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Review of the 2015 BMW Motorsport Junior programme – “Junior of the Year” to be announced on 4th December.
Fri Nov 27 10:13:00 CET 2015 Press Release
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What started in March with a showdown between many talented young drivers in the BMW M235i Racing in Monteblanco (ES) is now heading towards its thrilling climax. The winner of the 2015 BMW Motorsport Junior programme will be announced on 4th December at the BMW Sports Trophy Award Ceremony in Munich (DE).
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Munich (DE), 27th November 2015. What started in March with a
showdown between many talented young drivers in the BMW M235i
Racing in Monteblanco (ES) is now heading towards its thrilling
climax. The winner of the 2015 BMW Motorsport Junior programme
will be announced on 4th December at the BMW Sports Trophy Award
Ceremony in Munich (DE). Under the guidance of chief instructor
Dirk Adorf (DE), Victor Bouveng (SE), Nick Cassidy (NZ), Louis
Delétraz (CH) and Trent Hindman (US) have undergone an intense
training programme, during which they have demonstrated and
improved their skills as racing drivers on numerous occasions.
Back in April, a welcome event offered the young drivers in
the class of 2015 a first opportunity to get to know each other.
Right at the start of their comprehensive training programme a
climbing session with BMW Outdoor Ambassador Stefan Glowacz (DE)
showed the young racing drivers just what it means to work as a
team – an important lesson for the individual athletes, and one
that prepared them perfectly for their subsequent race outings
on the endurance circuit.
After eight months together, a jury consisting of BMW
Motorsport management and engineers must now decide who will be
named “BMW Motorsport Junior of the Year 2015” and succeed Jesse
Krohn (FI), who was the top participant in the first class to go
through the new BMW Motorsport Junior programme in 2014.
Krohn stepped up into GT racing in his second year as a BMW
Motorsport Junior, and has achieved a number of successes of
note. He contested the entire series in the European Le Mans
Series (ELMS) for the Marc VDS Racing team, sharing the cockpit
of the BMW Z4 GTE with the likes of BMW works driver Andy
Priaulx (GB). Krohn and his team-mates claimed victory in the
LMGTE class at the season finale in Estoril (PT). He finished
runner-up in the Drivers’ Championship. In addition, Krohn also
appeared regularly at the wheel of a BMW Z4 GT3 in the second
half of the VLN Endurance Championship on the
Nürburgring-Nordschleife (DE). He won one race with the
Walkenhorst Motorsport team and claimed pole position at the
final round of the season. “That was the best year of my
motorsport career so far,” said Krohn. “I did not expect BMW
Motorsport to arrange such a fantastic programme for me. In the
ELMS, I learned an incredible amount from Andy Priaulx and the
Marc VDS Racing team. Every time I climbed into a GT car I
learned something new. On top of that, I had the VLN races on
the best racetrack in the world – I could not be happier with
the way this season has panned out.”
Bouveng raced alongside Krohn in the BMW Z4 GT3 in the final
VLN race of the season. After regular outings on the
Nordschleife at the wheel of the BMW M235i Racing in the first
half of the season – including a start in the BMW M235i Racing
Media Car run by BMW Motorsport at the Nürburgring 24 Hours –
the Swede was given his first opportunity to gain experience in
the BMW Z4 GT3 at the final races of the year. Together with the
other 2015 BMW Motorsport Juniors, Bouveng raced at the 24 Hours
of Zolder (BE) and the 12 Hours of Brno (CZ), where the BMW
M235i Racing won its class. “My goal for this year was to get as
much driving in on the Nordschleife as possible, and to learn as
much as possible about the BMW M235i Racing,” said Bouveng. “I
never expected it to work out so well, or to be given the chance
to drive the BMW Z4 GT3 in the second half of the season. It has
been a very steep learning curve this year. I gained an awful
lot from the races and our mental training in Silverstone.”
Like Bouveng, Cassidy was also a member of the team that
took its place on the podium in Brno. The highlight of the New
Zealander’s year as a BMW Motorsport Junior came when he was
offered the chance to test drive the new BMW M6 GT3. He also
gained his first race experience on the Nordschleife in a BMW
M235i Racing at the finale of the VLN season. Cassidy also
dominated proceedings in the Japanese Formula 3 Championship,
where he won seven races en route to the Drivers’ title. “I
really enjoyed the year,” said Cassidy. “BMW Motorsport put
together a great programme for me, and I was also very
successful in Formula 3 in Japan. My highlight with BMW was
obviously the test in the BMW M6 GT3. I am new to GT racing, but
was still given the opportunity to drive such a fantastic car.
This experience will certainly help me on the way to becoming a
professional racing driver. On top of all that, I also made my
debut on the Nordschleife and competed in the Formula 3 race in
Macau in the very same month – it doesn’t get any better than that.”
Delétraz, like Cassidy, enjoyed success in single-seater
racing in 2015, as well as participating in the BMW Motorsport
Junior programme. He comfortably won the Drivers’ title in the
Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup and finished runner-up
overall in the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0. Delétraz was in
action for BMW Motorsport at the wheel of the BMW M235i Racing
at the 24 Hours of Zolder. “It has been a fantastic year with
BMW Motorsport. I have learned an awful lot, both on and off the
track. I also had a successful year in the single-seater series
I raced in – fantastic,” said Delétraz.
Hindman focussed on his outings in the BMW M235i Racing and
the BMW M3 in 2015. Within the BMW Motorsport Junior programme,
he started at both the 24 Hours of Zolder and the 12 Hours of
Brno, and also gained valuable race experience in the BMW M235i
Racing throughout Europe. In addition, he also contested the
entire season in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge in
North America, where he shared the cockpit of his BMW M3 with
Ashley Freiberg (US). The duo won the season finale in Road
Atlanta (US). Hindman, who won the Drivers’ title in the series
in 2014, finished eighth overall this time around. “Thank you
very much to BMW Motorsport for the opportunity to be a part of
this programme,” said Hindman. “I have really learned a lot
about racing in Europe. After all, pretty much everything was
new to me here. I head back to America with a lot of valuable
experience, which will definitely make me a better racing driver.”
As well as the intense race schedule, the BMW Motorsport
Juniors also benefitted from much more training. They twice
visited the iZone Driver Performance Centre in Silverstone (GB),
where they underwent intense mental and simulator training under
the guidance of renowned sports psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Dieter
Hackfort (DE). Dunlop, exclusive tyre partner for the BMW M235i
Racing, gave the Juniors a glimpse behind the scenes of its
production site in Hanau (DE).
Having seen the youngsters share many valuable experiences
together, Adorf can look back positively on the second year of
the BMW Motorsport Junior programme: “The BMW Motorsport Juniors
in the class of 2015 were extremely strong. They all knew how to
be quick in a racing car before they came to us. As such, our
main task was, through their outings in the BMW M235i Racing and
GT cars, to make them into more rounded racing drivers who are
at home in any kind of racing car, whether in sprint or
endurance races. We also had the goal of forming the Juniors
into a team, which would work well together at an endurance race
and set the car up as well as possible together. That is often
what makes the difference in GT racing. I am proud of the huge
progress they have made over the course of the year.”
You can find a video with scenes from the 2015 BMW
Motorsport Junior Programme here:
https://youtu.be/TEk5qz4uf2U