Sport | Motorsport
Thompson hopes his team can cash in on home advantage
Founder and team principal Peter Thompson is hoping to ride the 'home advantage' factor to cement his new team's performance at this weekend's opening race of the GP2 Asia Series at the Dubai Autodrome.
- By Alaric Gomes, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:04 January 25, 2008
Dubai: Founder and team principal Peter Thompson is hoping to ride the 'home advantage' factor to cement his new team's performance at this weekend's opening race of the GP2 Asia Series at the Dubai Autodrome.
"The key ingredient for us is that we are the only true Asian team in this GP2 Asia Series," Thompson told Gulf News at the launch of his all-new Qi-Meritus.Mahara team late on Wednesday.
The first two races of the new GP2 Asia Series on the 2008 calendar will be held today and tomorrow at the Dubai Autodrome as part of the Dubai Grand Racing.
Regulations stipulate that only teams with Asian drivers are eligible for the end of season prize money. "That factor in a way encourages us, but I feel that the one ingredient that distinguishes us is the fact that we are the only truly Asian team here," Thompson said.
Mentality
The new Qi-Meritus.Mahara team will be among the 13 teams searching for the top honours at the end of the season that concludes with the last two races here in the first half of April.
"The rest of the teams are all European, though some of them do have Asian drivers.
"Accepted that some of my staff is from Europe, but the intention is to have a truly Asian set-up in the near future," Thompson said.
Leading the charge for the new team will be Japanese Hiroki Yoshimoto and Italian Luca Filippi.
"The mentality in the team is to get better all the time," Filippi stated.
"Racing is going to be tough and there will be no room for any mistakes. The consistency is good and the performance is already there. Now we only need some luck and the results and the respect will follow," Filippi remarked.
New team: Say 'yes' to Bernie
"It is a common notion that when Bernie Ecclestone offers you something, you should never say no," smiles team principal and founder of the new Qi-Meritus.Mahara team, Peter Thompson. The meeting between the two came during the Malaysian Grand Prix last year when the F1 supremo asked the Malaysia-based Thompson to put together a team for the GP2 Asia Series. "I could not say no to him, could I?" Thompson asked. "And that was the start for this new team." The simple Irishman comes in with his new outfit along with nearly three decades of experience and as many major titles on the Asian circuit. The funding is pretty much done by a Saudi Arabia company owned by Thompson's former co-driver and friend Raad S. Abduljawad and Thompson's Meritus brand headquartered in Kuala Lumpur. "I started off with a mere $1,000, and now we are a $125 million company on Nasdaq. It sure pays to say yes to Bernie," Thompson said with a smile.
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