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Today was a very good one for the A1 France Team which scored two second- place finishes in the Sepang race, putting it second overall in the championship chase.
The day began with the Sprint race in which Loïc Duval, who started from second place on the grid, held on to that position until the chequered flag despite being hit at the start.
In the Feature race Loïc started from fourth and he moved up two places before his first pitstop. Unfortunately, a misunderstanding with the Brazilian and British teams, which were badly placed on the pit lane when it was time to rejoin the track when the safety car neutralised the race, saw him come back out in fourth place. Loïc fought back and after a hard-charging drive, finished third. Soon after the race, the Brazilian team was penalised because of what had happened during the first round of refuelling stops, and A1 Team France inherited a well-deserved second place.
The team has 53 points and is now second overall, eight behind Team Switzerland.
Olivier Panis, team manager: “Since the start of the weekend we knew that the car was well balanced, that Loïc felt very much at home and that the Sepang round could bring us luck. We seized our chance and we achieved our aim as we were on the podium twice, and we’ve moved up three places in the championship. Hats off to the whole team, which has done an excellent job in sometimes difficult conditions. Our next mission will be to take the lead in the championship; and that’s what we’ll be aiming for in the next race in China.”
Loïc Duval, driver: “I’m very satisfied with my double podium finish today. I was able to alternate aggressiveness and caution in both races. In the sprint race, I respected my schedule and finished behind Switzerland, which was uncatchable. During the second race, I was a bit surprised to see Brazil and Great Britain beside me at the end of the pit lane. I drove my own race despite my car suffering from heavy understeer as it was on worn rubber for the second stint. I finished third thanks to the new tyres in the third stint. We moved up a place after the Stewards’ decision, which was fully justified. Today, we’re second in the overall classification behind Switzerland and I feel very confident for the rest of the season. I think that over the whole championship our consistency will help us overtake our rival.”
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