Stefan Muecke’s place in the Ford programme has been something of an open secret after his role with previous (and long time) employers Aston martin racing was dialled down late in the 2015 WEC season.
There he developed a reputation as a fast and hard charging driver, a match for the other factory boys, and a switch from a long-time seat is not something that happens every day!
How many years was it with Aston Martin?
“It started in 2008 but then I was still with Charouz and we switched to an Aston Martin engine in the Lola then form 2009 with the proper factory programme so yes it’s been a while!
“I have to say thanks to them. I had a great time with their programmes and we parted in a very positive way, nothing negative at all behind.”
So what tempted you to this programme.
“The history behind this, coming back to win after 50 years is a very cool thing and, of course, when you see the car it is clear that this is a very serious effort. Of course as a professional racer I want to be part of that and I have to say thank you to the guys who made the decision to allow me to be a part of it.
“I haven’t tested the car yet, through contract issues, I was contracted to Aston Martin for the whole of last year but I will go from here to Florida for the Daytona Test and then after that the Rolex 24 Hours.
“I’m excited about trying out the car, a big smile on my face, like a kid before Christmas.
“Handling wise it must be different as a mid engined car from the front engined Aston, perhaps a little bit more like my experience in Prototypes. It’ll be interesting to see how the balance feels, seat position, all of the things that you need to be comfortable with to get the very best out of the car.”
And is that the only additional race over and above the WEC?
“I don’t know yet, at the moment it’s the only one I have been told about. If there’s more coming then great but it isn’t confirmed yet.”
You know better than the other three guys here what the level is like in the WEC in GTE Pro – What are you expecting.
“We’re coming and we want to win but nobody has been sleeping over the winter. Ferrari made a new car and also the other manufacturers have all stepped up too with u[grades on their cars.
“At the end of the day though there is BoP which will put all of the cars on broadly the same level so it should come down to who makes fewer mistakes and who has the best package overall.
“I expect it to be as tight as it was in the past which means you get the edge over the opposition in very tiny bits of performance or strategy where you measure gaps in fractions of a second.
“That’s why I love it, a sprint race over up to 24 Hours, no time for relaxing, not room for error, at all. It’s a great test of a driver, a team, and a car.”
So a final word for your old pal Darren Turner. Are you coming for him?
“In one way it’s sad to be rivals, Darren was my ‘wife’ at the race circuit for so long, we’ll stay good friends, that’s the atmosphere in the WEC, but we’ll enjoy racing against each other too. “
