The coming weekend’s (August 17-19) race of the ADAC TCR Germany at the Dutch circuit Zandvoort is no premiere at all for the 18-year-old Austrian. “It’s my home track! Nowhere else have I driven more laps than in Zandvoort. I also have numerous friends and supporters here, which makes the atmosphere very comfortable. I enjoy thinking back to my first rollout in my Audi RS3 in February 2017,” Simon Reicher enthuses.

The Kirchberg-native had set himself ambitious plans for this year. Starting confidently into the new ADAC TCR Germany season with his team YACO Racing, the prospects have turned somewhat sour in the meantime. “My team is doing a sensational job. The Audi is disassembled after every race, all parts are inspected, and the service intervals are carried out meticulously. But currently, luck is just not on our side and some component in the car still quits its service – it’s highly frustrating,” says the eighth-grader of the Felbertal High School dissatisfied.

Let’s look back at the year so far. At the season-opener in Oschersleben it was a mistake of his own, that cost Reicher and his team a podium. In Most and at the Red Bull Ring it was a gearbox part and bracket on the brake-cooling system that suddenly broke, throwing away important points. At Nürburgring it was the drive shaft that quit its job in the middle of the qualification. “It wasn’t the first drive shaft that went flying this season. And also not the first wheel bearing, which has been a weak spot, too. We somehow have to manage to keep all parts running smoothly during the second half of the season. I personally am not quite sure how this can be done, but I hope to reward my team with good results and trophies as soon as possible,” reports the Austrian.

Will Zandvoort mark the turning point for Simon Reicher and YACO Racing? Is the time ripe? “We are ready and will put all our focus into the qualification session, the rest will unfold from there. From eighth position onwards, the field is extremely hard-fought and accidents happen all the time. We simply need to place ourselves at the front of the pack coming out of the qualification,” analyzes Simon Reicher the approach for the coming season.

The ADAC TCR Germany will take place in the supporting program of the ADAC GT Masters from August 17 to 19 by the Dutch dunes of Zandvoort. As usual, the races will be broadcast live on the German channel Sport 1 and streamed on sport1.de <„>http://sport1.de/>. Simon Reicher’s first free practice session takes place Friday at 12:20.