FIA Masters: Swiss well prepared
SIMULATOR TRAINING FOR MOUNTAIN FINALE The 2018 FIA Hill Climb Masters will take place in Italy next weekend. Five of the seven dedicated Swiss hill climb specialists trained together on simulators from the RacingFuel Academy. This weekend, the FIA Hill Climb Masters will take place for the third time after 2014 and 2016. 175 drivers from 22 nations have registered. They had to [...]
This weekend, the FIA Hill Climb Masters will take place for the third time after 2014 and 2016. 175 drivers from 22 nations have registered. They had to qualify with top results in national championships and the European Hill Climb Championship or apply for a wild card with a previous track record.
Switzerland is represented by seven drivers. Five prepared in a special way with a one-day simulator training course, as ambitious drivers usually do for circuit races.
Mentally and phasically exhausting
Thanks to the efforts of individual drivers and the RacingFuel Academy, the course of this mountain race track could be provided for this purpose. Thomas Kessler, Frédéric Neff, Roger Schnellmann, Marcel Steiner and Michel Zemp took the opportunity last Saturday for this digital driving training on the premises of the RacingFuel Academy in Horgen. Fabien Bouduban and Reto Meisel were unable to do so due to time constraints.
Marcel Steiner: "Everyone had their own simulator and could drive as often as they wanted. It was amazingly mentally and physically exhausting. We also delivered a lot of scrap..."
And what is his impression of the route?
Marcel Steiner: "The course was pretty accurate, even though we drove the original, longer track than at the Hill Climb Masters. It has fast and special corners, including three hairpins in the upper section. As the environment didn't correspond to reality, it will certainly be different for everyone with the right car. But we have less to learn now than if we came to Gubbio unprepared."
Battle for medals
The results will be known on Sunday after the three race runs, the best time of which will be taken into account. The Swiss national team is aiming for its third medal in the Nations Cup, which depends on the consistency of the four selected racers.
Schnellmann and Kessler have the best chance of winning gold, silver or bronze as drivers in the individual classification with their Mitsubishi Evo VIII in the Open/Group E1 category.
In the racing cars, Steiner normally has no chance against the professionals Faggioli and Merli. However, the Swiss mountain champion has already defeated some of his other opponents.
