Hegewald aims to home in on Soucek
20-year-old German sets his sight on championship leader
Tobias Hegewald will be racing in his homeland for the first
time in 2009 when F2 arrives at Oschersleben this weekend, and the
young German is hoping home advantage can further ignite his
championship challenge.
"I have raced here in Formula Renault and Formula BMW, so I know
it quite well," said Tobias. "It is useful to know the track
especially as we only have two free practice sessions to get
everything right before qualifying. Of course, I want to give my
best in every session and maybe my local knowledge can give me a
small advantage? At least I will be able to work on the set up
earlier here than somewhere like Brands Hatch where I was still
learning the circuit during practice. I am confident but we will
just have to see how the weekend goes."
Circuit knowledge is not the only thing Tobias is hoping to
benefit from at Oschersleben, as the 20-year-old is expecting to
receive lots of vocal encouragement at his home race: "It is always
nice to race in your own country and in front of your own fans,"
commented Hegewald. "I will also have lots of family and friends
there to support me so I am looking forward to the weekend very
much."
During the three week break in the F2 season, Tobias has been
back in Germany preparing for another big chapter in his life - his
final year of exams: "I am just starting my last year of school, so
it is a very important time for me," noted Tobias. "It can be quite
hard to balance both racing and education together, but I recognise
the importance of education as well as my racing!"
Hegewald's racing pedigree came to the fore when he took a
double pole position and two race wins at the legendary
Spa-Francorchamps earlier this season. Now searching for his third
win of the campaign, Tobias hasn't given up on the ultimate goal:
"Of course I have a great affinity with Spa - everything just went
right for me there, but now I must focus on the remaining
rounds.
"I will keep pushing as much as possible. I want to at least
finish in the top three of the championship, but if Andy Soucek
suffers from some bad luck then anything can happen."
Rounds 11 and 12 of the FIA Formula Two
Championship will take place in Oschersleben, Germany, this weekend
(4/5/6 September). Both races will be screened live on
Eurosport.