Ralph Boschung (CH) made the perfect start to the “Grand Final” of the 2012 Formula BMW Talent Cup: the Swiss driver took the lead early on in the first race, held as part of the DTM weekend at the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben, and went on to win the first of three races that will determine the overall winner of the 2012 Formula BMW Talent Cup.
Boschung laid the foundations for his success on Friday afternoon. The 14-year-old set the second fastest time in Qualifying on the 3.696-kilometre circuit, which will also host the BMW works teams this weekend as they battle for valuable points in the race for the DTM championship. This set Boschung up with a promising starting position, which he took full advantage of in the race. Second and third places in the opening race went to Ioan Mihnea Stefan (RO) and Louis Delétraz (CH).
The “Grand Final” in Oschersleben is the highlight of this year’s Formula BMW Talent Cup for the current crop of 14 to 19-year-olds. BMW’s holistic training programme prepares the young drivers for a career in professional motorsport. BMW will finance the winner for a complete season in a higher-level racing series.
The talented youngsters face their next test on Saturday evening, when the second race gets underway at 17:45. Race three is scheduled for 08:55 on Sunday. By the end of the three races, we will know who is number one in the Formula BMW Talent Cup class of 2012. Media and fans unable to follow the races live in the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben can watch the decisive action live online: www.Motorsport-Total.com/Formula-BMW-Talent-Cup-Livestream/
Ralph Boschung, winner of race 1: “The victory feels very good. I made a good start to the race but still spent the first few laps behind Louis Delétraz, who had started from pole. I was then able to take the lead and hold onto it until the end of the race. To lead the field with the opposition breathing down my neck was a great experience for me. I am now looking forward to the second race, in which I hope to produce another good performance.”
Result Race 1: 1. Ralph Boschung (CH), 2. Ioan Mihnea Stefan (RO), 3. Louis Delétraz (CH), 4. Tristan Viidas (EE,), 5. Fabian Schiller (DE), 6. Hugo de Sadeleer (CH), 7. Malgorzata Rdest (PL), 8. Lukas Jäger (AT), 9. Marvin Dienst (DE), 10. Callan O’Keeffe (ZA). Not classified: Pieter-Jan-Michiel Cracco (BE). Non-classification: Alfonso Celis (MX).
You can find more information on the Formula BMW Talent Cup and the 2012 season at www.formula-bmw.com . In addition, you can also watch video summaries of the events so far on the BMW Motorsport YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/BMWMotorsport
