As Team Meritus crowned third place finisher Ross Jamison as the 2008 Formula BMW Pacific Champion, team mate Simon Moss won today's first race after starting alongside the pole positioned Jamison. The team secured the points to win with two rounds remaining. This is the 13th title for Meritus in Formula BMW Pacific.
Romanian Doru Sechelariu (born on Nov 19, 1992), the youngest driver participating in the series who won the race in Singapore on his debut, dropped out of the race after his injured left knee could not take the braking efforts. Additionally Chris Wooton (Meritus no. 68) and Tasmin Petter (Meritus no. 33) finished ninth and seventh respectively.
Ross Jamison (18). "It feels really good to finish on the podium. It is a great feeling to be able to be this year's Champion without having to wait until tomorrow for confirmation in the second race. I had a perfect week-end and the team has been brilliant. I am not very proud of my start. I ended up in a sandwich after I had too much wheel spin. I fell back to fifth but reacted fairly logically and tried to get back as quickly as I could. I tried so hard to be the Champion this year. It will take a bit of time to sink in that I am!"
"I will start from pole tomorrow and much more relaxed for that race now that the title is wrapped up. I am so happy we made it happen after such a fantastic year with the team. I want to thank them for helping me so much."
Simon Moss (SA): "I started from front row and had a pretty good start. The beginning was slightly hectic. But what counts is a good finish on a track I had never seen before. The result is fantastic for the team. And now I'm really looking forward to Race 2 tomorrow."
Doru Sechelariu (R): "After my great weekend in Singapore, I thought qualifying in sixth place would help me here despite my injured knee. But by the third lap I had to give up because I could not brake properly any longer. That was a big disappointment because I really wanted to show the team what I could do. Let's see if it is working a bit better tomorrow, when I start fifth on the grid. I want to keep my strength and energy for that last race with Mahara."
Tasmin Pepper (Meritus): "I am very happy to have scored good points in this race. Starting from 11th was not such a fantastic advantage, but everything went well despite a pile up in the first corner. I had to back off a bit and fell back, so afterwards I had to work hard to get back up through the field. I finished in a really good seventh place so let's see now what Race 2 brings me."
Chris Wootton (Meritus): "My first race was a bit disappointing. At least I finished despite some interesting driving from people down the back of the grid. I had good fun and brought the car home. I will try to finish in a better place for Race 2."
Firhat Mokhzani: "This was a good race that brings a fantastic result for the team who clinched the Championship today. It is nearly perfect. Ross deserved the result and I have seen his driving improve after every event of the year.
Simon worked equally hard even if he had a different focus. Now we can continue for the rest of the season without pressure for Race 2 tomorrow and for the season grand finale at the Macau Grand Prix next month."
Peter Thompson: "I am really pleased for the team to have achieved this result. Meritus is champion for the sixth year in a row, and provided nothing goes wrong, Ross Jamison should be confirmed champion for the race in Macau too. A great year for the team."
Rounds 14 and 15 of Formula BMW Pacific are being held as part of the 2008 Formula 1 Sinopec Chinese Grand Prix.
With today's result, Ross Jamison has now become the 2008 Formula BMW Pacific Champion before end of the season. He is only 18 and began collecting his string of titles at the tender age of 12 at the Hong Kong Karting Mall Grand Prix, beating his rivals comfortably. He made the move to participate in races in Malaysia under the City-Karting Star Driver Programme. By the end of this first year in 2003, he was runner-up in the Dunlop AMC Malaysian Championship, behind James Russell.
He was also runner-up in the Malaysian Junior Rotax Max Challenge, a championship which has launched many racing prodigies in Malaysia, such as Jazeman Jaafar and Calvin Wong. He moved on to become the Asian Karting Champion in 2005 and was awarded the Asian International Karter of the Year by the Golden Wheels Foundation in 2006.
In 2007 he was the winner of the BMW Scholarship Award, which enabled him to compete in the Formula BMW Asia series. He was runner-up in the Rookie Cup and was placed fifth in the overall championship. The Welsh-born, Hong Kong resident has just finished his A Levels in Economics, History and English.
CV
Name: Ross Jamison
Nationality: Hong Kong
Date of Birth: March 1990
Place of Birth: Wales, Great Britain
Favourite Driver: Kimi Raikkonen
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-Agnes Carlier-
