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Nerves of steel: a profile of the 2013 Formula BMW Talent Cup winner Robin Hansson.
Tue Sep 17 09:27:54 CEST 2013 Fact & Figures
Robin Hansson is beaming throughout the victory ceremony in Oschersleben. Standing between BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt and the DTM driver Timo Glock in the BMW hospitality area, the winner of the 2013 Formula BMW Talent Cup is delighted with the biggest success of his motorsport career to date. After a year of intensive training as part of BMW’s programme for up-and-coming drivers, Hansson succeeded in pulling through against ten competitors from eight countries by coming first, second and seventh in the key races of the year during the “Grand Final”. “It’s been a sensational day for me,” he said. “I always knew I could be fast, and now I really am at the top. I’m absolutely delighted. All of the training really helped me improve as a driver – and it was also a great deal of fun, of course.”
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Ingo Lehbrink
BMW Group
Formula BMW Talent Cup
Nerves of steel result in success: a profile of the 2013 Formula BMW Talent Cup winner Robin Hansson.
Munich, Germany, 16 September 2013. Robin Hansson is beaming throughout the victory ceremony in Oschersleben. Standing between BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt and the DTM driver Timo Glock in the BMW hospitality area, the winner of the 2013 Formula BMW Talent Cup is delighted with the biggest success of his motorsport career to date. After a year of intensive training as part of BMW’s programme for up-and-coming drivers, Hansson succeeded in pulling through against ten competitors from eight countries by coming first, second and seventh in the key races of the year during the “Grand Final”. “It’s been a sensational day for me,” he said. “I always knew I could be fast, and now I really am at the top. I’m absolutely delighted. All of the training really helped me improve as a driver – and it was also a great deal of fun, of course.”
Hansson triumphing in the final is something of a minor motorsport miracle as he broke his left arm and his left leg through no fault of his own early in the season when a car ignored his right of way while he was on his motor scooter. The 16-year-old was forced to take a break and subsequently missed three of the on-track events in the Formula BMW Talent Cup. He was also unable to participate in a single test race and an attempted comeback on the Slovakiaring in early August resulted in pains in his arm and a whole lot of disappointment. “Giving up was nonetheless never on the cards for Robin,” reports his father, Lars. “He really knuckled down and continued to believe he had a chance to win.”
Before competing in the Formula BMW Talent Cup, his fighting spirit and his talent scored him three overall victories in the Swedish Karting Championship. In 2011, he also finished second in the European Karting Championship. Hansson then made his first foray into formula racing this season. In mid-November 2012, he won a scholarship shoot-out ahead of the Formula BMW Talent Cup start – and this marked his first success in a formula racing car. Then when his training officially started, he eagerly absorbed all of the tips provided by chief instructor Dirk Adorf and his team during the theory sessions. However, because of his injuries, he was rarely able to get behind the wheel of the Formula BMW FB02 – the vehicle with which the three-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel and numerous other motorsport stars experienced their respective motorsport debuts. Even at the final in Oschersleben, Hansson still had a metal pin in his arm. But that was the last thing on the mind of the racing driver from Mölndal, Sweden – what mattered more was to demonstrate that he had nerves of steel.
“The pressure is immense,” Timo Glock confirms. “When I won the Formula BMW title in 2001, I had 20 races over which to do it. But for Robin, the decision was made over just three races, and he did a fantastic job of handling the pressure.” Hansson is now the third person to have won the Formula BMW Talent Cup after the previous victories of Stefan Wackerbauer and Marvin Dienst, and he was given a good final write-up by the BMW Motorsport Director. “Robin earned this triumph,” Jens Marquardt said. “He did really well in Oschersleben. And in general, I am delighted to see our training programme developing so well. Our current stock of DTM drivers also includes five individuals who started off with Formula BMW, namely Timo Glock, Martin Tomczyk, Joey Hand, Dirk Werner and Marco Wittmann. And it’s obviously our goal to see the current Formula BMW graduates such as Robin eventually gaining a place in our DTM programme. We will keep a close eye on his progress and will continue to support him.”
A number of Formula 1 stars likewise learned the tools of the trade in Formula BMW, such as Nico Rosberg, Daniel Ricciardo, Adrian Sutil, Nico Hülkenberg and world champion Sebastian Vettel. With the final weekend behind him, Hansson is now also one of the winners of the BMW programme for up-and-coming drivers. And after a season of learning, he is now ready for the next step. At the latest since his performance in Oschersleben, there is little doubt that we will be hearing a lot more about Robin Hansson in the future.
Robin Hansson facts and figures:
Nationality: Swedish
Date of birth: 26.02.1997
Place of birth: Mölndal, Sweden
Hobbies: Cars, motorbikes, computers, sport
Career goal: Racing driver, insurance and finance expert
Sporting idols: Racing drivers
Sporting successes:
Second place, 2011 European Karting Championship
Swedish Karting Champion (2009–2011, KF3)
Swedish Karting Driver of the Year 2009 and 2011
For more information on the Formula BMW Talent Cup, go to www.formula-bmw.com.
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Press contact:
Jörg Kottmeier, +49 170 566 6112, joerg.kottmeier@bmw.de
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