Axcil Jefferies takes second victory of weekend. 31.05.2009: Formula BMW Junior Axcil Jefferies (ZIM/15/Eurasia Motorsport) won his second race of the weekend today with a lights-to-flag victory in Round 5 of the 2009 Formula BMW Pacific series. Current Drivers’ Classification leader Gary Thompson (IRL

Formula BMW Pacific Round 5 Results.

Formula BMW Junior Axcil Jefferies (ZIM/15/Eurasia Motorsport) won his second race of the weekend today with a lights-to-flag victory in Round 5 of the 2009 Formula BMW Pacific series.  Current Drivers’ Classification leader Gary Thompson (IRL/16/E-Rain Racing) finished second for the third consecutive time, while Akhil Khushlani (IND/19/E-Rain Racing) landed his second podium of the weekend.

Under a scorching sun, Thompson fought Jefferies hard for the lead, attempting several overtaking manoeuvres and in the end finishing just 0.668 seconds behind him.

With one race left this weekend (Round 6), the highly consistent Thompson continues to top both the overall standings and the Rookie Cup with 73 points.  Jefferies is second in the standings with 60 points, while Rio Haryanto (INA/16/Questnet Team Qi-Meritus) is third with 44 points.

Formula BMW Junior Steel Guiliana (AUS/17/Atlantic Racing Team) continued to improve in Round 5, while fellow Junior and team mate Chris Wootton (AUS/20/Eurasia Motorsport) was unable to finish the race after an incident at the start.

“I had a fantastic start again, it worked really well,” Jefferies said.  “I thought I had to pull away because Gary was very fast.  We had a bit of a battle for the whole race, but I think it was a good, clean race and we all did really well.”

Thompson has landed on the podium in each of the series’ five races this year.  With 10 races still to go, the Irish driver said he wanted to race smart and not throw the season away by pushing for the win:  “In a way, yes it’s frustrating to keep coming second,” Thompson said.  “But second is still good. I pushed Axcil really hard. I’m happy to keep scoring points and we have a bit of a lead right now.  The win does not matter as much and I’m not going to risk everything for it.  The championship matters more.”

Still, Thompson, who will start this afternoon’s Round 6 on the first row with pole-sitter Fahmi Ilyas (MAS/17/E-Rain Racing), said he would try to capitalize on his position advantage over Jefferies, who will start from fourth.

“I think we’re in good shape for the next race,” Thompson said. “I hope I get a good start and I’ll be ahead of Axcil at least at the start, so I’ll see what we can do.”

The grid for Sunday afternoon’s Round 6 is determined by the results of Round 4.

In Round 5, Jefferies got off to a strong start and Thompson was not far behind.  By the end of the first lap, just three hundredths of a second separated the two, with Khushlani also pushing hard.  Dominic Ang (MAS/19/Team Holzer PFX) worked his way up from eighth on the grid to fifth, crossing the line in sixth.

Mid-way through the 10-laps, Thompson began his attempts to grab the lead.  He did manage to get by Jefferies, only for the Junior to immediately retake his position.  Khushlani was able to briefly slip into second, but Thompson re-took second place and all three drivers finished in the positions in which they started.

Haryanto was the top mover in the race.  After starting at the back of the grid in 13th position, Haryanto worked his way up the field to finish fourth.

“I kept pushing at the beginning,” Haryanto explained. “Everything went well for the first five laps and I managed to gain a lot of positions.  I thought I might have been able to get a podium.”

Haryanto will have a better chance to do so in Round 6, when he starts third on the grid.  Round 6 will take place this afternoon on the 5.543 km Sepang International Circuit as part of the Asian Festival of Speed.


Round 5 Results.
 
1 22 Axcil JEFFERIES•* (ZIM) Eurasia Motorsport 22:12.618
 
2 7 Gary THOMPSON• (IRL) E-Rain Racing +0.668
 
3 49 Akhil KHUSHLANI (IND) E-Rain Racing +2.862
 
4 88 Rio HARYANTO (INA) Questnet Team Qi-Meritus +4.295
 
5 38 Dustin SOFYAN • (INA) Questnet Team Qi-Meritus +10.139
 
6 2 Dominic ANG (MAS) Team Holzer PFX +10.531
 
7 3 Calvin WONG• (MAS) Team Holzer PFX +13.821
 
8 17 Fahmi ILYAS• (MAS) E-Rain Racing +14.164
 
9 16 CAO Hong Wei (CHN) Ao’s Racing Team +16.793
 
10 10 Antonio MARTINEZ# (ESP) Eurasia Motorsport +22.279
 
11 27 Fahad ALGOSAIBI (KSA)• E-Rain Racing +23.012
 
12 8 Steel GUILIANA*• (AUS) Atlantic Racing Team +23.391
 
13 4 Muhamad Alif JAFRI• (MAS) Team Holzer PFX +24.612
 
14 11 Chris WOOTTON* (AUS) Eurasia Motorsport DNF
 

Pole Position: Axcil Jefferies 2:11.719
Fastest Lap: Akhil Khushlani 2:11.257/152.028 kph/Lap 9

 
*Scholarship driver
•Rookie Cup
#Non-Series Registered


Provisional Championship Points Tables after Round 5.

Drivers
1.Gary Thompson (IRL/E-Rain Racing) 73 points; 2. Axcil Jefferies (ZIM/Eurasia Motorsport) 60 points; 3. Rio Haryanto (INA/Questnet Team Qi-Meritus) 44 points; 4. Dustin Sofyan (INA/Questnet Team Qi-Meritus) 34 points; 5. Fahmi Ilyas (MAS/E-Rain Racing) 28 points; 6. Akhil Khushlani (IND/E-Rain Racing) 27 points; 7. Chris Wootton (AUS/Eurasia Motorsport) 24.5 points; 8. Calvin Wong (MAS/Team Holzer PFX) 23 points; 9. Dominic Ang (MAS/Team Holzer PFX) 18 points;10. Fahad Algosaibi (KSA/E-Rain Racing) 12.5 points; 11. Cao Hong Wei (CHN/Ao’s Racing Team) 7 points; 12. Steel Guiliana (AUS/Atlantic Racing Team) 6 points; 13. Aditya Patel (IND/Atlantic Racing Team) 5 points; 14. Muhamad Alif Jafri (MAS/17/Team Holzer PFX) 3 points; Zhu Huan (CHN/Questnet Team Qi-Meritus) ½ point.
                  

Rookie Cup
1. Thompson, 73 points; 2.Jefferies, 60 points; 3. Sofyan, 34 points, 4. Ilyas, 28 points; 5. Wong, 23 points; 6. Algosaibi 12.5 points; 7. Guiliana, 6 points; 8. Jafri, 3 points.


Teams
1. Questnet Team Qi-Meritus, 92.5 points; 2. Eurasia Motorsport, 90.75 points; 3. E-Rain Racing, 89.63 points; 4. Team Holzer PFX, 57.5 points; 5. Atlantic Racing Team, 55.5 points; 7. Ao’s Racing Team, 33 points; 7. Motaworld Racing, 6 points.

 
Statistics:

Winners 2009: Thompson (1); Haryanto (1); Jefferies (2); Ilyas (1)
Pole Positions: Thompson (2), Wootton (2); Jefferies (1)
Podiums: Thompson (5); Wootton (2); Haryanto (3); Jefferies (2); Khushlani (2); Ilyas (1)
Rookie Cup Wins: Thompson (3); Jefferies (2)

 

Background:

Formula BMW is the world’s leading entry-level series in formula racing. In 2009 the three Formula BMW series – Formula BMW Europe, Formula BMW Pacific and Formula BMW Americas – will be held in the key motor sport markets of Europe, pan-Asia and North and South America. Formula BMW will be regularly held in the support programme of Formula One. The series gives young racing talents the chance to enter professional motor sport in a safe racing car – the Formula BMW FB02.

The FB02 has been in use since season 2002. It is powered by a 140 hp BMW engine that takes it to a top speed of up to 230 km/h. It ranks among the safest vehicles in its category and exceeds the FIA safety regulations that govern this class of car. Innovations such as the FORS (Formula Rescue Seat) were developed by BMW Motorsport specifically for Formula BMW. Following Formula One, Formula BMW was the first single-seater series outside the US in which the HANS system was made mandatory.

Formula BMW drivers have the opportunity to take part in an Education and Coaching Programme that runs parallel with the racing season. The programme includes driver coaching at the races by professional race drivers, attending a Formula One test, fitness courses, tuition in driving technique and strategy, as well as seminars on sponsoring and sport management.

Among the 20 team drivers in this season’s Formula One, there are now five Formula BMW graduates: Nico Rosberg, Adrian Sutil, Sebastian Vettel, Sebastién Buemi and Timo Glock.


- Nikki KEMP, Hong Kong -