During a break of nearly 2 month in the Formula BMW Pacific Series, Rookie cup runner up Marlon Stockinger has not been idle and spent some time in Europe, where he first visited the BMW Sauber F1 factory in Hinwil, Switzerland for an exclusive Education and Coaching program for the 10 chosen Junior drivers from around the World. He then was invited to Spain to observe a testing session of the Sauber F1 team in Barcelona where the juniors spent time with the F1 Team, were given pit lane and team radio access and met with BMW F1 driver Robert Kubica. Thereafter he headed to the famous race track of Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium for a test session with Italian Team Euro International with whom he will compete as a guest driver in the Formula BMW Europe series. The youngster made an immediate impression on the team and BMW by consistently placing within the fastest top ten drivers throughout the test sessions. Formula BMW Europe is considered to be the most competitive series between Asia-Pacific, The Americas and Europe. “Spa is one of the most exciting and famous tracks in the world”, says Stockinger. “It’s up and down with several hundred meters of altitude difference. When you go up the infamous “Eau Rouge” curve, you shoot up into the sky and then dive down into an extremely fast left hander. You experience horizontal as well as vertical down forces all the time. It’s the most exciting roller coaster I know!” The races in Europe will all support Formula One races in Hungary (Hungaro Ring), Valencia (Spain) and Belgium (Spa) during August and September. This weekend Stockinger will be back in action at the Sentul race track in Indonesia, a perfect opportunity to to gather more on-track experience and prepare for his appearance in front of some massive crowds in the coming months. After all, the two Formula BMW Pacific events following the races in Indonesia will be contested as part of the support programs of Formula One races: at Singapore’s new street circuit and at Shanghai. Macau’s demanding “Guia Circuit” will stage the Formula BMW Pacific season finale for the first time.
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