The Austrian young driver will contest his debut GT race with manager Jamie Campbell-Walter partnering him. Habsburg will make his return to Drivex, in which he finished Vice-Champion in the F3 Open two years ago. Drivex has entered two cars for the season opening GT Open race as full-season drivers Marcelo Hahn and Allam Khodair will drive another Mercedes AMG GT3
Madrid, 11 April 2018. Drivex is set to field two Mercedes AMG GT3 cars in the opening round at Estoril next weekend. The full-season International GT Open Mercedes AMG GT3 in the hands of Marcelo Hahn and Allam Khodair will be joined by another “silver arrow” in Portugal. Not many racers will ever compete alongside their manager but Ferdinand Habsburg (AUT) and his manager double-World Champion Jamie Campbell Walter (GBR) will contest International GT Open at Estoril together in a Drivex Mercedes AMG GT3.
Habsburg and Campbell Walter have worked together since 2015, when the then 17-year old made the step up from karts into cars. With F3 race wins, a heroic Macau GP display and Daytona 24 Hours under his belt, Habsburg will take on a new challenge this weekend as he races a GT car for the first time.
Habsburg raced with Drivex in the 2016 Euroformula Open on his climb to the FIA F3 European Championship, which he contested last year. With a challenging and impressive Spa-Francorchamps race win and multiple-podiums to his name, he will return this year with the title in his sights.
Saturday’s 70-minute race is scheduled at 16.15 (CET). Sunday’s race 2, which consists of 60 minutes, will take place at 14.15 (CET).
Ferdinand Habsburg: “If you are going to race a GT car for the first time, there’s no one better to do it with than an FIA GT and FIA World Endurance Championship winner. Jamie has been the greatest manager, coach and mentor I could have ever asked for so I’m pretty sure he’ll be the greatest team-mate too. I’m looking forward to the new GT challenge. I raced with Drivex in the Euroformula Open so it’s great to be back with them and I’d like to thank them for putting this opportunity together. Yes, we have a very focused plan to keep climbing through the single-seater ranks but it’s wise to get a good breadth of experience. I’m a racer at heart so the more machinery I can master, the better my career will be. The car may be new to me but I’m getting more used to jumping in new machinery. It’s good that Jamie knows the car and we both know the team well, so I think we can put in a good showing in my GT debut.”
Jamie Campbell-Walter: “I think it’s important to remain in the game a little bit while you can. It keeps you more relevant and sharp. It also earns the respect of your drivers – they don’t even remember my world championship wins so it’s good to show them that I know what I’m talking about!”
