Junqueira, meanwhile, was written off when he signed with Coyne after helping the team with its pre-season development, but turned the formbook on its head as he got to grips with the under-funded and under-manned minnow.
Seemingly able to post top-seven results at will early on, Junqueira came into his own in the two new European events, using early race problems to run alternative fuel strategies and come away with a brace of podium finishes – Coyne's first in a very long time – before then repeating the feat in Surfers Paradise to prove that he should not be written off after returning from serious injury. Whether he remains at DCR next season, or is snapped up by an outfit more in keeping with his talents, remains to be seen.
Atlantics champion Simon Pagenaud, fellow rookie Jani and veteran Alex Tagliani completed the top ten points-wise, all with reason to believe that could have been better placed had things gone their way.
Pagenaud seemed to possess the wrong pass when it came to trying to join the podium party, with a string of fourth, fifth and sixth place finishes to his name by the end of the year. While that allowed 2006 rival Rahal to complete the year ahead of him, however, the Frenchman remained cheerful to the end, and will be back for more next season.
Jani struggled initially as part of an all-rookie line-up at PKV alongside fellow European refugee Tristan Gommendy, and failed to get to grips with the all-important skill of fuel saving for far too long, but showed flashes of potential as the year wore on. He was a close second to the recovering Doornbos in San Jose and was also on the podium in Cleveland and Toronto, but it was in qualifying that the
Red Bull protégé was more often at home. Depending on his backer's plans, the Swiss ace – buoyed by A1GP results over the winter – could be more of a force in 2008.
