Three more teams, all representing countries with a proud heritage in motorsport, have joined A1 Grand Prix completing the grid for the first A1 Grand Prix of Nations to be held at Brands Hatch, Great Britain this weekend.
The three teams, who will be testing at Silverstone on Tuesday, have been busy setting up their cars and preparing drivers for the inaugural race weekend beginning with the Series' first official practice session on Friday afternoon.
The Austrian car will be run by two legendary Formula One world champions -- Niki Lauda and Keke Rosberg. The two drivers, who were arch-rivals on track in the 1980s, are now working together on Team Austria's A1 car to be driven by Mathias Lauda -- son of triple world champion Niki.
Leading the Italian team is Piercarlo Ghinzani, who after a successful career as a professional driver from 1970-1990, founded his own race team in 1992. Matteo Bobbi, Gianmaria Bruni, Daniel La Rosa and Enrico Toccacelo are in running for the prestigious driver's seat but the entry for the Brands Hatch race will not be announced until Thursday.
A business conglomeration will run Team Japan's A1 car which was shaken down by ex-F1 star Hideki Noda but will be driven by Ryo Fukuda at Brands Hatch. The team will be run by Carlin Motorsport, a team with a string of racing titles to their name, most recently the British Formula 3 championship title.
These three teams complete the A1GP grid meaning that 25 cars, all representing a different country, will take to the Brands Hatch track on Sunday. Like all other teams, the deals run for the first three seasons -- guaranteeing years of thrilling on-track action for fans all over the world.
A1 Grand Prix founder, president and chairman, Sheikh Maktoum, congratulated the teams on winning the remaining three franchises: "I am pleased to welcome three countries with such a strong motorsport pedigree to the A1 Grand Prix family. We now have 25 countries battling for the honour of being the best in the world, in a competition that starts in only a few short days."
"When our 25 A1 engines start for the first time this weekend, A1 Grand Prix enters a new dimension. After beginning as the vision of one man, and after three years of planning and hard work, I am proud to bring the World Cup of Motorsport to millions of viewers around the globe," he added.
The addition of the three new teams means that 25 A1 race cars representing are: Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Great Britain, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Switzerland and the USA will be seen on track for the first time.
