Good morning and welcome to Indianapolis, USA for the team principal’s Thursday press conference ahead of this weekend’s United States V-Prix – round nine of the 2019 Formula Virtual World Championship. Joining us today, from left to right, are; Adam Blocker of FIRST Motorsport, Shane O’Connell of Meteor International FV Team, Bradley Downton from Downton FV Team, Jamie Franklin of Franklin, and Ahmed Cheema from Cheema FV Racing. Welcome gentlemen. Reporter: We’ll start off the press conference today with the winners from last time out, Franklin. Jamie; congratulations on your victory in Montreal! Do you think the long straight enabled the Honda V12 to really stretch its legs and stay ahead of the Downton’s, and therefore won you the race? Or would you say that Tumo finishing behind the Downton duo shows that it was down to Enrique? Jamie Franklin: I think the V12 may have given us an advantage on the straights, but I don't think that was the sole reason. If you look at the timing screens for the first stint, Enrique was consistently pulling a tenth or so on Powers each lap, that's not solely down to the engine, otherwise the Downtons would have been all over him and just unable to pass, but that wasn't the case. I think Enrique drove sublimely all weekend and that showed in both qualifying and the race. Reporter: Tumo has been behind Enrique most of the time so far this season and has received a fair bit of abuse from certain media personnel. Do you think he’s been up to Franklin standards, and what would be your message to those being vocally critical? JF: As many know, we have very high standards. It's a very much trial by fire process. You succeed or you're gone. I've made it known that I believe Enrique is the benchmark, I'd love to find a driver better than him, but until then I'd be happy with a driver that is at least within touching distance who can beat him on an off weekend or at least finish behind. I don't think Tumo has quite pulled that off, and he knows as much as I do what a concern that is. Reporter: Sounds like the pressure could be on for the Fin. Bradley; did you consider leaving Klaas out at the end of the V-Prix last weekend and chance Ruiz not being able to get past? Bradley Downton: We were six laps from the end, so it was very tempting. Klaas' pace wasn't atrocious in comparison to Enrique, but the sensors told us he had a slow puncture on the right rear, and it just wasn't worth the risk. Reporter: That makes sense, it would’ve been great to see them fight for the win. After winning five races in a row, certain people in the paddock had already started to write off the constructors’ championship battle. However, with Ruiz’s win in Canada and Franklin’s pace in general seemingly picking up, are you nervous of the threat from the three-time champions? BD: Not in the slightest. They may have taken three poles in a row, but only one win from that, and the points are dished out on a Sunday. They're clearly a team that know how to win, but so are we. Final season or not, Franklin will get no favours from us. Reporter: Excellent stuff! Coming to you now, Adam; last Monday, in the press conference held at Ford’s HQ, you announced the signing of Will Hoskins for next season. If my memory serves correctly, FIRST will be Will’s eighth team in Formula Virtual – which I believe is a record. Do you think there’s a particular reason why Will has been a bit of a ‘journeyman’, and do you think he can be the catalyst in taking the team right to the top? Adam Blocker: Yeah, it’s strange that Will has been on so many teams in his career. I put it down more to teams constantly wanting to sign him and his current team not being able to afford resigning him in most cases, as Will has performed well at almost every team he has raced for. And while Will isn’t some magical solution that will take us straight to the top, he will definitely help our progression as a team both on and off the track. Reporter: You already commented on the rest of the line-up, confirming that your second driver is virtually decided, but what about your current two drivers? Is there any way they can convince you that they deserve another chance in 2020 or does one of the two know that their time with FIRST is ending? AB: Everyone within the team knows what the situation is, we try to remain as transparent as possible with stuff like this. And no, everything is basically done so even if the driver or drivers that are not staying perform exceptionally, I doubt that anything will change in terms of FIRST. Reporter: Intriguing, I know a lot of people are eager to find out who will partner Will next season. Now, last week, news broke that Kazuki Armos had left his role as Meteor team principal with immediate effect and so ended an era for the team. So, a question to all of you; what are your fondest memories of the Meteor team from 2013 to present? And how will the loss of Kaz – who had of course been in Formula Virtual from day one – change the sport? JF: I guess when they were semi decent in 2016? Otherwise what's to remember? Ahmed Cheema: It was quite out of the blue news and it's a shame. Kazuki has been around for a long time as you said and he's one of the original team managers. I didn't know him very well but we said hello and hi to each other in the paddock and he was usually polite. I've heard he might still be around sometimes though, which is good for the series that old managers stay around. As for Meteor themselves, I hope they do well since it's a team that's had a very long history in the sport. My fondest memory of them is probably their first win back in 2014 was Peugeot, when the two Franklins collided in the pit lane and Ellington won. It's was a great race and nice to see a new team on top that day. AB: It has to be Halvosen starting 2016 with back-to-back wins doesn’t it? Everyone thought they would be title contenders for the season. And while that didn’t quite happen, they still had an amazing season finishing second overall. BD: It's a real shame to lose Kaz, as he's been here since the beginning, but he felt he couldn't commit one hundred percent anymore and that has to be respected. My fondest Meteor memories are definitely their livery from 2013, and their 2016 season, specifically where Halvosen won the opening two races! But in his place we welcome Shane, who had already proven to be immensely popular, and is very keen. I'm excited to see what changes he makes now to move Meteor forwards once more. Reporter: Thanks guys. Now, as Bradley mentioned, we welcome Shane O’Connell to the Formula Virtual team principal’s club. So, for the first time in a press conference, same question to you as the others have just answered Shane. Shane O’Connell: Agree with what’s been said already. The 2016 season was a great year for the team with those twelve podiums, three of those being wins. Think the whole team looks back on those times with real passion and excitement to get that same feeling back again, which is what we’re hoping to do here in the long run. Reporter: I’m sure a lot of people in the paddock would love to see Meteor thrive under the new ownership. Could you give us a bit more detail on the new management and how you came to be given the job as team principal? SO: Of course! So, as has already been said in one or two interviews the last week, the takeover talks had been happening for a while and Piercarlo [Caliri, new Meteor owner] had been in contact with me from the start of it all. We have known each other for many years now and share a great love for Formula Virtual so when the deal finally went through, he needed to put his people in the positions left vacant by Kazuki and his team, so he gave me the job as team principal almost immediately. In the week since then, Andrea [Belli] and Guido [Caliri] have taken the roles of technical director and deputy team principal, so there you have the new management team. Reporter: What is the situation like with regards to the team itself? Do you foresee Meteor challenging at the sharp end of the grid soon? SO: We have only been here a week! It’s difficult to give any expectations or aspirations for the future and it would be wrong to tell you the state of our finances or plans for 2020, but there’s lots of work to do. Reporter: That’s absolutely understandable. Now, Ahmed; Diego Campos will be in the car for the next three races – replacing Davenport who’ll go to Lucas, what was the thinking behind the change and could his performance have any impact on the future of your three drivers? AC: From the start of the season we always planned on giving Diego a few races. He's done a lot of work on the simulator to help us with developing the car and has done a few practice sessions where he's shown good pace. Initially we planned on Nikolai stepping aside but because of his performances so far, we needed him here at a race which could be crucial to us. Thankfully we found a way to keep Carson racing and he was ecstatic about re-joining his old team. As for the future of the three drivers, we can confirm that Nikolai will be staying for next year - there will be an official announcement but consider it certain. If Diego does perform very well, we haven't ruled out a full-time drive for him next year, but in that case our number one priority will be getting Carson a seat somewhere. Reporter: There you have it, Milkovich to remain at Cheema for 2020! It’ll be absolutely intriguing to see how Campos fares against him over the next few races. I’m sorry to bring this up Ahmed but it’s quite well known that you’re a huge cricket fan, how disappointed were you after the cricket world cup? AC: Oh yeah, it was quite disappointing. If you don't know, New Zealand and England were in the final, they tied, then there was a super over and that was tied also, which meant England won on boundaries, while I was supporting New Zealand. But you need the disappointments in sport to make the good parts feel really good. We've already had that in FV, with Nikolai getting taken out in Spain while on for potential points, but that will only make the moment that we do take our first points feel better whether it comes this year, next year or further on... why are you looking at me like that Jamie? Reporter: Ha, absolutely spot on Ahmed! Okay time for the fan questions, first one is for you actually Ahmed; “Carson's wife makes some of the best Portuguese cuisine going around. Is she being missed as much as Carson while they're at Lucas?” AC: Ha, yes a bit! I never have been or never will be a massive fan of the Portuguese cuisine but she did well feeding some of the mechanics, so we'll need to find an alternative for them. I've heard Diego makes good omelettes... Reporter: I think he may be a little too busy driving the car this weekend but we’ll have to come down and try some of those sometime! Adam; “How many puns do you get about your ‘FIRST’ win on a daily basis?” AB: Using FIRST as a pun has become a meme amongst the guys on the team. Whenever we finally break through and win a race, puns will definitely be made. Reporter: Hopefully, for the team, that’s not too far away. Okay, Bradley; “What’s your favourite thing to do when you’re not on FV duties? How do you relax back home?” BD: I love to just chill and spend time with friends and family. If I'm honest, I'm one of those weird people you see stood in a group at the side of the road looking down at his phone playing Pokemon GO. So a lot of my time is taken with that, to the point that between Spain and Canada, I attended GO Fest in Dortmund with some friends. Travelling worldwide certainly helps with it too! Reporter: I’m afraid I know very little about Pokemon so I’ll move straight onto the next one, but that sounds very interesting Bradley! Jamie; “Since you are leaving after this year, what would you pick out as your standout moment in FV history?” JF: It's hard to name just one standout moment. But the feeling of that third consecutive title was incredibly special. People have short memories, and whilst we may not have succeeded in taking another title since 2015, no other team has ever won successive Championships, let alone three in a row. Reporter: That’s very true, who knows how long it’ll be before a team achieves that again. Now, final one here is for you Shane; “Coming into the world of Formula Virtual as a team principal for the first time must be exciting and daunting. Which team do you have the most admiration for and do you see Meteor having a rivalry with any team?” SO: Good question. The first part is an easy one to answer, Downton. Since 2017 they have continually fought for the victory at almost every race, which has allowed Nathaniel to take the last two titles. As for a rivalry, that’s too soon to say, but at the start our rivalry will be with the teams around us.. so Ingram, Phoenix and Lopez, they are the ones we will be aiming to beat from now until the end of this season. Reporter: That battle for seventh certainly looks spicy! Thank you to all the fans who sent in fan questions. A question to everyone now; this weekend is Enrique Ruiz’s hundredth entry - and start - in Formula Virtual, and so he joins the prestigious list of drivers to hit a century of V-Prix entries. Which two, out of those drivers, would you all choose as a pairing for your team if you could? JF: Ruiz and Powers. Pretty easy question really. Settle the debate of who is the best driver, whilst driving for the best team. Simple. SO: The same as Jamie, Nathaniel and Ruiz. Do know Nathaniel quite well from talking in the paddock with him and Bradley, not only is he the best driver you could get but is also one of the ‘good guys’ in our sport. Ruiz is an easy pick to go at the side of him, he is undoubtedly up there with Nathaniel and those two together will be unbeatable. AC: That's a tough one, it's obvious it's between Ruiz, Powers and Simon but from those three... I'm going to go on a limb and say Ruiz and Simon, just because they're the only drivers who have been at the top every year. Though I still rate Powers very highly after last year - why can't we have three car teams? AB: Assuming money is no object, Ruiz and Powers. Powers is a three-time champion, so that’s a no brainer, and Ruiz has a ton of raw speed and ability but makes more mistakes. Most of the drivers with a century of starts are top class drivers, like Simon and Hoskins, but Ruiz and Powers have proven to be competitive even in slightly worse cars. BD: Honestly, we're quite happy with our line-up as it is, and give it a few seasons and Klaas will join that 100 club too! But if you're pressing me for an answer, it would have to be Nathaniel - obviously - and Enrique. There's no denying, that lad has talent. Reporter: Great answers, I’m sure we all wish Enrique well on his one hundredth V-Prix weekend - well, maybe all except Bradley! Final question, to everyone; what are your hopes and expectations for the weekend, and who do you think are the favourites on Sunday? JF: Same thing we do every V-Prix weekend, Pinky. AC: I think we may have reached the point where we have an outside chance of qualifying for the race with one car. USA has always been unpredictable and we've yet to capitalise on any of the chaotic races through various issues so this race is going to be crucial for us. As for the favourites to win the race, obvious choice is Franklin... well Ruiz vs Downton, but I think we could see quite a few surprises in the race like last year. AB: The hope is a home podium, which is possible if we get the strategy right and qualify well. I’ll predict yet another Downton victory, probably Powers. SO: We will be hoping for a clean race to analyse Jules and MJ’s performances against each other. Downton would be my pick for the win, don’t personally think they have the fastest car at present but Nathaniel seems able to pluck wins out of nowhere. BD: We need to stop Franklin before they build up a head of steam, so we need to win. But more crucially I think we need to do the business in qualifying, they've had three in a row now - which is quite enough! - but I'd say they come here as favourites, albeit only just. Reporter: We really are set for quite the weekend of action, thank you to the five team principals, media, and everyone joining us at home today, make sure you tune in tomorrow for Friday practice!
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