Kiwi hotshot Andre Heimgartner will this weekend become the youngest driver to ever compete in Porsche City Index Carrera Cup Australia.
At 16 years and 8 months, Heimgartner will break the record previously held by Jonathon Webb, who became the youngest driver to race in the championship in 2003, aged 19 years, 4 months.
This year, Heimgartner will juggle his racing commitments, which also includes racing in the New Zealand V8 SuperTourers series, along with completing his Year 12 studies at school in his native New Zealand.
Heimgartner will this weekend commence his 2012 Carrera Cup campaign with Team Kiwi Racing, equipped with an all-New Zealand crew, when lining up against his more experienced rivals on the streets of Adelaide.
“I want to punch above my weight this year. I’m sure everyone would think that a 16 year old would be really inexperienced and a bit inconsistent. But I’ll try to be consistent, which I normally am, and as fast as possible to try to gain the best results possible,” said Heimgartner.
“I feel pretty confident. I’ve done a couple of endurance races in a Porsche, which went very well, along with a successful test in the car last week.
“I think the competition will be pretty tough in Australia. You’ve got the likes of Craig Baird and a few up-and-coming guys like Tom Tweedie, so I think it will be interesting to see how fast I am in comparison to the other drivers, especially because these cars are identical.”
Heimgartner enters the 2012 Porsche City Index Carrera Cup Australia season having won two consecutive New Zealand Formula Ford Championship titles, while he also contested select rounds of the 2011 Australian Formula Ford Championship.
The first round of the Porsche City Index Carrera Cup Australia championship will be held at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide this weekend.
For more information on the Porsche City Index Carrera Cup Australia, visit porschecarrera.wpengine.com.