Fast start

Building on its celebrated Audi driving experience program, Audi has introduced a new program to give talented youngsters a fast start in the world of motorsport. With the end goal of helping young participants to ultimately become professional race drivers, the two-year program uses mentors to help to develop the talents of aspiring racers, promoting up to six participants each year.

The course helps participants not only in their driving skills but in their mental attitude and their understanding of the technology employed in modern race cars. It also deals with how these race stars of tomorrow deal with the media, spectators and sponsors – all integral areas to the modern racing driver.

The young drivers hone their skills and car control with ice driving and intensive track tuition as well as working on their fitness, nutrition and well-being to become the most efficient athletes they can be.

Race drivers Pierre Kaffer and Rahel Frey together with the course co-ordinator Sepp Haider support the young drivers as coaches throughout the course, helping them develop their driving style at the Audi driving experience centre in Neuburg and on various race tracks around Europe and on the ice fields of Finland and Sweden. Most of the training is conducted in Audi RS and R models with vehicles from the Audi TT cup and Audi R8 LMS complementing the line-up.
“In the Audi Sport racing academy we’re closing a gap in our increasingly comprehensive offering and sharpen the sporting profile of our worldwide activities,” says Klaus Demel, Head of the Audi driving experience. “At the same time, Audi is complementing its motorsport commitment by another attractive entry-level program.”
Audi has already selected the first three candidates for the talent promotion program which has a maximum age of 25. Hungarian Vivien Keszthelyi, South African Sheldon van der Linde, and Dane Nicklas Nielsen. Vivien Keszthelyi is only 15 years old but has sights firmly set on becoming a professional racing driver. The other two drivers already contest the 2016 Audi Sport TT Cup and provided they all show the required aptitude, these talented young drivers can look forward to the opportunity of racing in an Audi R8 LMS GT3 race car from 2017.