In the racing footsteps of their fathers: Stars of tomorrow rise to the Nürburgring challenge

• Eifel debut for local favourite Nico Menzel
• Fabian Schiller in buoyant mood ahead of home race
• Home race x 2: Menzel and Schiller line up for Siegburg-based Schiller Motorsport
• Crucial stage in title battle between Mikkel Jensen and Maximilian Günther

Nürburgring. Formel ADAC returns to Germany. After the two recent foreign excursions to Austria and Slovakia, the sixth event of the 2014 season will take place next weekend (29th - 31st August) at the Nürburgring. Since the inauguration of the junior series in 2008, the legendary Formula 1 circuit has been a regular fixture on the race calendar.

Next weekend, the youngsters of the ADAC High-Speed Academy will be competing on the shorter track configuration. This 3.629km version produces a race with more laps, which means the spectators at the track get to see the drivers going past more often.

For Nico Menzel, the third-to-last race weekend of the season will be a special experience as the Schiller Motorsport driver contests his home race in the Eifel. The 16-year-old lives just eight kilometres from the Nürburgring in the village of Kelberg and is about to make his debut there in single-seater racing. “It’s going to feel quite strange sitting in one of the cars instead of just watching from the stands,” said the series rookie, anticipating his home race. Nico has often been to the track in the company of his father, Christian Menzel, himself a successful racing driver. This time, the roles will be reversed as Menzel senior watches his son drive a 145bhp ‘Formel ADAC powered by Volkswagen’ in front of an enthusiastic home crowd.

Schiller jnr now racing in his own right

Team-mate Fabian Schiller’s circumstances are quite similar. Fabian lives in the nearby town of Troisdorf and has been watching the action at the Nürburgring since he was very young. Now 17 years of age, he recalls the career of his father Hardy Schiller, who also happens to be the manager of the team based in Siegburg, 90 kilometres from the Nürburgring: “When my dad used to compete in motorcycle and touring car racing, I would always accompany him to the Eifel. Now, I’m sitting in the cockpit myself and battling for points. What a great feeling!”

Schiller junior arrives in the Eifel in excellent form, having notched up his second win of the season on the previous race weekend at the Slovakia Ring: “I’m very excited to be racing in front of a home crowd, but I’m not going to allow the thought to put me under additional pressure. I always try to get the maximum out of the car and the situation anyway. If things go well here, a podium finish should be achievable.”

Given the fiercely competitive standard of the ADAC High-Speed Academy, neither Schiller nor Menzel is expecting an easy ride. Mikkel Jensen counts as the bookies’ favourite for rounds 16 to 18 of the season. The Neuhauser Racing driver leads the championship after five wins and has his sights set on more top results.

Decisive phase in title duel about to begin

“I think I have a good chance of winning the title,” says Jensen. “Despite topping the championship table, I’m not going to change my approach. I’m aiming for more outright victories and would like to extend my lead in the run-up to the grand finale in Hockenheim. The Nürburgring is one of my favourite tracks. The changes in elevation and the difficult twisty sections are a real challenge. That’s what makes this track so much more demanding in technical terms than others on the calendar. In the first sector especially, it’s not easy to set consistent lap times.”

Despite the 54-point gap, title rival Maximilian Günther has not yet given up hope of winning the championship. Last season, the ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg-sponsored youngster who drives for Mücke Motorsport claimed his first two Formel ADAC pole positions at the Nürburgring. Last year’s championship runner-up now holds the series record for the total number of pole positions, namely eleven. “I’m taking each race as it comes, and I certainly won’t be looking at every corner as a championship decider,” says Günther calmly.