The hectic life of Alexander Wurz, Toyota driver
Alexander Wurz is known for his two victories at the Le Mans 24 Hours and his career in Formula 1, but the Austrian has more to him than that. In addition to being a works driver for Toyota, the Monegasque resident acts as a coach for the Williams F1 drivers, he is involved in road safety through his company Test & Training International and still finds time to paint his own helmet designs (see article).
The youngest ever winner of the Le Mans 24 Hours, and winner at his first attempt at the age of 22, he has two wins in five appearances in La Sarthe, an impressive ratio. Yet victory did not come easily to Alexander Wurz. In 1996, the works Porsches were favorites but beaten by the Joest Racing TWR Porsche. In 2009, he shared the third car of Peugeot Sport with David Brabham and Marc Gene. Although treated equally by the French team, they were not favourites in race predictions because on paper, the trio were not the fastest, but at Le Mans, maximum attack does not always mean podium position...
The Austrian driver is not content just to be fast: an expert in fine tuning setup, he served many years as a test driver at McLaren, an unusually long time in that environment, like that of Marc Gene at Ferrari or Anthony Davidson, his team-mate of 2011, with BAR-Honda. A similar approach has undoubtedly helped to strengthen ties: "At Peugeot, with Marc Gene and Anthony Davidson, we had a great relationship: it motivated and helped morale," said Alexander Wurz. "This allowed us to have consistent performance and remain competitive. I learned how the mind is important for a racing driver."
From student to teacher, Alexander Wurz took that step a while ago, first with his company, Test & Training International, and with his contract with Williams F1 and the FIA to support Bruno Senna and Maldonado, recent winner of his first Grand Prix: "The drivers are talented, so I did not need to teach them how to drive! I helped them determine the right settings, but also to approach each session and every race. As a driver, I know more or less how drivers think and I know what type of information they need and when. "
The Austrian is also part of the leadership of the FIA Young Driver Excellence Academy, whose mission is to develop young talents of motorsport in instilling the importance of safety. An issue he knows well through his company: "We have already trained 2.5 million people and over one million children in road safety. We have experts who determine the content of courses and define the best methods of training and coaching. Some apply to motor sport and I use them. "
Alexander Wurz's methods are also put into practice when he had a professional mountain bike team: "Six years after selling the team, riders still tell me they had their best times with us. We won several World Cup races and my partners and I were sure that our athletes felt great, and were sharp and highly motivated. "
Why mountain biking? Just because it's one of the passions of Alexander Wurz, who was World Champion BMX in 1986! Although the Austrian driver will start a little late in the race for the FIA World Endurance Championship, he has an advantage over its competitors: he knows the feeling of being crowned as World Champion!
Dave Davies
Photo : LE CASTELLET (VAR, FRANCE), CIRCUIT PAUL RICARD, 25th JAN 2012, PRIVATE TESTING. Alexander Wurz; despite a busy driving career, he is also a coach and entrepreneur.