friday's practice. In the one-hour practice Saturday prior to qualifying, Summerton built up speed steadily searching for the best line and approach to each corner. The team made several setup changes to increase traction.

Late in the session, the team decided to test the setup with new tires and Summerton put the "We the People" car second on the timing monitor at 1:24.342, over a half second quicker than Friday's practice.

"We did a very good job to find the speed we needed to start in the top 10 in the Feature," A1 TEAM USA owner Rick Weidinger said. "Jonathan and the team worked well together and made significant progress. We're just out of the top 10 for the Sprint and we have a fast car. We are positioned to challenge for top-five finishes in the two races."

-credit: a1teamusatv.com

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