Archive 2012
Team Jebsen Faces Avalanche of Challenges in Inner Mongolia Team Jebsen, Roundup – Rounds 5 & 6, July 6-8, 2012, Ordos International Circuit
Team Jebsen faced a weekend brimming with challenges at the Inner Mongolian Ordos International Circuit. However, despite the numerous setbacks, they came away still in contention for the 2012
Friday’s free practice went well, with Team Jebsen’s times showing they were right on the pace, topping the time sheets after the second session. However, driver Rodolfo Avila was struck down with a severe bout of stomach flu ahead of Saturday’s qualifying, and he struggled to rehydrate ahead of the session.
After a hard-fought session, which saw the top eight drivers separated by less than a second, Rodolfo earned Team Jebsen a place on the second row of the grid for the start of Round 5, with a lap less than four tenths off the pole time.
Avila drove brilliantly to cross the line 4th after 14 laps of the 3.751km track, only to be handed a 30-second time penalty by race officials for an inadvertent regulations infringement during the warm up lap. That dropped the team down to 11th in the finishing order, but they retained their 4th place in the championship standings.
For the start of Round 6, Avila was faced with the seemingly impossible task of getting past 10 cars ahead of him on a track which offers minimal overtaking opportunities. Added to this, the heavens opened and a wet race was declared, the wet track adding to the already-limited surface grip.
Avila fought manfully in a race which was packed with drama and incident, and managed to begin his charge through the field. However, it was soon clear the car was suffering from unexpected handling problems. Avila did his best to salvage a result, eventually crossing the line in 14th.
The result saw Team Jebsen slip down the championship leaderboard to 6th place, however the team is already looking ahead to Rounds 7and 8 at Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit. As the
Quotes from Team Jebsen
Rodolfo Avila, Team Jebsen Driver:
“It was one of the toughest race weekends of my career so far. I relish challenges on the track, but unfortunately I was not physically in the best shape to take them on this weekend. The Ordos circuit is very demanding on the car, the tyres and the driver, and requires mental agility and physical stamina. If you’re not physically in good shape, it affects your mental strength.
”The track surface conditions change every lap due to the high winds and amount of dust and sand in the area, but on top of that we had a very wet track for the start of Round 6. For some reason the car was just not responding the way it usually does.
“We need to re-group and arrive in Malaysia absolutely on the attack as we have a lot of work to do. Free practice this weekend showed we have the speed, and we’ve already had a whole season’s-worth of bad luck this weekend, so we need to get back out there and make up some points.”
| Date | Circuit, Country | Event | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 24-25 | Zhuhai Int. Circuit, China | Test Days | - |
| April 13-15 | Shanghai Int. Circuit, China | Formula 1 Support Race | Rounds 1&2 |
| June 1-3 | Zhuhai Int. Circuit, China | China Touring Car Championship | Rounds 3&4 |
| July 6-8 | Ordos Int. Circuit, China | China Touring Car Championship | Rounds 5&6 |
| August 30 – September 1 | Sepang Int. Circuit, Malaysia | Malaysia Merdeka End. Support Race | Rounds 7&8 |
| September 21-23 | Marina Bay Circuit, Singapore | Formula 1 Support Race | Round 9 |
| November 9-11 | Shanghai Int. Circuit, China | Shanghai Sportscar Festival | Rounds 10&11 |
About Rodolfo Avila Car No: 20
Avila began his career in karts, attending the Macau Karting School at 14, and winning the Macau Karting International A (Group B) a year later. In 2002, he graduated to single seater racing, becoming the youngest driver ever to compete at the Macau Grand Prix, racing in the Formula Renault event.
He took the Asian Formula Renault Challenge championship title the following year, making his Formula 3 Grand Prix debut at Macau in 2004. His career continued its extraordinary ascent, with Rookie honours in the Asian Formula 3 Championship in 2005, finishing 5th overall. A season in the prestigious British Formula 3 Championship saw him end the year 4th in the National Class for newcomers.
Avila made the switch to sportscar racing in 2008, when he became the youngest ever Asian Supercar Challenge Champion. He made his
About Team Jebsen
For Team Jebsen, 2012 marks the eighth full season in the series, having taken the championship title in 2006 and 2008.
Team Jebsen is backed by the Jebsen Group. Established in 1895 in Hong Kong, the Group has since expanded its activities into a comprehensive business network throughout China, Taiwan and South Korea. Today, the Jebsen Group is structured around four strategic business units targeting the consumer, industrial, beverage and luxury sectors.
Jebsen is a name synonymous with
7/10/2012