Barwa Addax Team aiming to retain GP2 title

JOHNNY CECOTTO AND JOSEF KRAL ALL OUT FOR DRIVER’S CHAMPIONSHIP AND PROMOTION TO F 1

The reigning team champions, Barwa Addax Team start the defence of their title in the GP2 Series 2012 at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia. In this class, which is the platform towards Formula 1, drivers Johnny Cecotto (Venezuela) and Josef Kral (Czech Republic) will be defending the team colours this season.

This year the event will be raced over 12 weekends which will run parallel with Formula 1 and this season the GP2 Main Series and the GP2 Asia Series will become one, as the event will not only take place at the European circuits, but also at the Malaysian  Grand Prix this weekend, as well as Bahrain (2 weekends, one of which will race alongside the F1 GP) and Singapour which will close the championship between the 21st-23rd September.

There will be 13 teams taking part with two cars in each  pit box, which will mean 26 drivers on the starting grid. All cars will be of similar characteristics as they will be driving the same car with the same engine. The championship is set up so that all teams have the same raw material and the differences will be down to the work of each team and how they prepare their cars and drivers on each and every circuit. This season the teams will have the opportunity to set up the car according to the circuit and that means a total variation in the preparation at some tracks.

Johnny Cecotto, official Barwa Addax Team driver: “After the pre-season test we worked very hard to prepare everything, we spent a lot of time at the workshop to go through all of the data and work on the setup. I will be in Kuala Lumpur for the first time so we spent a lot of hours in the simulator. I can't wait to race again and I think that with the high temperatures in Sepang our car should work very well and we can aim for podium positions. I want to take home as many points as possible to start the championship well”.

Josef Král, official  Barwa Addax team driver:“It is very nice to be part of the team Barwa Addax because as I could see in the tests all the team is very professional and all people are very motivated to score good results but we still have time to have good laugh which is also important. I am sure that all the program which we followed through the test will help us to be on top. The qualifying in Sepang will give us some first taste of real results and I hope that it all will be fine for us. I am looking forward a lot to this race but I have never raced there before. We did quite a lot simulations and simulator session so I think that I am quite familiar with this very difficult circuit. I am already in Malaysia since Friday doing all training here.”

Alejandro Agag, Owner and Team Principal:”As well as our drivers, we are all looking forward to the start of the season, which looks as though it’s going to be very interesting. There are new regulations which have been introduced to guarantee a greater spectacle on the circuits and ensure that the drivers and teams have a better preparation when it comes to promoting themselves to the F1 teams. The choice of the different tyre compounds as well as the aerodynamics in qualifications will make for a tough challenge for technicians and drivers, who will have to work hard to get their startegies right if they are to get the desired results. Furthermore it will be interesting to see how the new points system has an influence on this season’s championship because it favours victories rather than being simply consistent over the course of this year. As always, our main objective is to regain the team championship of which we are proud holders. To do this we have to maintain our policy of offering both our drivers everything they need to take on the championship with certain guarantees and that despite of their tender age,  Cecotto and Král are both prepared to fight it out for the title.”


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