Rain wreaks havoc on final Supercup weekend: Jeffrey posts best result of season in Texas
A chaotic finish to the campaign for Jeffrey Schmidt in Austin, Texas: on the last race weekend of the 2015 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, violent storms on Saturday caused qualifying and the first of the two races held in the context of the Formula 1 weekend to be cancelled. On Sunday, in his first race ever on American soil, the 21-year-old crossed the finish line in fourth place. This was enough for Jeffrey Schmidt to clinch third place in the rookie championship of the world’s most competitive brand trophy.
Jeffrey, where were you at the peak of the weekend’s storm in Austin?
Mainly in the Porsche hospitality suite. Or out in the wet. It was really crazy, because I’ve never experienced rain as heavy as that. I’ve been led to believe that the sun always shines in Texas. If only I’d packed an umbrella! But seriously, I had never imagined my first race weekend in America would turn out like this. We were able to do free practice on Friday all right, my first ever laps in the US. But qualifying and Race 1 on Saturday were literally a washout and had to be cancelled.
The race on Sunday was given the go-ahead. But how was the starting grid decided after qualifying had been cancelled?
Under the regulations, it’s the lap times from free practice that determine the grid. Consequently, the second-quickest laps give the starting positions for Sunday. Although it was my first time on the Circuit of the Americas, I immediately adapted well. My second-fastest practice lap was ultimately enough for fifth place. Incidentally, it was the right decision to call off the Saturday session. The conditions were catastrophic, and the track was impassable.
Sunday’s result was your fourth best of the 2015 Supercup. Do you think you could have got more out of the race?
First of all, congratulations to my crew at Lechner Racing for the quadruple victory and winning the Team Championship. I feel sure that I was capable of a podium finish. My race pace was excellent, and I was probably one of the fastest drivers in the field. Despite the rainy conditions, I was challenging the front-runners after starting from fifth. In the end we made it a Top Four lockout for the team, although I think the race could have had an even better outcome for me personally.
You’ve ended your first full Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season as third in the rookie championship. Are you happy with that?
It’s certainly a respectable achievement to be the third best out of 15 rookies. But I think that more could have been possible. Unfortunately, we had more technical glitches during the season than we would have liked. I am thoroughly satisfied with my performance as a driver, though. In the Porsche Carrera Cup this year, I’ve proved that I’m capable of winning. In that competition, I was in with a chance of the title right through to the end. I’m already looking forward to next season when I definitely intend to mount a serious title challenge.
You’ve had a total of 17 race weekends competing in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup and the Porsche Carrera Cup Germany this year. Are you looking forward to your winter break now?
On the contrary, I would be perfectly happy to get back in my racing car tomorrow. Mainly because the final weekends in both series were so successful for me. In the winter, we’ll sit down together and see what the future has in store. At this point, I’d also like to thank all of my sponsors who have given me such great support this year. I hope that I have been able to repay their confidence in me with my results. But one thing I am sure of: I’m not going to get bored this winter.
