Two wins from six races: With the fourth race weekend of the 2013 ADAC GT Masters season at the Nürburgring still a month away (2nd - 4th August), Christopher Mies and René Rast are perched at the top of the championship table. Meanwhile, topping the team standings is the outfit represented by Mies and Rast, Prosperia C Abt Racing. The Audi R8 LMS ultra specialists are new to the fray, having been founded by 2009 ADAC GT Masters champion and former DTM driver Christian Abt only at the start of the year. In this interview, joint championship leader Mies, who finished the 2010 season as runner-up, speaks about the flying start to the current campaign.
Out of the first six races, you and René Rast have won two, but overall, you're results have been a bit patchy. What was the reason for that?
Christopher Mies: "The variable performance in the first few races was to be expected. In the season opener at Oschersleben, we were lucky with the weather - the rain helped us there. Ahead of the second race weekend at Spa-Francorchamps, we knew that we were going to have a hard time. But we also knew that the Sachsenring would be slightly less challenging for us. This year, it's extremely difficult to make any forecasts going into a race weekend, and I expect the ups and downs to continue until the end of the season."
Prosperia C Abt Racing are new to the ADAC GT Masters and have entered three Audi R8 LMS ultras. What was it like starting the season with this new team?
Mies: "The team is not completely new; it has a mix of staff who were already on the books last year plus some who've just joined. Winning the first race was obviously a perfect way to start the season with a new team, but you can't let yourself get carried away, and you have to keep working hard. The team has put in a superb effort and supplied us with a great car."
With the likes of Markus Winkelhock, Rahel Frey and René Rast in the team, there is certainly no shortage of star names. What's it like working with so many talented people?
Mies: "We all get along very well, the team spirit is fantastic and we have a lot of laughs together. I get on especially well with René Rast; Christer Jöns and I have been team-mates for ages; I won the FIA GT3 European Championship with Christopher Haase; Markus Winkelhock is a top driver; and Rahel Frey has been impressive in her first year behind the wheel of the Audi R8 LMS ultra."
"But it's always very difficult to compare performance between the individual drivers or cars. For example, René Rast and I have been carrying a bigger weight handicap than our team-mates because of our higher driver classification. And when you add further ballast for race wins, this can amount to 50 kilos more than our sister cars. Also, if you consider how light Rahel Frey is compared with one of us two, that can make for a considerable difference which affects the handling of the vehicles. For that reason, you can't necessarily apply some features that work well for us to the other cars in the team and vice versa, which means that collaboration across a team has its limits."
The ADAC GT Masters is currently on its summer break. In early August, you then have three races in five weeks - at the Nürburgring, the Red Bull Ring and the Lausitzring. What are your expectations for this busy month?
Mies: "The Nürburgring race will take place on the short configuration, which certainly won't suit us very well. Next up is the Red Bull Ring, and from my experience over recent years in Austria, I think we can safely rule out a victory there. We just have to hope for rain, as that would greatly increase our chances. In any case, the fans can look forward to a very exciting end to the summer."
What will you be doing for the rest of the summer break - have you any plans for a holiday trip?
Mies: "No, unfortunately not. I've just come back from one of the three-hour races in the Blancpain Series in France, and now I'm preparing to compete in the 24 Hours of Spa at the end of July. In addition, I'm also booked for the Endurance Championship at the Nürburgring. So despite the summer break in the ADAC GT Masters, I can't complain about being bored."