Two weeks after scoring a point at their home race in Malaysia, My QI-Meritus.Mahara started today’s preparation at Bahrain’s Sakhir circuit in hot and sunny conditions with air reaching 37 degrees Centigrade.
The team have already scored one podium finish this season with Earl Bamber in China last October and are seeking to end the season on a high note at this important event for My Qi-Meritus.Mahara, the only team with strong links to the Middle East through their Saudi partner, Raad S. Abduljawad.
Qualifying remained dry and hot which saw Parente take 10th place on the grid with a lap of 1m 44.321 and Bonanomi take 12th with a lap of 1.44.477.
The Friday morning free session saw Alvaro Parente go fourth fastest with a lap of 1.44.805 while Marco Bonanomi was 10th with a time of 1.45.227. Both drivers completed 13 laps each, a trouble free practice session.
Parente commented: “I made a mistake in the morning, but at the end I pushed as hard as I could. I would not say that everything went well because Maldonado was in my way during my fast lap and that slowed me down. But I am confident we can have a strong race tomorrow from tenth on the grid.”
Bonanomi commented: “I am a bit disappointed just to be 12th on the grid as the car was very competitive early on, then on the second set of tyres the performance dropped away a bit. We will be working hard between now and the first race to ensure we are in good position to score points.”
Team President Peter Thompson commented: “There is a lot of work to do after this qualifying. The pace is there. The weather was cooling down for qualifying and the cars would have been faster as their times have all been in the top ten so far which is positive. The two cars can score points tomorrow.”
Raad, who is the Team Chairman, said: “The middle sector speed was the weak spot of our qualifying today. With a good strategy, race one should bring points for the penultimate race of our season.”
Race 1 Saturday 15.50 34 laps or 75 minutes
Race 2 Sunday 11.30 23 laps or 45 minutes
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About QI Ltd
QI Ltd, a multinational conglomerate with regional offices in Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Singapore, was established in 1998 to spearhead the development of a dynamic group of companies. The rapidly expanding QI Group of Companies' business portfolio covers retailing, travel and leisure to interactive marketing, technology, financial services, corporate investments, training and education, business consulting and logistics. The QI Group, through its subsidiaries and associate companies, has a presence in nearly 30 countries, including an operational headquarters in Malaysia, a marketing and product development team in Thailand and a telecommunications arm in the United Kingdom. The QI Group has over 1,000 employees, and a global customer base of more than three million spread across 160 countries. For more information, please visit http://www.qi-ltd.com/.
About QuestNet
QuestNet is the "proud sponsor of My Qi-Meritus.Mahara in the 2009 GP2 Asia Series" and flagship business of QI Ltd and is a leading network marketing company serving almost four million entrepreneurs across the globe. Through its industry leading marketing services, QuestNet is a distributor of wellness products, limited edition coins and medallions, watches and jewellery, holiday memberships, and technology products. QuestNet is supported by an extensive network of representative offices and associate companies in Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, India and Brazil. Find out more at www.quest.net.
About The V
V Global Management Sdn Bhd (The V) is an international marketing, training events, network management and development company focussed on providing quality training to a growing number of global entrepreneurs. The V is headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with offices and V Training Centres (VTCs) in Philippines, India and Canada. Its subsidiaries include V- Studios (Production Company), GITA (Training Academy) and PR World Wide Live (Events Company). The V is a member of the QI Group of Companies. For more information, please visit http://www.the-v.net/.
