Malaysian teenage sensation Jazeman Jaafar scored his third win in five races today, taking victory in Round 5 of Formula BMW Asia and making it a 1-2-3 for his Team Meritus. Team mates BMW Junior Ross Jamison of Hong Kong (17), and pole-sitter James Grunwell (THA/18) were second and third, after some confusion over the starting procedure lost the Thai his pole position advantage. “I’m disappointed not to have won because of someone else’s mistake, ” said Grunwell. “But I wouldn’t take anything away from Jazeman who drove a perfect race – all credit to him. ”
Jazeman’s win strengthens his lead at the top of the Driver Classification, with an impressive 57 point advantage over Grunwell in 2nd. Jamison moves up to 3rd in the Driver Classification and now tops the Rookie Cup leaderboard. A disastrous outing which saw him crash out early on in the race puts BMW Junior Akhil Khushlani (IND/17/Eurasia Motorsport) down the leaderboard from 2nd to 6th overall, and 3rd in the Rookie Cup standings behind BMW Junior Kyle Mitchell of South Africa (16/Eurasia Motorsport).
Mitchell was 4th overall and the second Rookie Cup finisher behind Jamison, while another Malaysian Imran Shaharom (19) showed a massive improvement to place 3rd in the Rookie Cup for new Team Holzer PFX. Jazeman and Shaharom’s performances also strengthen Malaysia’s lead in the Nations Classification to 16 ahead of Thailand, which is now 2nd thanks to Grunwell.
Off the start, Jazeman was quick to take advantage of Grunwell’s hesitation and sped by to take the lead, which he held to the chequered flag. Likewise, Jamison shot by into 2nd and, despite closing the gap to the Malaysian at one stage, wasn’t able to seriously challenge for the win. Indonesian Zahir Ali (Team TARADTM) was up to 3rd at one stage, having qualified in 5th, but brake problems kicked in on the second lap of the 10-lap race and he had dropped down 9th by the finish.
Grunwell meanwhile was on a charge through the field, desperate to regain the lead. Despite a few mistakes, he ploughed through to cross the line in 3rd position.
Mitchell put in a sterling performance to finish 4th from 8th on the grid, having suffered uncomfortable injuries in a bicycle accident earlier this week and put up a spirited defense of his 3rd place against Grunwell. Fellow BMW Junior David Zhu of China (Team Meritus) had earlier set his best qualifying time to start from 4th on the grid.
For many of the drivers, it was their first outing on the full 5.542km Grand Prix Circuit in Malaysia, having competed on the shorter North Track last month. Sepang International Circuit Ambassador Jazeman was delighted to have notched up another win in the series, and found the newly-resurfaced track interesting, while Grunwell did have the satisfaction of retaining his fastest lap record, with a 2:11.817 fastest lap.
Background:
Formula BMW is the world’s leading entry-level class in Formula racing. In 2007 the series will be held in Germany, the UK, Asia and the USA. Up-and-coming drivers as young as 15-years-old are given the opportunity of entering motor racing with the high-tech, standard FB02 race car.
This racing car has been seen on the grid since 2002 and has set standards particularly on the safety technology front. The single-seater is propelled by a 140 bhp BMW engine up to 230km/h and exceeds the FIA safety requirements for its class. BMW Motorsport has developed the FORS Formula Rescue Race Seat especially for Formula BMW. The HANS safety system is also mandatory.
In 2007, Formula BMW will be staged four times as part of the Formula One support programme. All the series offer a multifaceted Education and Coaching Programme as well as sponsorship for promising racing talents. The best-known alumni of this talent hothouse are Formula One drivers Sebastian Vettel, Timo Glock, Adrian Sutil and Nico Rosberg.
BMW Motorsport Director, Mario Theissen: “Formula BMW offers talented young drivers more than just a car. In the Education and Coaching Programme we have designed specially for them, they learn everything they need to know to hold their own in the big wide world of motor racing. Formula BMW has shot out of the blocks to become the top entry-level class for Formula racing worldwide. ”
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