Hunter-Reay joins USA for China

AutoSport By Glenn Freeman Monday, November 6th 2006, 11:55 GMT

Former Champ Car driver Ryan Hunter-Reay will take part in the rookie sessions for Team USA in Beijing this weekend.

The 25-year-old will get his first taste of an A1GP car around the new street track during the Friday sessions, while regular driver Phil Giebler will continue to race for the team.

Hunter-Reay has been in discussions with the team since the A1GP round at Laguna Seca last March.

Team boss Rick Weidinger said: "Ryan is a very good and experienced driver, and we are anxious to get him in the Team USA car to see how comfortable he is and what he thinks of A1GP."

The team are hoping that Hunter-Reay's Champ Car experience will also help them on the temporary circuit. In 2003, he took his maiden Champ Car victory around the streets of Surfers Paradise as a rookie in the series.

"Street tracks usually take a long time to rubber in, so the cars will slide a lot at first," said Weidinger. "It is critically important to have an experienced driver who can handle the situation.

"This is going to be a challenging track, so Ryan's feedback is going to be critical."