Munich. The history of BMW Motorsport’s promotion of talented
youngsters is inextricably linked with its founder: Jochen
Neerpasch. The former BMW Motorsport Director launched the legendary
BMW Junior Team in 1977. Neerpasch and BMW Motorsport Director Jens
Marquardt met up at an event to mark the 40th anniversary
of the talent promotion programme. In an interview, they discuss the
past, present and future of talent promotion at BMW Motorsport.
Mr. Marquardt, Mr. Neerpasch, to what extent is 40 years of
BMW Motorsport’s talent promotion a special anniversary for you both?
Jochen Neerpasch: “It was great to meet up with Eddie Cheever again
after so much time. I had not seen him for ages. It is fantastic how
these people have developed outside motorsport. That was a lovely
experience for me.”
Jens Marquardt: “For me, it is impressive to see how we at BMW
Motorsport are managing to continue to pursue the basic concepts of
projects such as the Junior programme, which Mr. Neerpasch launched 40
years ago, and to build on those concepts. The way that the former and
current Juniors immediately got on so well just goes to show that the
motorsport family has always formed a great unit at BMW.”
When the BMW Junior Team took to the track in 1977, you were
still at school Mr. Marquardt…
Marquardt: (laughs) “Yes, I was ten at the time.”
When did you start to show an interest in motorsport?
Marquardt: “It was about then. Although, to be perfectly honest, I
was not massively interested in BMW at the time. I always used to
cycle to school with a friend, and we used to have races. We were
obviously Formula 1 drivers: he was Jacky Ickx, so I had to look
elsewhere and opted for Mario Andretti, simply because I really liked
the black Lotus with the gold writing. I won the odd race to school on
my bike as Mario Andretti.” (laughs)
Speaking of school, Mr. Neerpasch: How did you come up with
the idea of launching a school for racing drivers, in the form of
the BMW Junior Team?
Neerpasch: “I used to race myself, and had certain physical issues.
If there was a change in the weather, I used to suffer from headaches
and could not concentrate. Back then, there were no physiotherapists.
The drivers were completely on their own. That was the first thing
that sprang to mind when I moved into management and became
responsible for motor racing: to give the drivers a physical basis on
which to promote the interaction between man and machine, and not
simply to place the emphasis on the technology, but also to train the
drivers. Only the combination of driver and technology can be
successful. That is why we started the Junior Team.”
The first class, with Eddie Cheever, Marc Surer and Manfred
Winkelhock, was known as “Wilde Reiter GmbH” because of their
driving style. Were you always confident that you had made the right
choice with those three drivers?
Neerpasch: “Oh yes. We had obviously watched them beforehand. All
three were really successful in Formula 3, and we identified them as
outstanding, talented youngsters. Also, we did not simply set them
loose on the racetrack. We gave them some technical training over the
winter, at tests and trials. We then headed to St. Moritz for a
fitness camp, where they were given physical training. They were well
prepared. However, we did not have any regulations regarding who
should be out in front. Instead, we just sent them out in the same
cars against our more senior drivers – at the time, they were Ronnie
Peterson, Hans-Joachim Stuck and David Hobbs. That was the benchmark
for them. The competition with each other and the seniors meant that
they learned a lot more in a very short time.”
Mr. Marquardt, the close cooperation between BMW works drivers
and BMW Motorsport Juniors is still very important today, isn’t it?
Marquardt: “Absolutely. Exactly the same principles apply today as
applied back then. The goal is to develop our Juniors technically,
physically and mentally. There is no better way to do this than by
using successful examples and role models. Fortunately, we have a lot
of them. We have Dirk Adorf, who looks after the Juniors very early on
in the programme, and Jörg Müller, who is responsible for the GT3
training. On top of that, we also have Martin Tomczyk, Philipp Eng and
all the others, who are all only too happy to drive alongside the
Juniors. They all have a lot of fun and know from experience that they
have also had people who have supported them throughout their career.
They are only too happy to give that back to the Juniors. The drivers
are a really great team. That is something I am very proud of.”
Generally speaking, how happy are you with the realignment of
the Junior Programme since 2014?
Marquardt: “After Formula BMW and the Formula BMW Talent Cup, we have
now based the new programme more on the way it used to be, in so much
as we now look for drivers in other series, then develop them
systematically in the BMW programme and with BMW products. The success
of our former Junior Jesse Krohn, who is now a permanent fixture in
our GT driver line-up, shows that we are on the right path, and we
will continue this way.”
Mr. Neerpasch, in your opinion, have the demands placed on
young racing drivers changed much over the last few decades?
Neerpasch: “I think so, yes. You get involved in motorsport at a much
earlier age nowadays. You are already driving karts at the age of six
or seven. The preparation is also different. Everything is simulated
today. A racing driver already knows the racetrack before he even
drives it for the first time. An awful lot has changed in that regard.
In the past, you had to learn everything from experience. Today, you
are already well prepared when you take to the track.”
Mr. Marquardt, how important do you feel it is for a
manufacturer like BMW to promote its own juniors?
Marquardt: “It is extremely important. Our programme is so diverse,
with commitments ranging from GT racing, DTM and the WEC to IWSC and
Formula E, that we obviously want to use young drivers that we have
developed ourselves in these projects. I believe that Mr. Neerpasch
identified very early on that it is just as important to invest in the
drivers as in the technology. It is no use having a great car if the
driver – and they often make the crucial difference – cannot perform
to the best of their ability, and is thus unable to get 100% out of
the overall package.”
With this in mind, how important is the work that Mr.
Neerpasch carried out, not only for the promotion of young drivers,
but generally for BMW M and BMW Motorsport?
Marquardt: “I have great respect for what he achieved. In many ways,
Mr. Neerpasch is a great role model for me, because he has shown the
way into the future for BMW M and BMW Motorsport, as well as for the
promotion of juniors. The Art Car, which was recently in action in
Macau, was also one of the ideas he helped to develop.”
Neerpasch (laughs): “I’m gradually starting to blush here …”
Mr. Neerpasch, what is your impression of the current crop of
Juniors and the way they are trained?
Neerpasch: “I have to say that I was very impressed – just to see
their mentality, how committed and how well trained they are. And I
found their attitude very impressive. I have been out of the business
for a long time now, but I have to pay you a big compliment, Mr.
Marquardt. Great stuff. It made a really strong impression on me.”
Marquardt: “Thank you very much!”
Mr. Marquardt, can you tell us what is in store for the Junior
Programme next year?
Marquardt: “Yes, we will basically continue to work in exactly the
same way as we have done this year. We have decided to stick with the
BMW Juniors we currently have on board next year. We will not be
taking on any new youngsters. Instead, we will intensify the programme
with the Juniors. I am already looking forward to it. Jesse Krohn will
have outgrown the Junior Programme next year. I am sure that he can
look forward to some interesting roles in our works programme.”