A project driven by former F1 racer Tiago Monteiro was finalized this week and from now on the newly acquired GP2 team will become the first 100% Portuguese team to compete at this level of Motor racing. For Tiago, who has already contested many challenges behind the wheel, moving across to the other side of the garage to become a team principal is a new adventure indeed.

“This is a step I have always wanted to make in my professional career but I would have never imagined taking it this early. We had the opportunity and we worked on the financial aspect of the project, then we started negotiations. The management of a race team is fascinating because not only do you need to have a good knowledge of what can happen on track but you also need to have some skills in the business. The GP2 Series is the ideal platform because it is very close to Formula 1. Its popularity and competitiveness is on the rise. After careful consideration we think this project could be a springboard that is perfectly adapted to our ambition of promoting Portuguese motorsport beyond its frontiers,” Tiago said.

To conclude a project of this scale, the racing driver is joined by a business man who has vast experience in the motor sport industry, Jose Manuel Guedes who, for more than ten years together with Edmar Monteiro, has been responsible for the career management of Tiago Monteiro.

The team, originally known as BCN, has been renamed Ocean Racing Technology with Monteiro and Guedes already starting the construction of the team’s inner framework with the objective of equipping it with experienced professionals who have already experienced success in international motorsport.

The two partners of this project have not yet revealed the colours in which the team will race, only its logo and new name. The new structure will be in place in time for the next race of the GP2 Asia championship, scheduled to take place on the fifth and sixth of December 2008 in Dubai. Tiago Monteiro has confirmed that negotiations with several drivers are taking place and that the GP2 Asia championship will be a good place to test some of them, the upcoming races allowing for the best possible test and training ground to prepare the team for its new future.

“The team is under construction but our organization will soon be complete. We are gathering a group of professionals who have to have a bank of knowledge and quality because we are well aware the GP2 Series is one of the most competitive championships. We are hiring people we know, who have proved they’re good at what they’re doing in F1, GP2 or other international championships. The GP2 Asia series will be a warm up for the Main Series where we will operate with the full team. We have a lot of work ahead of us but the motivation is as big as this project is as we know it is a very important one. We know the identity of the drivers is something people would like to know. I can simply tell you that there is no obligation for them to be Portuguese even though it is a possibility. At this step of the team’s construction, the most important thing is to make the right choices,” Tiago concluded.

Source: Tiago Monteiro