Team CJ Motorsport triumphed at the “Daytona 24 Hours” karting race on Wembley’s Race of Champions track over the weekend.

Lead by CJ Drivers Sam Bird, Franck Perera, Borja Garcia and Bruce Jouanny, the team also featured four far less competent drivers in CJ Motorsport Directors Serge Celebidachi and James Olivier, CJ Photographer Clément Marin and Borja Garcia’s father, Jesus, aged 52. This self-imposed quadruple handicap, together with a number of extremely quick karting endurance specialist teams, meant that the CJ Pros were pushed all the way and had to display all of their skills to bring the team home in first place.

The campaign had begun on Saturday morning, when former World Karting Champion Franck Perera qualified team CJ Motorsport on pole position with a single flying lap.

At midday, the race got underway with Spanish star Borja Garcia the man chosen by Team CJ to open the hostilities. He duly obliged and managed to build a comfortable lead over the rest of the field before coming in after 90 minutes to refuel and hand over to Perera who further increased the lead.

Through the evening and the night, Wembley spectators and event competitors alike were treated to a karting master class by all four CJ Drivers, who successively jumped into the kart to overturn the losses accumulated by their slower team mates.

As the hours ticked away, the Wembley lap record was successively beaten by Garcia, Perera, Bird and Jouanny, each driver lowering the mark previously set by one of his team mates.

By Sunday morning, some less stellar pace from the non-pros and a ten minute mechanical repair on the kart meant that there was still plenty of work to do when Sam Bird took the wheel for a final two hour stint. However, the young Brit was happy to take on the responsibility and he drove superbly once again to take the chequered flag for team CJ Motorsport, as the clock struck midday on Sunday.

At the end of the race, CJ Motorsport Director Serge Celebidachi commented: “This was a great opportunity to get the boys together to have some fun, to reflect on a long tough season, and to look forward to a successful 2009.”

“Winning the race was a bit of a bonus really and the non-pros in our team made sure it would not be a foregone conclusion. But Franck, Bruce, Borja and Sam were magnificent and sure enough, they have won us yet another trophy for the CJ Motorsport trophy room. This one will hold a special place because they won it all together!”

Mücke Motorsport have signed highly rated Briton Sam Bird for a joint assault on the 2009 Formula 3 Euro Series title.

Bird follows in the footsteps of Robert Kubica, Sebastian Vettel and Sébastien Buemi, all of whom enjoyed success in the F3 Euro Series with Mücke before going on to secure roles in Formula One.

The Berlin-based team narrowly missed out on the driver’s title in 2007 with Buemi and were again one of the teams to beat in 2008.

“I am absolutely delighted to have signed with Mücke”, said Bird. “We were fortunate enough to be able to speak with the best teams in the Series and, everything considered, my management team and I felt that Mücke was the very best choice. I want to say a special thank you to Peter Mücke for putting his faith in me. I also want to thank my managers at CJ Motorsport Consulting and my sponsors for making this possible.”

“I am very pleased to sign Sam as our Formula 3 Euro Series driver”, said Mücke Motorsport boss Peter Mücke. “We were interested in him already last year, so we are very happy to have reached an agreement to run him in 2009. I think Sam is a very talented driver which has certainly the ability to fight with us for the title. We look forward to the working with him.”

Sam Bird’s 2008 Macau campaign was a masterful display of skill, patience and, when it mattered, blistering pace. Sadly, the young Briton’s bid for final victory ended on the approach to Mandarin Bend on the opening lap or the Grand Prix race, as Roberto Streit inexplicably slammed him into the barriers.

The Brazilian Double R driver was subsequently fined for his recklessness, but that was scant consolation for Bird who had been building up, since the first practice session on Thursday, to claiming outright victory for himself and his team Manor Motorsport.

Indeed, the Noble Group sponsored racer drove with a sense of controlled pace and tactical intelligence in both practice sessions and the first qualifying session, choosing to concentrate on accumulating valuable mileage and focusing on fine-tuning the set-up of his car.

He knew that the second qualifying session would be the one that counted and that was the moment he chose to show his hand for the first time. With less than four minutes of the session remaining, Bird put in a stunning lap to be the first man to break into the 2min 11s (2min 11.988secs) when Kei Cozzolino brought out the red flag by hitting the wall at Fisherman’s.

After the debris was cleared and as the entire field rejoined for one last shot at pole, Bird was already three tenths up on his own time and looked set to put pole position well beyond anyone’s reach. However, he was forced to abort his lap when Stefano Coletti and Max Chilton tangled ahead of him, blocking part of the track.

Carlo Van Dam, on the other hand, took full advantage of the TOM’s team’s position at the ’front’ of the pit-lane, and enjoyed a completely clear track to improve on Bird’s time by one tenth of a second and grab pole for Saturday’s qualifying race. Having earned a front row start, Bird was subsequently slapped with a 3 grid slot penalty for having missed a call to the weighbridge during the morning practice session.

Starting fifth in the qualifying race, Bird drove with controlled pace to cross the finish line in the same position and earn himself the fifth place on the grid for the Grand Prix race.

The start of the race was trademark Sam Bird as the CJ Motorsport managed driver was moving into third ahead of Roberto Streit, from where he would surely have challenged for victory. Sadly, that was when the Brazilian, in a moment of sheer madness, brought the curtain down on Bird’s otherwise magnificent 2008 Macau Grand Prix.
A frustrated Sam Bird commented after the race: "I was quick enough for the front row in qualifying. I stayed out of trouble yesterday (the qualifying race) when the car wasn’t quite right. I made a great start today and I honestly thought I had a good chance of winning and to have it taken away by such a silly move by another driver is just so frustrating."

“To say that I am bitterly disappointed right now is an understatement”, he added. “But in a few days I will be able to reflect about the good things that I have achieved here over the past few days and I will bounce back as always! I do want to say a special thanks to the Noble Group for sponsoring me to take part here, to Manor for preparing a great car for me and to my managers at CJ Motorsport for making it all possible”.
 

He came, he saw, he conquered…

Estoril, Portugal, Saturday, 10am: Franck Perera sits in a Superleague Formula car for the very first time.

Fast forward to 2pm that same afternoon: Perera has outpaced every single one of the 17 other - far more practiced - competitors to grab a stunning Pole Position.

In an all-Italian final Perera was the hero of the hour, the AS Roma driver holding his nerve to defeat AC Milan’s Robert Doornbos in the single-lap shootout.

Perera was up in sector one, despite a huge powerslide exiting Turn 2, taking a 0.065s lead but Doornbos hit back in sector two, taking 0.079s out of him. It looked like it would be ultra-close...but it wasn’t. Perera gained a whopping three-tenths in the final sector to take pole at his first attempt.

"I’m really happy, it’s great to be on pole," said the CJ Motorsport managed driver. "It’s a very exciting qualifying format, and we have been improving the car run-by-run today. The car was good everywhere today, not just in the last sector, and now it’s my aim to win both races tomorrow."

Roma had got through to the Pole shootout final the hard way, and required stunning last sector times, including carrying vast speed through the daunting Parabolica final corner, to defeat Corinthians driver Antonio Pizzonia in the quarter final and Liverpool’s Adrian Valles in the semi.

The Frenchman carried his great form to the start of race one when he opened up a six second lead in the first few laps, before dashing into the pits for his mandatory tyre change. Sadly, however, a sticky left rear wheel nut cost him 15 seconds and he re-emerged in third place behind Liverpool and AC Milan.

The top three maintained position until the chequered flag, seeing Perera take to the podium for AS Roma on his debut for the team.

“It was good to get a podium on my first time with the team”, said Perera, “but when you start on pole you go for the win. We had a good car in the beginning and I was able to open up a huge gap but, unfortunately, we had a problem during the pit stop so we lost the lead. After that I tried to catch Robert and Adrian but it was difficult to overtake and I was unable to pass them. It was a pity because I think we had the fastest car, but it is still a good result for myself and AS Roma.”

Perera’s AS Roma car began race two from 16th position courtesy of the reverse grid. Unfortunately, his race was short-lived after an optimistic lunge from the Liverpool’s Adrian Valles sent the Roma car spinning into the gravel on lap five, forcing Perera to retire from the race.

AS Roma fans will be eagerly awaiting the next round of the Superleague Formula championship which takes place at Vallelunga, just outside Rome on November 1st and 2nd.

Sam Bird stood on the second step of the podium for the second consecutive race meeting, at the F3 Euro Series event held on the Bugatti Circuit, Le Mans, France.

Having qualified in 4th slot, the BP Ultimate Driver made an excellent start, immediately slotting into 3rd position. Sam then piled pressure on second place man Coletti, who eventually made an error on lap three, enabling Bird to swoop into 2nd place, from where he gradually pulled away from Mika Maki and the rest of the pack. Race leader Bianchi was by then beyond reach and Sam settled into a fast and consistent rhythm, to rack up a strong 2nd place for the second time in as many weeks.

After the race Sam commented “I’m very happy with my performances in practice, in qualifying, and in today’s race. Another eight points are very useful for me in the championship standings and it’s helping me to end the year on a high.” Bird is certainly proving to be the man on the move and the one to watch in the latter stages of the F3 Euro Series championship.

“I’m very much looking forward to Hockenheim, where I aim to go one step higher!"

The next race weekend takes place at Hockenheim on October 25/26.
 

CJ Driver Sam Bird undertook a day and a half test with the DAMS GP2 team in the first test for the new season at Paul Ricard in France on Thursday and Friday. He was quickly on the pace and finished the first morning in fifth place and top rookie of the session. On Friday morning, he ended up fourth, behind previous race winners Kobayashi, Zuber and Valsecchi.

The BP Ultimate Driver completed over 100 laps at the Le Castellet circuit, and thoroughly enjoyed every one. “The two days I spent with DAMS were fantastic. The whole team was very supportive and extremely professional and with their help I was able to get on the pace quite quickly. I gelled very quickly with my engineer and the mechanics, and felt very comfortable immediately. The GP2 car is great to drive, much faster than the F3 car I’ve been racing this year, and it’s very physically demanding. As for Paul Ricard, wow, it’s just an awesome facility. It was my first time there, and I thoroughly enjoyed it”.

DAMS team manager, Eric Boullier was also impressed with Sam’s speed and attitude: “we tested Sam for the first time and he made a big impression on us as he showed both speed and consistency. What’s more, he established an excellent relationship with the team right from the start.”

Sam concluded: “I’d like to thank DAMS for giving me this opportunity, as well as my management team at CJ Motorsport. It’s been a wonderful experience, to prove what I can do in a new car, a new environment and at a new venue. I really believe I have the potential to race in this series and that’s what my management and I will be working towards”.
 

CJ Driver Sam Bird enjoyed his best result of the season so far at the Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona, thanks to a dominant display throughout the weekend, culminating in a 2nd place finish in the feature race.

The BP Ultimate Driver had superb pace from the very first practice session, and in qualifying, he held pole position for much of the half hour. Unfortunately, however, his crucial final two laps were baulked by slower competitors and he had to settle for 6th.

Nevertheless, his pace and racecraft would propel him back to the front of the race. “I made a reasonably good start, kept it tidy around the inside of turn one, and reacted quickly to a crash in front of me, enabling me to get up into fourth place. I then made up a further place for third, just behind Hulkenberg. I felt I had the pace to overtake him but just couldn’t make my two moves stick without compromising both our races. We both pressured the leading man into a mistake, capitalising when he went wide, leaving me in second place, which I then controlled to the chequered flag.”

“I’m really pleased to be back on the podium” he added. “We’ve worked very hard for this, and I’m aiming for a few more in the closing stages of the season”

Bird’s 2nd place jumped him five places in the Championship order.

Sunday’s race was a rather different story. Starting 7th on the reversed grid, Bird made an excellent start and was challenging for 4th at the first corner when race one winner Hulkenberg locked up and ran into the back of him, sending him into a spin. He did very well to recover from the back of the pack to 18th, but when Tsukakoshi and Cheng crashed into each other just ahead of Bird, he had nowhere to go but off the track and onto the grass. Again, Sam recovered to 18th, but despite his smooth, unruffled style and obvious pace, could do no more in a reversal of fortunes from Saturday.

The F3 Euroseries moves on to Le Mans on October 4/5.

Sevilla FC driver Borja Garcia pulled out a sublime performance to claim victory in the pouring rain in the Superleague Formula race, yesterday at Donington Park.

Earlier in the weekend, Garcia had already shown his pace by qualifying his car through to the Superpole Final, guaranteeing himself a front row start for race one, ahead of the likes of Robert Doornbos (AC Milan), Andreas Zuber (Al Ain), Tristan Gommendy (FC Porto), Andy Soucek (Corinthians), Adrian Valles (Liverpool), Nelson Philippe (Borussia Dortmund), and Ryan Dalziel (Glasgow Rangers) to name but a few.

Unfortunately however, a gearbox problem while running comfortably in second place, had forced him to drop down the order and he did well to bring his sick car home in tenth place

Starting race two from seventh by virtue of the reverse grid format, the Sevilla car had already moved up to fifth when the race was disrupted by a safety car period on the opening lap.

After the restart, CJ Driver Garcia proved to be the rain master as he successively left Alessandro Pierguidi (Galatasaray), Nelson Philippe (Borussia Dortmund) and Max Wissel (Basel) in his wake.

The Sevilla FC man then set out to close the gap on race leader Flamengo, and Brazilian driver Tuka Rocha could do absolutely nothing as the flying Garcia overtook him to take the lead at Goddards with 14 minutes remaining.

Not just content with a slender lead, however, Borja then proceeded to race away into the distance to take the chequered flag a full ten seconds ahead of his nearest rival.

"I was unlucky this morning because I had a problem with the downshift, but the car was perfect in the wet and I am thrilled to take this race for Sevilla FC”, said Garcia afterwards.

"It was very difficult out there, especially when I was behind Tuka . It was really hard to fight for position because it was tough for me to see and of course Tuka couldn’t see much in his mirrors either.”

"I think this has been a really good debut for Superleague Formula. The series has changed a lot of things from what we are normally used to. It has really been amazing to merge football with these great cars."

Garcia’s Sevilla FC lies 4th in the Championship on 68 points, 11 points behind leaders Beijing Gouan FC.

The championship battle will resume in three weeks time when Superleague Formula heads to the Nurburgring on September 20/21.

Franck Perera showed once again why he is considered one of the very best racing drivers on the American scene, with a truly dominant performance in Sonoma, California.

With an ill-functioning fuel pump late in the 45-minute qualifying session for the Carneros 100, Franck Perera was up against it to put the No. 55 CJ Consulting Guthrie Racing car on the pole.

He had swapped the pole with Raphael Matos three times, but time was running out on the Frenchman competing in his eighth Firestone Indy Lights race. However he pushed the car to its limit on the final lap to earn a truly stunning P1.

"It was a nice lap," he said of the 1-minute, 23.2851-second (99.547 mph) trip around the 2.303-mile, 12-turn Infineon Raceway course. "I think this year I’ve been pretty good at the end of the session. I’m surprised because even though we were fighting for the pole the whole session, we had a fuel pump problem on the last two laps, but I pushed anyway. When they said I got pole, I couldn’t believe it."

It was the second SWE Pole Award for Perera and third front-row start. With an absolutely faultless display of pace and control Franck Perera led all 30 laps of the Carneros 100 to claim his first Firestone Indy Lights victory, recording the race’s fastest lap in the process.

“It’s an amazing weekend,” said Perera. “It was a new track again, and we were really good. We managed to beat Raphael (Matos) in the qualifying. He tested here last weekend, so we did great to get pole. We had a good race. The car was consistent, we didn’t have to push it 100 percent. It was good to have a race like that.” “It’s been a challenging season on and off track,” Franck concluded. “So to get this first Indy Lights victory is fantastic for me and for my managers at CJ Motorsport, who have supported me all the way.” Starting eighth in race two by virtue of the reverse grid, Perera drove with great patience and intelligence to take the chequered flag in 5th place.

On a track where overtaking is notoriously difficult, the Frenchman executed perfectly on his strategy of watching the Antinucci-Matos battle, taking place just ahead of him, until an opportunity arose. Sure enough, the two title contenders made contact and drove wide on lap 27, leaving Perera an opening on the inside through which he expertly squeezed.

The final race of the season takes place at the Chicago Speedway on September 7th.
 

Sevilla FC have signed CJ Driver Borja Garcia for their assault on the inaugural Superleague Formula title. Borja was unveiled in Seville this week where he and GTA racing team boss Domingo Ochoa met with the Sevilla squad and club President, José María del Nido.

Garcia initially tested the Superleague Formula prototype at the Monteblanco Circuit earlier this year and has driven the Sevilla car at recent tests in Barcelona. "I am very impressed with the car and really looking forward to the first race," Garcia said. "This is a big, yet very nimble car and the engine is impressive. It will be a high standard of competition with some top quality drivers.”

“I know that behind me will be the big family of Sevilla fans and I intend to make them proud. For a Spanish driver it’s great to drive for a Spanish club. The final race will be in Jerez, which is not far from Seville. That will be a huge event, the title decider and a major highlight for me." Sevilla FC President del Nido was delighted to confirm his club’s all-Spanish Superleague Formula assault. “We wish you the best and hope you will drive the Sevilla car with success,” he said to Garcia. “Do not forget that you have the Sevilla badge on your car and you are driving our dreams of victory”.

Sevilla FC was announced as a Superleague Formula entry in January this year with the club’s car unveiled to the fans prior to a 1-1 draw against Barcelona at home on February 9th. Sevilla FC will do battle against clubs from England (Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur), Scotland (Rangers), Italy (AC Milan and AS Roma), Portugal (FC Porto), Netherlands (PSV Eindhoven), Germany (Borussia Dortmund), Belgium (RSC Anderlecht), Switzerland (FC Basel), Greece (Olympiacos), Turkey (Galatasaray), UAE (Al Ain), Brazil (Flamengo and Corinthians) and China (Beijing Guoan).

The championship kicks off on August 30/31 at Donington Park.

CJ Driver Franck Perera underlined his sheer pace and class once again, at the Mid-Ohio 100 Indy Lights weekend, with a P2 in qualifying followed by a second place finish. After his superb Pole Position at Watkins Glen two weeks ago was spoiled by technical problems in both races, Franck was determined to set the record straight and he certainly did so in emphatic style.

Driving the No. 55 Guthrie Racing car, he stuck with Matos from start to finish, but wasn’t able to overtake him, taking the chequered flag a mere 4.2603 seconds behind the Brazilian. "This is my first season, so I’m trying to show what I can do on the road courses and learn the ovals," said Perera. "Here we were able to start on the front row. I was keeping close to Matos during the race, but we didn’t have any yellows so I couldn’t do much more. It’s good for the team to finish second."

The next race takes place at the Kentucky Speedway on August 9th.

A radical change in the set up of his car finally enabled Sam Bird to show his real qualifying pace at the legendary Zandvoort circuit this weekend. Starting fourth on the grid in race one, the BP Ultimate driver drove a strong race to finish on the podium following Hulkenberg’s disqualification.

"We’ve worked long and hard to find a new set up that will suit me in this series, and now I think we’ve turned the corner" said Sam after the race. "I’m looking forward to building on this momentum”. After a good start from sixth on the grid in race two, Bird kept both Red Bull drivers ahead of him under intense pressure for most of the race.

“Towards the end of the race, I still had great pace, but just couldn’t find a way past – Zandvoort is a super track, but with few overtaking opportunities” the CJ Motorsport managed driver said afterwards. “However, if we can continue to work in this direction, I’m sure there’s much more to come. Today, I’d like to say a big thank you to the team for their hard work and to my sponsors for their loyal support."

In his very first Indy Lights road course event, CJ Driver Franck Perera wasted no time in making a clear statement to the rest of the field by qualifying his car on pole for race one of the Watkins Glen double-header.

With a fastest lap of 1:37.8651, Perera was the only driver to break into the 1:37s’ as he comfortably outpaced Championship frontrunners Raphael Matos (2nd), Richard Antinucci (4th) and Dillon Battistini (17th).

On the strength of his qualifying prowess, “Fearless” Franck seemed bound for honors in both races. Unfortunately however, a sequence of events beyond his control would decide otherwise.
On the opening lap, Franck crashed out of the first Corning Duel when his gearbox unexpectedly gave in. The Guthrie Racing team did very well to put the car back together in time for race two. However, it became apparent on the formation lap that the express repair job had left a suspension arm still loose. This forced Franck back into the pits and he eventually came back out eight laps behind the leaders. Nevertheless, far from giving up on a seemingly hopeless situation, Franck brought the car home in 17th position with the 3rd fastest lap of the race.

“I really wanted to go for the win today, but unfortunately we had a problem on the first lap of race one,” said Perera. “I had a good test here last week and got the Pole Position this weekend, so this was definitely not how we expected to finish the double race weekend. The team did a great job putting a new gearbox in the car in the short break between races but we still had a problem at the start of race two. By the time we were back out on track, I was already eight laps behind. So we used the race try to go for the fastest lap. In the end, I was able to get the 3rd fastest lap, so that was good. I proved I can be super competitive, so I am looking forward to the next races and getting some podiums.”

With the historic floods plaguing Iowa, many skeptics doubted the Jeld-Wen 100 at Iowa Speedway would even take place last weekend, but the fans and drivers proclaimed that the race must go on!

CJ Driver Perera, although brand new to the Guthrie Racing Team and fighting with a failing rear wheel bearing, had the best finish among the Guthrie Racing drivers taking the checkered flag in 11th place. Perera showed how quick he was at adapting to new cars and new tracks by showcasing some amazing wheel-to-wheel racing and competing for the top ten while keeping his nose clean.

“Overall I was very happy with my performance this weekend,” Perera said. “If I had not had a wheel bearing going out, which caused horrible vibrations towards the last third of the race, I’m sure I could have finished much better, but I wanted to finish as safely as possible so I had to manage the situation. I had a sharp learning curve to figure out a new car and race on only my second career oval all within a weeks’ time frame. I am confident I can run upfront with best drivers in the series and I’m excited to see what I can do for the team and myself for the remainder of the season.”
“I can’t wait for Watkins Glen in a few weeks,” Perera added. “Road courses are my specialty so I plan on having a strong showing in my second race in the team and series.”

Team Owner Jim Guthrie proclaimed, “Franck did an amazing job especially when you consider this was only his second career oval race. He moved up through the field like a veteran only to be thwarted by a wheel bearing failure. I was impressed with his strategy and approach to the race.”

With the weekend behind them, the team heads to Watkins Glen for an open test on Wednesday June 25th as they prepare for the double-header race at the Glen on July 5th.

CJ Driver Franck Perera will jump back into action to compete in the Firestone Indy Lights series for the remainder of the 2008 season. Watch out for this young gun to make an immediate impression in the IRL as he has already done so impressively in his career to date.

Perera’s astonishing resume stems from deep roots in European open-wheel racing where he won the Italian Formula Renault Championship in 2003 and went on to compete against the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Timo Glock in both the F3 Euro Series (Rookie Champion 2004) and the GP2 Series (Runner-up to Hamilton at Monaco 2006). Franck was also a member of the exclusive Toyota Driver Program and was entrusted with testing Toyota’s Formula One car on several occasions.

Going into 2007, Perera decided to move to the U.S. and attack the highly competitive Atlantic Championship. He literally rewrote the record books on his way to the Rookie of the Year title and narrowly missed out on the overall title to series returnee Raphael Matos.

Perera’s achievements did not go unnoticed as he secured a ride for the former Champ Car and current IndyCar team Conquest Racing. Franck competed in three races for the team demonstrating his outstanding road course skills by finishing a solid 6th at Long Beach, which was his final race before his sponsor ran into financial trouble and was unable to continue their support of the young Frenchmen. He also proved to be a quick learner after finishing a commendable 14th in his first ever oval race.

Franck will team up at Guthrie Racing with Sean Guthrie, Logan Gomez and Mickey Gilbert for the rest of the 2008 season.

“I’m just excited to be back in the driver’s seat,” Perera said. “I’m very thankful to Guthrie Racing and my management company CJ Motorsport and I am going to do the best I can for the team.”

Starting at the seventh race into the season, Perera is not worried about the Drivers Championship, but rather building oval experience and fighting for podiums and wins.

“I’m not really focusing on the Title at this stage. I’m just looking at it race by race so I will not be holding back at any of the races! I hope to get some wins on the road courses since that’s where my experience lies, but I plan on being right up there in the front on ovals as well after I get some more practice.”

Gaining oval experience is a must for drivers looking to compete at the top level of US open-wheel racing with half of the races occurring on these tracks. Having only driven one oval in his career at Homestead-Miami earlier this year, he hopes to continue learning the unique driving style that ovals require, which is where his teammates may prove to be invaluable.
“I have a lot to learn,” Perera exclaimed about oval courses. “Sean and Logan are great on ovals so I know they can teach me some techniques and hopefully I can help them on road courses in return. I think together we can make it beneficial for all of us so we can improve all season long.”

Perera will join Guthrie Racing at Iowa next week for his first race in the series. The team will participate in the open test at the track on June 10th giving Perera a chance to work with the team and the car before getting into the thick of the action of the Firestone Indy Lights series.

“It always takes a little time to get used to the way a new team operates, but it’s great that we get the chance to test first so I can familiarize myself with the crew, my teammates and my new car. After that, I can’t wait to see what the rest of the year brings!”

Team owner, Jim Guthrie, is honored to run such a high-performing driver like Franck Perera.

"It’s great to have the opportunity to work with a driver of Franck’s caliber. I have high hopes for Franck and the Guthrie Racing team. One of our Engineers, John Martin, has worked with Franck and is really excited about having him on our team. I expect once Franck gets comfortable on the ovals he will contend for many wins."

Teammates Logan and Sean are also thrilled to have Perera on board as they feel they can all work together to make the team a force to be reckoned with.

“His tremendous road course experience should bring valuable info to the team and us as drivers,” Sean suggested. “He is very committed to his racing career and not afraid to take a step back to continue his path to success. People with that attitude are good for the team, the sport and are fun to be around. I know he needs some oval experience and we are happy to give him that. Hopefully we can work together to bring each other even more success.”

“Franck has had a very successful racing career and I know he will continue to prosper in our series,” Gomez said. “His logical thinking in breaking down a car’s performance will help each of us find that ideal setup so we all can battle up front for the win. Working with Franck is going to be a great experience for everyone on the team.”

Racing on the streets of Pau is tricky at the best of times but in the torrential rain that fell throughout the weekend the third round of the 2008 F3 Euro Series was surely one of the most eventful and chaotic ever witnessed.

In race one on Saturday, while most of the F3 Euro Series competitors (including most of the Championship front-runners) made mistakes and crashed out, CJ Driver Sam drove faultlessly and was running comfortably in the points when he was collected by the spinning car of Martin Plowman, with only a handful of laps to go to the finish.

"Plowman and Janis got themselves into a tangle and Martin came bouncing off the barrier into my path. I almost managed to squeeze through but his car hit me and sent me crashing into the barrier" said the BP Ultimate Driver after the race. "I’m very disappointed because I had good pace in tricky conditions and I was on course for a top five finish.
Having had to start race two mid-pack as a result, Sam drove impeccably once again in the rain, working his way through the field to finish a creditable 11th.

"A very tough weekend for me" said Sam on Sunday evening. "I come away from Pau with nothing to show for it, which is very disappointing. Nevertheless I want to say a big thanks to my team who worked late into Saturday night to put my car back together for Sunday’s race. I’ve had a few knock backs this year so far but it makes me even more determined for the rest of the season and I can assure those that follow and support me that I will be back with a vengeance at Norisring!"

Sam Bird’s first F3 Euroseries race turned out to be a true test of his racing skills and mental fortitude but the BP Ultimate Driver rose to the challenge, as he has done so often in the past, and came through in splendid fashion.

Having topped the time sheets in pre-season practice sessions, the CJ Driver was in buoyant mood heading to Hockenheim this weekend.

The practice sessions were held in appalling wet conditions, so much so that the qualifying session on Friday had to be postponed until Saturday morning. The track was still wet but drying out, and everyone knew that their best lap would be at the very end of the session. Sam was prepared for this and was about to do his last lap before the chequered flag, when “a muffin on slicks” (to quote a respected journalist) appeared out of the pits just in front of him, and being on the wrong tyres for the conditions, he baulked Sam’s best efforts and lost him a staggering 2 seconds. Despite brilliant 2nd and 3rd sectors, he had no answer to that 2 second deficit and ended up 23rd on the grid. As the official track timing would later show, a 1st sector time taken from any of his previous 4 laps would have put him 5th on the grid.

However, never one to let his head drop or shy away from a challenge, Sam duly lined up on the 12th row of the grid. As the first race of the season unfolded, the newly selected BRDC “Superstar” profited from a few retirements but more remarkably overtook 8 cars on the track, very much making the show, to eventually take the chequered flag in 10th position. “With the reverse grid format, I was desperately trying to get up to 8th” he said after the race, “which would have given me pole for Sunday’s race. However, with the safety car period, and being stuck behind a slower car which managed to make itself very wide, I didn’t have time to make up those extra two places. I feel I could have done it in different circumstances”.

Race day two dawned sunny at last, and Sam started in 10th slot. A race long battle with Gotz and Tsukakoshi was the highlight of the day and had the Hockenheim faithful on the edge of their seats. Sam eventually overcame both competitors to finish a remarkable 6th and in the points.

“It’s been an eventful few days” said Sam on Sunday afternoon. “After an unfortunate qualifying session, I bounced back and I’m quite pleased that I’ve opened my Euroseries account with a point. I had to dig deep this weekend but I’ve got a great team behind me in Manor Motorsport and I’m lucky to have the support of some great sponsors, BP Ultimate of course, but also my new sponsor Marc “The Edge” Ivey who was here to cheer me on.

The Euroseries is definitely very competitive but I always knew it would be and I’m enjoying every minute of it! I’m really looking forward to the next round in Mugello, another new track for me. ”

John Booth, Manor Motorsport’s team boss said afterwards: “Sam recovered brilliantly from a big setback in qualifying that was not of his own making. He drove superbly all weekend to get himself and the team into the points.”

In the very first oval race of his career, CJ Driver Franck Perera continued to demonstrate his huge talent, ending up top rookie in 14th position and second of the transition drivers behind Oriol Servia (who counts over 20 oval starts) and ahead of Justin Wilson.

Franck had already put in a stellar performance in qualifying to earn himself a place on the eighth row of the grid, making him top rookie and top “transition driver”. However, he gained another two positions before the race even started when AJ Foyt IV and Ed Carpenter were sent to the back of the field for failing post qualifying inspection.

The Frenchman wisely applied caution at the start of the race, losing a few positions, but he then quickly settled into a very good pace and regained what he had lost as the race went on moving back up to 13th position on lap 60 after passing Milka Duno and Darren Manning.

The 2007 Atlantic "Rookie of the Year" then remained remarkably consistent to bring the car home in14th overall, after 2 hours of racing. "It’s nice to finish the race”, said Franck. “It was very tough, very long. I think it is the longest race I did in my life. It was good because I could fight with Oriol (Servia) who is also on one of the transition teams. I’m happy I brought the car back for the guys they did such a good job and it’s good for Conquest, now we can concentrate on the road course next week. I learned a lot tonight even if it was difficult out there with all the traffic. You don’t really know the driving style of the other drivers and when they come in a group they are so quick. But I was always staying in the clear line to not get in their way. Now we have to work on gaining more speed."

"We came here in Homestead very humble with the goal of acquiring experience for both the team and our drivers”, said Conquest Racing’s Owner Eric Bachelart. “We managed to run competitively and stay out of trouble. Franck has done a very good job all weekend while Enrique struggled in the race. It’s part of his learning curve. I am proud of what we have achieved in such a short period of time and we are looking forward to competing in a more natural environment in the streets of St Pete next week."

Sam Bird has recorded the fastest time over the two day test at the Estoril circuit, Portugal, a track he has never visited before. Having made the switch from British F3, BP Ultimate Driver Bird has had a steep learning curve over the last week, testing a new car, on new tracks, with his new team, Manor Motorsport. “I knew it would be tough” said Sam after the first day “but I’m not concerned with times too much today, I am learning the car and the tyres and trying to achieve the best set up with my engineer.”

On the second day of testing, the CJ Motorsport managed driver had obviously got to grips with the car, putting in a best time of 1.32.035, beating title favourite Nico Hulkenberg into second place.
“Obviously it’s just testing and we’re all trying out different settings, brakes, using both new and old tyres” Sam commented, “but I’m naturally thrilled to have come out on top over the two days – it certainly gives me a great deal of confidence going into the new season, and I’m looking forward to racing again after the long winter break.”

The F3 Euroseries begins at Hockenheim, Germany on April 12/13.

CJ Driver Garcia will return to World Series by Renault this season, having signed with RC Motorsport, with whom he was crowned Vice-Champion in 2006.

“We are delighted to have Borja back with us as we are well aware of what he is capable,” said Carlo Migliavaca, the team’s co-owner. “He is a brilliant racing driver with a winning mentality. We have a really strong team this year and with Borja now on board, I feel we can achieve great things. The entire team is determined to give him all the support he needs to go for the title. For now we need to focus on the next test in Barcelona, before the beginning of the Championship”.

“I am delighted to have signed with RC Motorsport once again” said Borja. “This is a crucial stage in my career and this is undoubtedly the best decision with my future in mind. I am also very excited because I strongly believe that we can win the title this year. The last test in Valencia was very constructive and we were quickest. I can’t wait for the next test in Barcelona so that we can continue where we left off and further prepare the car for the start of the Championship.”
“Between my new teammate Aleix and myself, we will push hard to achieve great results for the team”, added the Valencian. “I am grateful to RC Motorsport, my sponsors and my fans for their trust and support. I will make them all proud this season!
I want to say a special thanks to those who have made it possible for me to land this coveted seat, in particular Serge Celebidachi from CJ Motorsport.”

The World Series by Renault Championship begins on April 26th and 27th in Monza.

On his return to World Series by Renault for a pre-season test with his old team RC Motorsport, the 2006 Vice-Champion was in a league of his own at Valencia’s Ricardo Tormo Circuit, as he recorded the fastest lap of the two-day session.

Throughout the day, and despite not having been on track on day one, CJ Driver Borja was consistently in the top 3, as the lead changed hands numerous times.

However, with just over half an hour to go, Garcia returned to the track and took permanent control of affairs to put top spot well beyond the reach of his rivals with a time of 1.22.03, leaving second-placed Marco Bonanomi over 3 tenths adrift.

On his very next lap, Borja was already 4 tenths up on his own record after two sectors, when a yellow flag forced him to lift in the final sector.

The test also enabled Borja and the team to familiarise themselves with the brand new Dallara chassis.
“I’m happy of course to have gone quickest but this has been a productive test in so many other aspects as well”, said Garcia.

“I was able to do quite a few laps and try many different set-up configurations, given that this was our fist ever time working with this new car, both for myself and the team.

There is a lot of fine-tuning to be done to achieve the best out of the car and I think there is still room for a lot of improvement.

It was fantastic to be reunited with my old team. We work very well together and know eachother inside out, which is of course an advantage.

I hope an agreement can be reached as I would truly love to race with RC Motorsport again this season!”

CJ Driver Bruce Jouanny has been selected as the Superleague Formula test driver.

Widely recognised for his racing skills and unique understanding of engineering and set-up work, Bruce is working with David Hayle’s Hitech team to put the car through its first paces and fine-tune its preparation in view of the first race, next August at Donington.

Superleague Formula is a brand new, global Championship that connects two of the most popular sports in the world: football and motor racing.

The Series will feature 20 cars competing against one another, with each one carrying the colours and livery of major football clubs from Europe and around the world.

The cars will be identical, putting the emphasis on driver skills, and will feature a Panoz chassis and an impressive 750bhp engine in a V12 configuration and 4.2 litre capacity.

After an initial shakedown of the SF car, Bruce said: “Well, it’s already very good so I think it’s going to get super good! The engine is fantastic, very driveable, lots of torque and lots of power. Everything feels very settled; there are only a few adjustments we have to make to the car. It’s very, very impressive! Apart from Formula One, there is nothing on track as fast as this, that’s for sure. I am sure the public will be dying to see this.”
After more extensive running, Bruce added: “We have been able to put some good miles on the car and get everything up to temperature and up to speed. At the end of the day I was able to do a longer run where I could really start to put the tyres under load and push the engine harder, which was great.

The engine has a tremendous amount of torque – we are down on top end power at the moment, but this is the first phase of the engine development and we are working through mapping options – that is what we are here for.

The Elan chassis responds to changes really well, you can really feel every adjustment and it has an enormous amount of downforce – the track was pretty cold and slippery but you could really lean on the lateral grip.

The braking is also very impressive. The carbon brakes are very strong and the V12 Menard powerplant offers a lot of engine braking – that will be one of the things which the drivers in this championship will take a while to get used to.”

Following last Friday’s announcement of unification between the Champ Car World Series and the Indy Racing League, Conquest Racing team has today confirmed its participation as a two-car team in the 2008 IndyCar® Series season.

“Finally, we have come together as one,” expressed Conquest Racing Owner Eric Bachelart. “It’s been a long time coming and we can now all move ahead in the same direction under one roof. The work is only starting but now that there is solidarity in open-wheel racing it will make it that much easier to take this sport to where it needs to be. It’s a great moment for open-wheel racing in general and for the fans and our sponsors. We are happy to be competing under the Indy Racing League banner with our other fellow ‘Champ Car’ competitors against established IndyCar Series teams and we are also looking forward to the new challenge that this unification brings us.”

The move will be a return of sorts for the open-wheel team. Conquest Racing previously competed in their first full Indy Racing League season in 2002 with Frenchman Laurent Redon. That year, the team not only took home the “Rookie of the Year” honors but also claimed a podium finish at the third race of the season in Fontana, California . Their IndyCar Series debut came in 2001 at Joliet, Illinois where Redon scored a seventh place finish.

Competing for the team in its return to the IndyCar Series will be CJ Driver Franck Perera and a teammate that will be named at a later date. Perera finished second in the Cooper Tires Presents The Champ Car Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda in 2007 and was also named “Rookie of the Year”. He ended the 12-race season only 31 points out of first place, and earned eight consecutive podiums while finishing top-five in all of his races. Perera also completed every lap of 2007, leading 116 of them.
"I am excited that my managers at CJ Motorsport were able to work a deal for me to continue with Conquest into the new merged Series. American open-wheel racing will be so much stronger and exciting for the fans having the teams back together again. I look forward to going to Homestead this week for the media activities and then back to Indy to start preparations for the start of the IndyCar Series season. For sure it will not be an easy start for everyone to learn a new car and new tracks but after our great test in Sebring last month I think we have developed great relations within our team to show some strong results very quickly in the Dallara."

Bachelart, who participated as a driver in the 1992 and 1995 Indy 500 races, added: “The first few races won’t be easy, but we gladly accept the challenge. Thankfully we will not be in complete unknown territory having competed in the IRL in 2002. Obviously, the competition level has increased since then and there is a lot of work that needs to be done before we get to the same level as the ‘IRL’ teams, but that’s what racing is all about. We are really excited and can’t wait to get to work on the Dallaras.”

“What fantastic news for the sport of open-wheel racing,” said Anthony Blumberg of Opes Prime, Conquest Racing co-owner. “This will certainly be an interesting and demanding year but this team is ready to take on the task at hand and fight with the rest if them.”

Conquest Racing announced today that 2007 Atlantic "Rookie of the Year" Franck Perera, who posted the fastest time among all drivers during the recent Champ Car World Series testing in Sebring, would join the team for the upcoming 2008 season.

CJ Driver Perera completed his first test with Conquest two days ago, where he topped the time charts, outpacing both established Champ Car drivers and other newcomers to the open-wheel series.
"I think Franck will continue to surprise many people this year," said Eric Bachelart, Conquest Racing team owner. "He was without a doubt the best driver in Atlantics last season, and I think he is a great addition to our team. We knew before the test in Sebring that we were signing Franck for the year, now everyone knows why we are so excited to secure him for 2008. The chemistry with Franck is excellent and he is an experienced professional--a pleasure to work with. Our focus is to take this team to the next level and Franck will help us achieve that goal."
Conquest Racing’s new partner and team co-owner Anthony Blumberg of Opes-Prime echoed Bachelart’s comments: "Conquest Racing is committed to taking the next step up and adding Franck to the line-up is evidence of our desire to fight for the win every race weekend. Franck is an extremely talented driver and he has proved that in every series in which he has competed. I think we can expect great things from him."
With no prior experience in Atlantics, Perera hopped into the car at the final pre-season test of 2006 and found himself atop the time sheets at the end of the first practice session, and all subsequent sessions, breaking the unofficial track record in the process.

By the fifth race in Portland , he was on the podium, and two races later, he scored his first win of three last season. He ended the 12-race season only 31 points out of first place, and earned eight consecutive podiums while finishing top five in all of his races. Perera also completed every lap of 2007, leading 116 of them. "This is a great moment and opportunity for me to be joining the Champ Car World Series with a team like Conquest Racing," said Perera. "I want to again thank both Eric and Anthony Blumberg for believing in my ability. Even though we had our eye on part of the $2 million team scholarship, I am very grateful to my managers at CJ Motorsport who were still able to put together a deal for me without it. I can’t wait for the upcoming test in Laguna Seca to get back behind the wheel again and continue my preparation for Long Beach ."

Conquest Racing, who will be participating in their sixth year of Champ Car competition, was able to put this program together thanks to the support of Opes Prime, an Australian unlisted public company that provides a range of financial services and products for high net worth individuals, stockbrokers and financial advisors, asset managers, banks and other firms.

Prior to his Atlantic season, Perera built up quite a track record. He was one of the first two drivers signed in 2001 to the Toyota F-1 Young Driver Program. Perera won numerous karting titles including the World Karting Formula A Championship in 1999 (he was also Vice-Champion in 2000), the Karting Junior French Championship and the Karting Junior European Championship in 1998. Other career highlights include a second-place finish in GP2 in Monaco in 2006, a fifth-place finish in Macau in 2004 in the F3 Euro Series where he also took "Rookie of the Year" honors, and he was crowned Formula Renault 2.0 champion in 2003.

Conquest Racing will be fielding a two-car effort this season in the Champ Car World Series with more information on their second driver to come in the following weeks.

With the results of the first two days of testing at Sebring International Raceway, most people expected to see the name Franck atop the timing sheets at the conclusion of the first pre-season open test for the Champ Car World Series. What they may not have expected is that his last name would be Perera.

Driving the #24 Conquest Racing entry, CJ Driver Franck Perera posted a lap of 49.806 seconds, topping the time charts over the three days of testing and showing his own and Conquest Racing’s speed and intention for the season ahead.

“I think we did a good job,” Perera said. “It was a crescendo - each session we were faster and we tested many things for all the phases of a race weekend and we did well in each. So, it’s good that we can already fight with the top guys.”

Perera, who many say is the “real deal”, outpaced Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing’s Graham Rahal, by 144-thousandths of a second. The two Atlantic runner-ups of the past two seasons were the only drivers to post a time below the 50-second mark.

The Champ Car World Series will continue its pre-season testing at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca March 13-14.
Combined times from Sebring open test (pos., driver name, team, lap time, mph, total laps for the two days):
  1. Franck Perera, #24 Conquest Racing, 49.806 seconds, 120.636 mph, 205 laps
  2. Graham Rahal, #2 Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, 49.950 seconds, 120.288 mph, 238 laps 
  3. Alex Tagliani, #21 PKV Racing, 50.173 seconds, 119.754 mph, 281 laps
  4. Oriol Servia, #22 PKV Racing, 50.178 seconds, 119.742 mph, 288 laps
  5. Justin Wilson, #1 Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, 50.207 seconds, 119.673 mph, 269 laps
  6. Franck Montagny, #7 Forsythe/Pettit Racing, 50.209 seconds, 119.668 mph, 207 laps
  7. Bruno Junqueira, #19 Dale Coyne Racing, 50.507 seconds, 118.962 mph, 247 laps
  8. Alex Figge, #29 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 50.521 seconds, 118.929 mph, 247 laps
  9. Simon Pagenaud, #34 Conquest Racing, 50.702 seconds, 118.504 mph, 186 laps
10. Enrique Bernoldi, #8 Rocketsports Racing, 50.714 seconds, 118.476 mph, 255 laps
11. Paul Tracy, #3 Forsythe/Pettit Racing, 50.732 seconds, 118.434 mph, 179 laps
12. David Martinez, #28 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 50.736 seconds, 118.425 mph, 255 laps
13. Ernesto Viso, #4 Minardi Team USA, 50.800 seconds, 118.276 mph, 164 laps
14. Mario Moraes, #11 Dale Coyne Racing, 50.930 seconds, 117.974 mph, 241 laps

FRANCK PERERA the Champ Car Atlantic Rookie of the Year and Vice-Champion announced today he is confident a Champ Car deal will be announced soon. "I especially want to thank all the fans who supported me last season in the Champ Car Atlantics. I’ve raced in many Series around the World and Champ Car is a very exciting series with a high level of competition and many great teams. I left Europe to come to the US to be in the Champ Car and since the Atlantic’s season ended my managers at CJMotorsport have been working very hard for next season.

After my test with Forsythe in November, I have been back home in France training non-stop. I can’t wait to get back in a Champ Car again with my new Team and start working towards the Championship in 2008. I wish Vicki (O’Connor) at the Champ Car Atlantic Series and Chris (Pantini) at Cooper Tire, as well as Mazda, all the best next season. I’ll be by to check on them!"