With two unknown tracks having been mastered, there’s now familiar territory on his mind: Following the difficult start of the season in Malaysia and the outstanding pinpoint landing in Bahrain two weeks ago the GP2 race calendar is taking Daniel Abt to Barcelona next weekend (10–12 May). In the Catalonian metropolis the ART racer aims to continue his upwards trend.
“I knew that the start of the season with two circuits I wasn’t familiar with wouldn’t be a foregone conclusion. But I gathered important experiences,” says Abt prior to the arrival of the Formula 1 and GP2 circus in Europe. Abt, who is just 20 years old and the only German in the junior series, feels more self-assured with every round and looks forward to the next challenges with self-confidence. Barcelona is the first such event. Abt: “I’ve now got the feeling of having arrived in GP2. Still, the team and I’ve got to continue to work hard because at Barcelona I want to deliver full performance. My aim is to use the European races to establish myself in the top ten.”
The racer from the Allgäu has fond memories of the Circuit de Catalunya. As a GP3 racing driver, he scored his first championship points there last year. In the end, he took second place in the overall classification. But Abt has previously driven his current race car on the 4.655-kilometre circuit as well. At the pre-season test the driver from Kempten familiarised himself in 612-hp Dallara-Mecachrome with the track’s mix of fast, semi-fast and slow turns.
Daniel Abt completed an unusual type of preparation. During the DTM’s season opener at Hockenheim he drove the Audi DTM race taxi and chauffeured passengers such as actor Wotan Wilke Möhring, who plays a police detective on the German TV sequel “Tatort”.
Both races are broadcast live on the pay TV channel Sky at 15:35 on Saturday and 10:30 on Sunday.
