Audi Press Release
- Austrian extreme athlete starts racing career
- Audi race experience as seasoned campaign team
-
Ingolstadt, March 7, 2014 – Following his
stratosphere jump in 2012, extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner is tackling his
next big challenge on the Nordschleife of the Nürburgring. The Austrian will
obtain a racing license and become a race driver with the Audi race experience
team on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife.
The Audi race experience makes it possible for Audi’s customers with sporting ambitions to enter racing. But never before has the program, which the Audi driving experience has been running since 2010, had as prominent a driver as this one. “It’s fantastic that we’re cooperating with Felix Baumgartner this year,” says Klaus Demel, the head of the Audi driving experience. “As an extreme athlete, Felix Baumgartner has been thrilling millions of fans around the world with his daring actions that combine ingenuity and exceptional technical demands. Now we’re familiarizing him with our sport, offer him a professional environment with our team, and are very excited about this new, joint challenge.”
As a guest entrant, Baumgartner has been gathering some racing experience in recent years during occasional runs in the one-make cups of the Volkswagen Group. The big difference in the 2014 season: the Audi R8 LMS ultra provides him with a 419 kW (570 hp) ‘pure-bred’ GT3 race car. The 44-year-old is completing an extensive preparation program before competing in the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring on June 21/22, 2014. His team-mates are equally prominent: The five-timeLe Mans winner Frank
Biela (D), the three-time Le Mans
The Audi race experience makes it possible for Audi’s customers with sporting ambitions to enter racing. But never before has the program, which the Audi driving experience has been running since 2010, had as prominent a driver as this one. “It’s fantastic that we’re cooperating with Felix Baumgartner this year,” says Klaus Demel, the head of the Audi driving experience. “As an extreme athlete, Felix Baumgartner has been thrilling millions of fans around the world with his daring actions that combine ingenuity and exceptional technical demands. Now we’re familiarizing him with our sport, offer him a professional environment with our team, and are very excited about this new, joint challenge.”
As a guest entrant, Baumgartner has been gathering some racing experience in recent years during occasional runs in the one-make cups of the Volkswagen Group. The big difference in the 2014 season: the Audi R8 LMS ultra provides him with a 419 kW (570 hp) ‘pure-bred’ GT3 race car. The 44-year-old is completing an extensive preparation program before competing in the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring on June 21/22, 2014. His team-mates are equally prominent: The five-time
Former professional rally driver Josef ‘Sepp’ Haider, now the Audi race experience’s sporting director, is one of the instructors of his Austrian compatriot. “Felix is approaching his new task in exactly the manner that is the hallmark of a pro,” says Haider. “He’s eager to learn, has good judgment of the physical conditions, and is totally motivated. All team members have come to respect him in the initial tests. I’m very much looking forward to our joint journey.”
The team will be fielding another R8 LMS ultra in the 24-hour race. The drivers of this car have already been confirmed. Already last year, Dominique Bastien (USA), Rahel Frey (CH) and Christian Bollrath (D) formed a team. Christiaan Frankenhout (NL) will be supporting the Audi race experience as a driver for the first time.
March 21–22 VLN, test and setup runs
April 05–06 Qualification race, Nürburgring 24 Hours
April 26 VLN, 56th ADAC ACAS H&R Cup
May 17 VLN, Adenauer ADAC Simfy-Trophy
June 21–22 Nürburgring 24 Hours
Photo credit: Audi Communication - Motorsport
