ABT Sportsline has taken a number of important personnel decisions, so setting the course for a successful future in motorsport. Effective 1 January 2018, Florian Modlinger will be the new technical director of the motorsport department in Kempten. He will be responsible for the company’s commitments in Formula E, the DTM and the Audi Sport ABT TT Cup and report directly to Sport Director Thomas Biermaier and Managing Director Hans-Jürgen Abt.
“I’m proud of the fact that we’ve managed to get Florian to join us here in the Allgäu,” says Hans-Jürgen Abt. “We’ve been working together really well and, above all, successfully in various projects, including the DTM, in recent years. Now we’re taking the next step and intend to achieve even more things jointly.”
As technical director at Audi, Florian Modlinger was most recently responsible for fielding the six RS 5 DTM cars in the touring car series. Previously, he supported the two-time DTM Champion Mattias Ekström for four years as his race engineer. “I look forward to my new responsibilities” says Modlinger. “Following an exceptional year with all three titles in the DTM, I was looking for a new challenge and found it at ABT. I know the people around Hans-Jürgen and Thomas well – a team that loves motorsport and is active in it with great passion and visions. That’s a perfect fit for me, personally and professionally.”
In the role of an official factory team for Audi in the DTM and in the electric racing series ABT Sportsline is tackling two international challenges in 2018. Additionally, the company in 2018 will organize and run the Audi Sport ABT TT Cup on its own. “We have a busy agenda on which the commitments for Audi obviously take top priority. In both championships we have ambitious aims: we intend to win races and fight for the title with Audi,” says Thomas Biermaier. “That’s why we want to fill each and every role with maximum capabilities.”
In the Formula E crew there will be a change as well. Franco Chiocchetti’s, Technical Director of the team and Lucas di Grassi’s race engineer, decided to leave ABT Sportsline. “We thank Franco for his commitment to ABT Sportsline – not only in Formula E, in which he was a key element of success, but also in the DTM and in GT racing. We wish him all the best for his new aims. At the same time, we’re delighted that we found a very good internal solution for his successor.”
To ensure a smooth transition, Franco Chiocchetti will be on hand at the first three events of the new Formula E season (opening in Hong Kong on 2 and 3 December) to assist his successor.