Schumacher driver Andreas Stiebler from Austria is a dominant force in the ETS Formula class. He won the championship last season and has now successfully defended his title against the best Formula drivers in Europe. Andreas is one of the most sympathic guys you can imagine, always helpful, and very fast on track. Congratulations champion!
Andreas, you secured the championship title in the Formula class at the last race in Daun – congratulations on that. How much does it mean to you that you were able to defend your title from last season?
Thank you very much! Yes, it means a lot to me that I was able to defend my title from the previous season. Winning it once is great, but showing that you can do it again is something special. I would like to thank the whole Team Schumacher for their great support on and off the track. And of course to my family and friends, who always cheer me on!
You were up against tough rivals like Ratheisky, Ehrbar and Kölbel again this season. Did you have to invest more time and training than last season to continue to hold your own against these fast guys?
I already realised before the season that it would be even tougher with the strong and dense field of riders. I didn’t really invest any more time, as the experience I gained in the previous season was already very helpful. When I got my Icon 2 Worlds, I spent a whole day familiarising myself with it. I then used a training day to provoke the handling characteristics that I wasn’t quite so happy with in Hann. Münden and that couldn’t be solved in the short time available on the race weekend, thus perfecting my setup step by step. That proved to be the case in Daun and I was able to adapt my Icon 2 Worlds to the track in Daun with a small setup change.
Have you already celebrated or will you only do so when the season is officially over?
I haven’t really celebrated yet. I don’t think that will happen until the season is over. But after the race in my home country (Wiener Neustadt) I will definateley celebrate a little bit with the important people 🙂
In addition to the Formula class, you also raced ProStock this season. How satisfied are you with your performance there? You could see that you were getting faster and faster.
I’m very happy with my performance and how I’ve improved over the season in ProStock. I didn’t think I’d be in contention for the bump-up to the A final in a race this season. Let`s see what will happen next season!
What would you say to someone who has never attended an ETS before and might not be confident enough to go?
Just take part. The motto is that taking part is everything. Just try to have fun at such a big racing event. You get to know so many great, nice and helpful people, which also allows you to improve your own skills. I think racing at the ETS makes every driver better as the conditions to learn are just perfect all the time!
