Ferrari will supply the A1GP from 2008

[redbaron]

The rumours already started at the first race at Zandvoort, but it is now confirmed:

A1GP confirms Ferrari supply deal

By Jonathan Noble Thursday, October 11th 2007, 08:13 GMT


A1GP has agreed a deal with Ferrari for a supply of engines for their series for six years from the start of the 2008/2009 season.

Following months of discussions, A1GP chairman Tony Teixeira confirmed the news this morning, as well as announcing that Ferrari will consult the series on the design and manufacture of chassis.

Speaking about the deal, Teixeira said: "Partnering with a world-class organisation like Ferrari will officially position A1GP as one of the most significant motorsport series in the world.

"Ferrari will add significant value to our brand and in our opinion there is no better partner to progress the series.

"We will be meeting with our commercial partners over the next few weeks to discuss the multitude of exciting opportunities that this partnership presents.

"Ferrari has a global presence through its dealer network. We will be working closely with them to ensure that they are a part of every A1GP World Cup of Motorsport event."

A1GP has also announced the formation of A2GP, a regional championship that Ferrari will also be involved in.

:arrow: www.autosport.com

I think this is good news for this series. This will make the A1GP probably more interesting.

[saadie]

great news .. for me :lol: .. in a way :lol:

[Mattk]

This is pretty exciting for A1GP. I heavn't seen any races myself, but my dad reckons they are great.

[dons5]

Very Very suprised, Ferrari is usually not the type to involve itself in that sort of way, but hey, cant wait to hear those new engines, is it same engine rules as last year? They should use V12's just for the hell of it, but i bet they'll be using a different config engine so that they can use the info for their upcomming road cars.

[acmarttin]

Hopefully the NASCAR homos at Speed TV allow a meager 2 hours a week for this series now.

[Mattk]

Ferrari is not a common manufacturer in open-wheel racing, so this is a good opportunity for them to develop their race technology. Hopefully, that can translate into better technology in road cars.

[saadie]

^^ they wont be able to develop race technology :lol:
they will just gain money :)

[blue8]

Although we're still a little while from seeing the single-seater unveiled, sources indicate that the open-wheel racer Ferrari will design under its new partnership with the A1GP racing series will be based heavily on this year's F2007, the F1 car Raikkonen and Massa have piloted this season in pursuit of the 2007 FIA Formula One World Championship.
From that starting point, we can expect the body to be widened some to accomodate an engine larger in displacement but somewhat lower-revving than the current F1-spec V8s. The smart money would be on a less extreme and less fragile aerodynamic package than used in F1.


[Source: A1GP]


The news follows hot on the heels of the announcement that Ferrari will be providing the engines and have input into the design of the car which will be used by every national team on the grid starting with the 2008-2009 season, but suggests that, while the cars themselves won't be built in Maranello, Ferrari's design input will be considerably more hands-on than suggested by the original announcement.

Ferrari will also have similar involvement in the design and propulsion of an additional spec open-wheeler for the simultaneously-announced second-tier A2GP series, whose formation isn't expected for another few years.

Homologated road cars like the 575 GTC and F430 GT2 notwithstanding, the last time Ferrari turned out a purpose-built race car for anything outside its own Formula One effort was the 333SP, an open-cockpit racer that competed heavily in the late 90s in IMSA and Le Mans-class motorsports.

Anyone who isn't excited by the prospect of seeing the United Nations going wheel to wheel in purpose-built Ferrari race cars might want to have their pulse checked at this time.

[saadie]

Ferrari GP .... i like the sounds of that 8)

A1gp sounds sort of awkward :P :lol:

[Mattk]

Could surreptitiously provide a ready talent pool of future Ferrari drivers!

[dannyroz]

Maybe they will put in the turbo V6's in these cars and get the reliability and power ready for the new F1 engine switch

[saadie]

nope .. no turbos ....