THE FIGHT IS ON FOR N.TECHNOLOGY
Media information, 10 March 2007
N.Technology will have to fight hard in tomorrow?x2019;s opening round of the FIA World Touring Car Championship after clutch problems hampered today's qualifying in Brazil.
The technical setback will see lead driver, James Thompson, starting from the eighth row for the first race in Curitiba, a bitter blow for the team after some great performances during testing and practice.
"Unfortunately, I was only able to do one qualifying run," said Thompson, who finished fifth fastest in Friday's testing session and seventh in practice this morning. "The clutch problem put me out for the rest of the session. I'm disappointed that we didn't get a chance to show our abilities. We could have qualified in the top eight, maybe even better."
Thompson, from Harrogate, is still upbeat about N.Technology's chances in tomorrow's double-header. "The first corner is very tight, so there might be some craziness there that will benefit us," said the 32-year-old, a former British Touring Car Champion. "We're very quick in a straight line, which is an advantage here and overtaking cars on the straight won't be a problem."
Team-mate Olivier Tielemans qualified 18th, improving throughout the weekend as he got to grips with both the track and his Alfa Romeo 156. At one point the Dutch rookie managed a well-executed overtaking manoeuvre on Irish competitor Emmet O'Brien during qualifying; something that did not go unnoticed by Team Manager Andrea Muller.
"Olivier hasn't had a chance to do that many laps yet," said Muller. "He's still learning but he is getting better and better as he gets to spend more time in the car. He is young but very determined which is great to see."
Muller was philosophical about the day?x2019;s problems. "It's a real shame because the car is quick," he said. "We could have been seventh, maybe even sixth but we weren't lucky. If we'd had a second run, for sure we would have improved. Today we couldn't do better but tomorrow is a different story!"
