Australia

A1 Team Australia performed well in the second practice session today here in Portimao, The Algarve Portugal. The circuit and complex is a must see for any motorsport enthusiast with state of the art facilities all around. You have a combination of fast corners, an incline with a dipper down to a long fast main straight set in the rural area of The Algarve.

In the early part of the session Martin spent valuable time learning the track making setup changes with Rob Arnott Chief Engineer and Ash Edwards Data engineer.

John Martin's track times came down as the session was half way through moving him into sixth place. With slight rain on turn one Rob Arnott radioed for Martin to return to the pits being on track on slicks moving into a fast turn one could present problems.

The team carried out their routine practice testing setup for tomorrow's qualifying.

Alan Jones A1 Team Australia Seatholder: "That was a good session overall as John maintained the 6th place. His times came down every lap and although we finished tenth overall, the gap to the lead cars came down over a second. We are happy and have enjoyed this spectacular circuit here in the Algarve"

John Martin: "That was a good practice although we moved into tenth the car was quicker during the middle of the session. We decided to try a new setup before qualifying tomorrow and feel confident the car will improve once we attack the third official practice in the morning"

Rob Arnott Chief Engineer: "John did well, we managed to improve the car every lap and he gave good feedback on track as well as the pits to try a range of setups before tomorrow's third practice and official qualifying. The car is good, the track spectacular and we're confident of a good day on Saturday ahead of the Sunday racing"

Brazil

A1 Team Brazil today took part in free practice for round six of the 2008/09 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport at the new Portimao circuit in the Algarve, Portugal.

Unfortunately for Brazil, the rookie practice session was stopped for a lengthy period after a huge accident befalling Bia. She went straight on at the first turn after suffering a brake failure, scrubbing off little speed before crashing into the tyres headfirst. The safety cell of the A1GP Powered by Ferrari car stood up well to the crash, and Bia was able to walk from the car unaided. Investigations are now underway as to the cause of the failure.

Unfortunately the car sustained considerable front end damage and so Felipe Guimaraes was unable to run in the afternoon session.

Bia Figueiredo: "It was a shame. I was getting used to the car and the track and we were enjoying a good session. On one corner the brakes were fine but then when I tried to brake the next time, with no warning, the rears were gone. It was a big crash but I'm fine and actually I was impressed because I actually thought there would be more damage to the front than there was. The track was slippery and green when I first drove but we were continually improving. The track Is difficult, with a lot of blind corners, but it's really good to drive."

Emerson Fittipaldi, Team Principal: "I always say there are two things that should never fail on a racing car and that is the steering wheel and the brakes. They are investigating what went wrong now because we have to make sure that is not going to happen again. You can always repair a racing car but I am just happy that Bia was not injured. The team is making a very good effort now to prepare the car for tomorrow."

Felipe Guimarães: "It's disappointing not to get in the car today because it's new for all of us and it looks pretty difficult. I've spoken to Bia though and will look at all the data from today. Tomorrow we'll have the car ready to go and new tyres so I will just aim to learn the track fast and prepare."

France

Today, A1GP France took part in free practice for the sixth round of the 2008-09 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport Championship on the International Algarve circuit in Portugal.

Nicolas Prost at the wheel of the French car set promising times in the 2 rookie sessions this morning ending up second quickest. Overall, the track's grip level was very poor and a strong wind upset the cars' aerodynamic balance. It was difficult in these conditions to find the right window to set a good time.

In the first free session this afternoon the team got down to finding the right set-ups, and tried to adapt the car to the track conditions by working on the tyre pressures in particular. Nicolas finished the day in eighth place overall.

The team had a trouble-free day mechanically speaking and was able to complete its technical programme. It is analysing the data this evening to refine the car's set-up for tomorrow's free practice and qualifying.