With a 1991 Formula 3000 in vintage colours and still with a genuine manual gearbox, the Austrian from Vienna has become a crowd favourite in the BOSS GP Racing Series.
Why does it have to be a historic racing car and not a modern one?
STEFAN EISINGER-SEWALD: “I’ve been dealing with historic cars for more than ten years now. To me, the value of a historic vehicle is much higher than that of a modern one. I just like the old stuff – it’s still real racing!”
So you still drive an H-pattern gearbox?
EISINGER-SEWALD: “Exactly, I still drive a very old, ’empty’ H-gear. Technically, of course, there are already much better things. We have also tried to convert it, but it doesn’t work. So for the moment, we’re running it as it was designed in ’91.”
His race car: Ralt RT23 Formula 3000
Your car bears the famous colours of a cigarette manufacturer – what is your relationship to this design?
EISINGER-SEWALD: “As a small child, I always liked the colours on the Williams. Now I’ve kept it, because we also had it on the Pedrazza prototypes before. The whole teamwear is based on this design and, as I’m a thrifty person, I didn’t want to design something new (laughs).”
Where does your technical expertise come from?
EISINGER-SEWALD: “I learnt it from my motocross days in my youth. You quickly learn what you’re interested in. Today, Walter Vorreiter and the Fischer Motorsport team from Mödling support me.”
The Red Rose Racing Team around Stefan Eisinger-Sewald (f. right)
What is your favourite track?
EISINGER-SEWALD: “Spa, actually. Spa was my most successful race in my Formula Ford 1600 days. We competed there with a small delegation from the Histo Cup. I finished fourth out of 44 cars – that was my biggest success in the four-wheel sector apart from the 2022 championship title in the Histo Cup Austria.”
What can you learn from racing for your professional life or vice versa?
EISINGER-SEWALD: “Ambition and never giving up! Our company specialises in doing projects where others have said: ‘That’s not possible’. That makes it even more exciting for me to look at it in detail.”
As a child, you were a fan of …
EISINGER-SEWALD: “… always Ayrton Senna. The way he approached things and his daredevil attitude impressed me. Similar to a James Hunt, who could go out and have fun the day before and still be invincible the next day!”
Stefan Eisinger-Sewald came 2nd in last year’s SUPER LIGHTS standings
Three weeks after the season opener in Hockenheim, the BOSS GP Racing Series resumed its season at the Nürburgring. Among other things, there was a thrilling duel for FORMULA victory and Pizzonia’s record-breaking drive.
The return to the legendary circuit in the Eifel offered drivers and fans plenty of excitement and thrilling motorsport. This time, the Grand Prix circuit with the smoother motorbike version in the Veedol-S was used. Rock concerts, a huge firework’s display on Saturday evening and an illuminated Ferris wheel in the paddock attracted thousands of visitors to the Nürburgring Classics just one week before the 24-hour race. At the Grid Walk before the BOSS GP races, many fans were able to get up close to the cars.
F1 and OPEN
F1 driver Ulf Ehninger (GER, ESBA-Racing) and OPEN driver Antonio Pizzonia (BRA, HS Engineering) scored maximum points for the championship twice. Ehninger enriched the event with his Benetton B197, which had already competed here at the Grand Prix of Luxembourg in 1997. ESBA-Racing also put Alexander Wurz’s 1998 Benetton on display.
Benetton’s 1998 (le.) and 1997 (ri.) F1 cars
Pizzonia caused a sensation with an outstanding qualifying lap in the World Series 4.5: With a time of 1:38.135 min, the ex-Formula 1 driver set a new lap record for non-Formula 1 cars, once again living up to the reputation of Europe’s fastest racing series.
Antonio Pizzonia on the way to his record lap
FORMULA
The FORMULA category, which this time featured exclusively GP2 cars, was hotly contested. Reigning champion Simone Colombo (ITA, MM International) won both races, but was under a lot of pressure, especially in the second race. Japanese driver Juju Noda (MM International) tried to pass her team-mate several times. The two top drivers showed each other no mercy and were side by side several times, especially in the first corner. However, Noda overshot the braking point on another overtaking attempt and subsequently spun.
The fact that she was able to compete at all is thanks to the spirit of solidarity within the BOSS GP family. After an engine failure on Friday, the neighbouring team Scuderia Palladio provided a spare car shortly before qualifying. She thanked them with third place in the first race.
Marco Ghiotto from team Scuderia Palladio (li.) helped out Juju Noda (re.)
Meanwhile, everything is going according to plan for Simone Colombo. After three wins in a row, he is leading the overall standings by nine points from Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio), who also had a successful weekend with second and third place. Michael Fischer made a strong debut with 4th place in the first race. In the second race, the Austrian with monoposto and GT experience was able to improve once again and celebrated second place behind Colombo. The best German in the races turned out to be Alexander Seibold (Seibold auto + sport) in both races.
Great racing in the SUPER LIGHTS category
SUPER LIGHTS
Stefan Scho (GER, Scho) celebrated a perfect debut. In his first appearance in the BOSS GP Racing Series, the experienced German in the Lola Formula 3000 was able to prevail against the increasingly strong competition in terms of quantity and quality in the SUPER LIGHTS and clinch victory twice. Swiss driver Stephan Glaser (Jo Zeller Racing) in the World Series car, who scored good points again with second place in the first race, retains the lead in the standings. Henry Clausnitzer (GER, WF Racing) also remains consistent, finishing third twice. Stefan Eisinger-Sewald (AUT, Red Rose Racing) also finished on the podium in his Formula 3000. Once again, it became evident how diverse this still young class is this year.
The next two races in the BOSS GP Racing Series will take place at the Red Bull Ring Classics from 7 to 9 June 2024.
Henry Clausnitzer (36) from Brandenburg in Germany won the championship title in the SUPER LIGHTS class in 2023. We take a look at his career path leading up to the BOSS GP Racing Series.
How did your motorsport career start?
HENRY CLAUSNITZER: “I actually had a typical motorsport career: I started out in karting and raced in the East German Karting Championship at the age of eight. I stayed in karting between 1996 and 2003 and eventually became the East German runner-up. In 2003, at the age of 15, I became the youngest participant in the Austrian Formula Ford. Between 2003 and 2007 I raced in the Formula Ford Zetec, became the Austrian champion in 2007 and drove at the Formula Ford Festival in Brands Hatch. In between, I also started in the Swiss Formula Lista in 2006.
A direct switch to Formula Renault 2000 or Formula 3 was not within the realms of possibility, although there were offers. I then endeavoured to get into the ADAC motorsport promotion, which was a lot easier via the touring car. So I enrolled in the Dacia Logan Cup in 2008 as preparation for the VW Polo Cup. In 2009, after a successful VW inspection, the opportunity arose to compete in the VW Polo Cup as part of the DTM. However, due to difficult economic times, my then main sponsor was affected. I was already 22 at the time, which meant that the sponsorship of young drivers came to an end. I was therefore forced to take a break from motorsport from 2009. In addition, my priority at that time was my studies.”
Clausnitzer drives a Formula Renault V6
What fascinates you about formula racing?
CLAUSNITZER: “After karting, formula racing was the goal, pure racing with a machine designed exclusively for motorsport. That fascinated me. When I was young, I used to watch the World Series by Renault and Nissan at the Lausitzring with my dad. The noises, the sound under the grandstand – that was an absolute dream, however it seemed unattainable back then.
I have always been particularly attached to Formula Ford. During a holiday in England, we also made a stop at Brands Hatch. There happened to be a Formula Ford racing there and I was immediately hooked again.
A short time later, we reactivated the Formula Ford and I’ve been back in a racing car since 2020. In 2022, I was runner-up in the German-Dutch Formula Ford series and won races again. I also took part in some races in the French championship and had a few podiums.”
How did the idea of eventually competing in the BOSS GP Racing Series come about?
CLAUSNITZER: ” I have always followed the BOSS GP and the idea to move to a higher formula class came to me again in 2022 . It was at a race in Brno that inspired me to find out whether and how I could turn this dream into reality. In the winter of 2022, I sat down with my team and we took the plunge. We said to ourselves: it’s now or never, let’s go on an adventure!”
What were your first impressions?
CLAUSNITZER: “The first weekend in Le Castellet was simply overwhelming. The size of the track alone, the long straights – I really got to know the car here. For me, driving with 260 hp more meant quite a difference in performance . Also, the difference in braking with the left-hand brake again and paddle shift – of course, this has all been around for a long time in today’s motorsport world, but when you come from the now historic motorsport sector, it’s quite a difference. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the entire WF Racing team. Without the tireless efforts of everyone involved, this would not have been possible. It was all new territory for me with this formula racing car. My team was fully engaged, gave their all and in the end we won the title in 2023.”
What has made the biggest impression on you in your races in the BOSS GP so far?
CLAUSNITZER: “The events with all the spectators, the grid walks and meeting motorsport legends like Jean Alesi or René Arnoux and shaking their hands – I had to pinch myself to see if it was real. I also had a great duel with Stefan Eisinger-Sewald at the Red Bull Ring 2023. We had a real game of cat and mouse for four laps. It was a close battle, wheel-to-wheel in almost every corner – that’s racing, that’s fun!”
Will you stay in the BOSS GP in the future?
CLAUSNITZER: “Of course we’ll be racing in the BOSS GP again in 2024, we’ll be competing in the SUPER LIGHTS category again and our aim is to build on last year’s successes. I’m also always looking at the other categories within the BOSS GP, which could also appeal to me, but I have to remain realistic for now. It’s also always a question of money, which determines what and how much you can race. That’s why I’m looking forward to my second season and any sponsor support I can get.”
Anyone who wants to experience Henry and seven other Germans live can do so from 24 to 26 June 2024 at the Nürburgring Classic at the Nürburgring.
In the increasingly competitive SUPER LIGHTS class, newcomer Stephan Glaser (SUI, Jo Zeller Racing) was able to climb to the top step of the podium in his very first race.
The driver of a World Series V6 car triumphed in the first race. Glaser then spun once in the second race, allowing last year’s champion Henry Clausnitzer (GER, WF Racing) to take the lead. However, in the light rain that set in on the last lap of the race, the latter gambled away the race victory and Glaser was once again the first to see the chequered flag. Behind the double winner and Clausnitzer, it was Stefan Eisinger-Sewald (AUT, Red Rose Racing) in the Ralt Formula 3000 with a hand-shift gearbox who finished third twice.
Podium in both races f. le. Eisinger-Sewald, Glaser and Clausnitzer
More of the BOSS GP championship can be seen at the Nürburgring from 24 to 26 May 2024.
22 drivers from three continents and seven different nations are registered for the first race weekend in Hockenheim this weekend.
Among them are the three Formula 1 cars of Ingo Gerstl (Toro Rosso, 2006), Ulf Ehninger (Benetton, 1997) and Thomas Jakoubek (Lotus, 2010). In the OPEN class, ex-Formula 1 driver Antonio Pizzonia will continue his pursuit of the lap record with the Dallara World Series 4.5. A total of 14 drivers will compete in the FORMULA class in GP2 cars of different generations and with World Series 3.5 cars, including former champions Simone Colombo, Marco Ghiotto and Florian Schnitzenbaumer. They will be joined by 18-year-old Japanese driver Juju Noda, an up-and-coming female driver who is complementing her involvement in Super Formula Japan. The most diverse category is SUPER LIGHTS, where Formula Renault V6 meets Formula 3000 and Formula Nippon.
There is no season registration for the 2024 season. Registration is therefore very simple: an application must be submitted at least three weeks before the respective race weekend. The form can be downloaded at www.bossgp.com/forteams. Interested parties can contact office@bossgp.com.
In its 30th season, the BOSS GP Racing Series once again offers a unique platform for Big Open Single Seaters. The season starts in early May in Hockenheim.
Applications for the six championship events of the 2024 season are now possible. There will be no season registration this year, only individual entries for the races. Interested drivers and teams can find details on the adapted registration process and the form at www.bossgp.com/forteams
To allow us to plan the races in the best possible way, we recommend submitting the required documents in good time.
Photo: Angelo Poletto/BOSS GP
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