GP2 Feature - GP2 Asia's Bright Future
21/01/2008
The Bridgestone supported GP2 Series broadens its reach in 2008 with the newly inaugurated GP2 Asia Series. With the exception of the 2005 season finale and 2007 season opener both taking place in Bahrain, the GP2 Series has, for the past three years, been based on European circuits.
However, the GP2 Asia Series is now poised to bring the same championship format which has provided Formula One with so many drivers in the past few seasons to newly emerging motorsport markets in the Middle East and Asia.
Bridgestone has been associated with the GP2 Series since it started in 2005 and is keen to continue its support of the series by aiming to make the GP2 Asia Series as popular and successful as its European counterpart. After all, the combination of Bridgestone Potenza tyres allied to a Dallara chassis and powered by Renault engines has proved to be a winning formula.
The series was conceived as a feeder championship to Formula One, and this has certainly proved to be the case. In 2008, two of Formula One’s top teams will feature a race driver line-up drawn exclusively from drivers who learnt their skills in GP2.
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes feature the combination of 2006 GP2 champion Lewis Hamilton with 2005 runner-up Heikki Kovalainen, whilst the AT&T Williams squad feature 2005 GP2 champion Nico Rosberg with best placed rookie GP2 driver in 2007, Kazuki Nakajima.
Elsewhere, 2007 champion Timo Glock returns to a Formula One race drive with the Panasonic Toyota team, whilst 2006 runner-up Nelson Piquet Jr will race for the ING Renault Formula One team.
These drivers who have used GP2 as a springboard to Formula One are the examples that the latest drivers in the Series want to emulate, and the GP2 Asia Series offers the same challenges of the GP2 Series, but at much reduced costs for the emerging motorsport nations of the Middle East and Asia.
Aside from the technical benefits of working with GP2 Asia, for Bridgestone, it also offers a new promotional vehicle in these markets as the association with the GP2 Series has been used to great effect for Bridgestone supported campaigns such as the FIA Foundation’s ‘Make Roads Safe’ and `Think Before You Drive’ initiatives.
The GP2 Asia Series has its first races on January 25th and 26th. “We are looking forward to seeing the GP2 Asia Series take the successful formula of the GP2 Series to new motorsport markets,” says Hirohide Hamashima, Bridgestone Motorsport Director of Motorsport Tyre Development.
“Motorsport is benefiting from an upturn in popularity in these regions and there are a lot of young and ambitious drivers in need of a series which will nurture their talent in a structured and professional way.”
“The challenges for these drivers should be the same as in the GP2 Series and for Bridgestone it is a great opportunity to support them as they endeavour to make their way up the motorsport ladder. At the same time we shall also have the opportunity to visit interesting new venues and increase the reach of our motorsport activities. GP2 always delivers exciting racing, and this will be no different in the GP2 Asia Series.”
In its support of the GP2 Asia Series, Bridgestone will visit two new race facilities, as it will be the first time that Bridgestone Motorsport has operated at the Dubai Autodrome and at Indonesia’s Sentul race track.
This proved to be a somewhat bigger challenge than expected as preparations for the pre-season test in Dubai were hampered by heavy rain. However, Bridgestone is used to working in challenging environments, having operated at race venues all around the world in numerous different motorsport disciplines.
Whilst production of the Bridgestone Potenza GP2 Series slick tyres which will be used in Europe, has been transferred to the Bridgestone Europe Technical Centre in Rome, the tyres for the GP2 Asia Series were produced in Japan and are then being shipped to the circuits.
The calendar stretches for five rounds, starting and finishing at the Dubai Autodrome and visiting Sentul in Indonesia, as well as Sepang in Malaysia and Sakhir in Bahrain, the latter two events as support races to Formula One Grands Prix.
The GP2 Asia Series makes use of the same Dallara chassis that were used in the GP2 Series until their replacement for this season by the new GP2 / 08 car. This means that teams have a good knowledge of racing with this chassis.
New drivers should be able to delve into the wealth of experience and data that teams have of running Bridgestone’s tyres with these cars, but even the experienced drivers will have something new to learn by racing on the new circuits. At the end of these five rounds one driver will emerge as the champion, and a cheque from Bridgestone for $50,000 will be part of their reward.