LONDON--Jonathan Summerton brought A1 Team USA home in sixth place Sunday in the A1GP Feature race at Brands Hatch to close out a successful 2006-07 season.
Summerton scored five points, raising A1 Team USA's total to 42 and securing its ninth-place finish in the World Cup of Motorsports.
Summerton, of Kissimmee, Fla., started ninth in the feature. As he avoided an opening-lap melee, Summerton slipped to 10th. The "We The People" car escaped unscathed as two cars collided and slid off the track.
After the safety car brought the field under control twice in the early running, the race resumed on lap six and it ws hard racing to the checkered flag. A1 Team USA elected to bring Summerton into the pits for its mandatory pit stop on lap nine. The crew made a fantastic stop, changing all four tires in just 10.9 seconds, and passed two cars in pit lane.
Summerton gained two more positions on the track and ran a strong pace to finish a solid sixth.
Summerton, who celebrated his 19th birthday last week, was happy with the result:
“I’m really tired," he said. "That was a hard race. There were cars going off everywhere. I want to thank my crew for giving me such a great stop. I bumped wheels with the Canadian car as we were coming out of the pits, but I ended up in front, and that’what counts."
In the Sprint race, Summerton started 11th and advanced to ninth to improve his starting position for the Feature.
“The steering was pretty heavy, but I fought hard," Summerton said. "We had a couple of good battles there. I got tapped from behind at the start, but I managed to stay out of trouble otherwise.”
Summerton started the season driving in the all-rookie practices, but was promoted to race status for the final four events of the season. He scored points in two Sprints and two Features and a total of 18. Summerton finished second in the Feature at Mexico City for A1 Team's USA best result.
"I've really enjoyed driving for my country in the 'We The People' car and I hope to be back next season," Summerton.said.
A1 Team USA owner Rick Weidinger and his partners entertained more than 50 guests from England and the USA in Brands Hatch this weekend. The guests were introduced to the driver and crew and the "We The People" car was able to give them a strong run at the historic racing circuit.
"We fought back from the adversity we had in qualifying to move up in the Sprint and Feature races and score points," Weidinger said. "It showed the skill and determination of our team and our driver. We've started calling Jonathan the 'Comeback Kid.' He never gives up.
"It was fun to have our own rooting section and we enjoyed giving our guests an inside look at A1 Team USA."
For more information on A1 Team USA, visit www.A1TeamUSAtv.com. For more information on A1GP, visit www.A1GP.com.
Media/Press Relations
Contact:
Tim Tuttle
office: 765 246 6335
mobile: 317 432 1169
timetuttle@aol.com