“We came in on the first lap possible for the first pit-stop. South Africa stayed out which was the better call, but I think their pace certainly was pretty quick and it would have been hard to keep them behind us.”
Through all the chaos the patience and experience of Robbie Kerr would also reap dividends, as the British ace returned the Union Jack to the rostrum for the first time since Oliver Jarvis' success in the season curtain-raiser at Zandvoort, courtesy of a strong run to third place after briefly falling back during the early laps.
“After the disappointment of Taupo where we didn't score any points, GBR had to get a good result and the podium is a nice way to do it,” the 28-year-old reflected. “Unfortunately it wasn't two places higher – I'm sure I would have a bigger smile on my face if it was!
“The initial take-off was good, but unfortunately as I ran over the start-finish line where New Zealand would have been, the rear wheels just spun up a little bit and we lost traction from that point on. I just had to slow the car to regain traction and then try to accelerate again, and by that point Brazil and South Africa had gone past. We had to get a good result here and it wasn't worth taking a big risk.”
Brazil's Sergio Jimenez was on fine form too, racing from ninth on the grid to a solid fourth place, his nation's second-best result of the season. The Brazilian team, who now lie ninth in the championship standings, was joined at Eastern Creek by 2002 FIFA World Cup winning Brazilian midfielder Juninho, currently playing for Sydney FC.
Home nation Australia's John Martin wowed the crowds as his impressive form continued, carving his way through the field from 14th to bring
Jackaroo home in a superb fifth place, his country's best-ever result on home soil.
![Adrian Zaugg - A1 Team South Africa [pic credit: A1 GP Media]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/398643.jpg)
