A1 TEAM USA 8th in practice at Shanghai

SHANGHAI, China--A1 TEAM USA's Jonathan Summerton was eighth fastest in practice Friday for the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport at Shanghai International Circuit.

"It was a pretty good day for us considering the balance of the 'We the People' car wasn't right," Summerton said. "Our data indicates it came from a shock absorber problem and we're going to put on a different set for Saturday's practice and see if that fixes it. Even with the car oversteering in the left-handed corners and understeering in the right-handed corners, we were only six-tenths of a second off the fastest time. If we can get the balance corrected, we can make that six-tenths disappear and make a run for the pole for both races.

"'The most promising part was how we ran on worn tires. We were able to maintain our lap times throughout the entire (one-hour) session and were the second fastest car on the track in the final 10 minutes."

Summerton, of Kissimmee, Fla., drove around the 2.9-mile circuit in 1:35.822. He ran 22 laps.

"Our team worked at a high level today," A1 TEAM USA Holdings owner Rick Weidinger said. "We were in the top-10 with a competitive lap with a car that wasn't perfect. Identifying a problem is the first step to correcting it and we have a pretty good idea of how to do that.

"We have tremendous leadership and knowledge in team manager Marc Lawrence and race engineer Leon Gutfreund. We are optimistic of a strong run in qualifying."

Summerton will have a one-hour practice Saturday to prepare for qualifying and the races. Qualifying is Saturday and the 20-minute Sprint and 70-minute Feature races are Sunday.

Live streaming of qualifying (1 a.m. EDT) and the Sprint and Feature races (1 a.m. EDT) are available at A1GP.com.

For more information on A1 TEAM USA, visit www.A1TEAMUSATV.com. For more information on A1GP, visit www.A1GP.com.