What a fabulous weekend! Patric Niederhauser impressively demonstrated his talent for driving in front of 14,000 spectators (over the weekend as a whole) during the round of the GT4 Central European Cup at Most. He won both races for Reiter Engineering along with girl-friend Marylin and comfortably secured best time in the second qualifying. Niederhauser crowned an altogether perfect weekend with fastest race lap on Sunday.
The duo certainly knew how to impress in the second race with a confident lights-to-flag victory, but the opening race at the Autodrom Most was very different, as Niederhauser had to go on an incredible charge up the field. They started out from tenth place and overtook a whole series of rivals during the 60-minute race. Niederhauser ultimately crossed the finish line in second place, but he and Marylin were classified as the winners, as the race winner was a guest entrant ineligible to score points, whereas Marylin is officially registered in the GT4 Central European Cup for the entire season.
Niederhauser now has a free weekend before his next outing under the banner of the Blancpain GT Series Asia at the Chang International Circuit, Thailand (12th – 13th May).
Patric, congratulations on your double win. Your weekend could hardly have gone better…
Patric Niederhauser : « Certainly not! To take two wins along with my girl-friend on our first race weekend together is just incredible. I was well received by the team and know from my last race in the Blancpain GT Series at Monza just how professional they are as a crew. Every single session was a lot of fun and all of us in the team are extremely happy, right across the board. »
You started on pole on Sunday and handed over the car to Marylin in the lead. How did your stint go? Patric Niederhauser : « I had an excellent start and was first through the chicane after the main straight. After that, it was obvious what I had to do. Put the pedal to the metal! Of course, that’s easier said than done, but I managed to continually extend my lead with every lap and handed over the car to Marylin with a comfortable cushion. She maintained that lead unchallenged at the finish line. »
Did you find it tough watching Marylin complete her stint?
Patric Niederhauser : « It certainly felt harder than sitting behind the wheel myself, because win or lose, it’s down to you out on track, but still, I put my trust in Marylin and just hoped and prayed that she would secure the win at the finish line, which she did in fine style. »
You laid the foundations for victory with pole position in qualifying. How did you fare in the quali? Patric Niederhauser : « Driving the KTM X-Bow is such tremendous fun, and when you’re enjoying yourself as a driver and everything else is going well, then you’re in a position to get the most out of the complete package of car and driver as well. I did everything possible to get the maximum out of the car, and it’s just fabulous that my efforts were rewarded with pole, for sure! »
You’ve now got the weekend free to recharge your batteries for the upcoming race weekend in Thailand… Patric Niederhauser : « Even though I’m really looking forward to this next race weekend, I’m also keen to take the little break that’s coming my way. Even though the stress I feel is definitely a positive one thanks to my successes, I’ve still had to contend with travelling and racing non-stop for the past three weekends. Nevertheless, I’m looking forward to lining up again with GruppeM Racing in the Mercedes-AMG GT3. I hope we can fight for victory again and take as many championship points as possible. My goal there is to fight for the championship, definitely! Thailand is a terrific country. Its people are very pleasant and have a great outlook on life. I don’t know the track yet, but racing drivers always find new circuits something quite special. »
Press release Patric Niederhauser ; pictures Reiter Engineering, Axel Weichert / 100octane.de
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