The Prototype Cup Germany welcomes a new driver: 45-year-old Thomas Ambiel. The businessman can call on some motorsport experience, although it did come a while back.
“I am really looking forward to the season and can hardly wait,” says Ambiel. “I think I have struck gold with the Rinaldi Racing team. Michele Rinaldi is an honest racer, who loves motorsport and does a top job with his team.”
Ambiel started out in karting in 1996. In 2002 and 2003, he raced in the ADAC Volkswagen Lupo Cup. During his second year in the Lupo, he also started in the VLN, the endurance series at the Nürburgring. “I was Junior champion in the VLN in 2004, in a BMW M3 for Bonk Motorsport at the time.” The VLN was his sporting home up to 2007. “Unfortunately, I then had to give up motorsport. I had already built up my IT company whilst at school and when studying, and, at that time, I wanted to get my instructor’s certificate so that I could train apprentices. The dates clashed with motor racing, because they were also on weekends. After that, family and business were more important than sport for a while.”
However, he remained in touch with the motorsport scene and, in particular, with Gebhardt Motorsport, who had supported him during his time in karting. As a result, he was involved when Fritz Gebhardt returned to the racetrack for the first time in 2019. “That really got my accelerator foot itching, but the vintage Group C, in which Gebhardt was racing at the time, was not my thing. In contrast, the Prototype Cup Germany with its modern LMP3 cars is perfect for me, as my company is also about state-of-the-art high tech. When the Prototype Cup Germany was launched in 2022, it got me thinking even harder about a return to motor racing.” Ambiel had to admit that he was not yet ready in 2023, and nothing came about in 2024. “Last season, drivers like Antti Rammo and Klaus Abbelen inspired me. Antti, in particular, showed that it can be advantageous to race alone as a Bronze driver if you have a bit of luck in the race. I want to do the same now. It also gives me maximum driving time, which I could definitely use, particularly at the start of the season, in order to adapt as quickly as possible to the LMP3 cars.”
Ambiel is familiar with the Prototype Cup Germany from the perspective of being a partner of Gebhardt Motorsport. “I like the spirit in the paddock and the way the teams and drivers get on which each other. I also find it excellent that the eight-cylinder Nissan engines are still in use here. I know the DTM environment from my Lupo years, and always very much enjoyed it.” His sporting goals are to make it onto the podium: “I have called the project ‘OnePodiumTogether’, so a podium is my objective. Whether that happens in 2025 or not until 2026, I am not putting myself under any pressure. I will take a relaxed approach to the new challenge, and will really enjoy it.”
