Name: Nils Naujoks
Age: 21
Location: Berlin, Germany
V-WTCC car: BMW 320si E90
V-WTCC achievement: Winner of the BMW Brand Cup Race at Brno
 

You won a Brand Cup event. Tell us your story of the races.
You won a Brand Cup event. Tell us your story of the races.
The first race was quite boring as I just stayed behind Danny and didn’t want to get into a fight in order to save my tires and position.
The second race was way more interesting as I had to fight from the middle of the field. Sadly Danny [Engels – ed.] disconnected. We were in TeamSpeak and he was calculating points through the whole race while positions were changing. Two laps before the end he told me, that I had to pass the leader to get him into the top 4. I focused once more in my 30°C room and caught him [the leader –ed.] nearly in the last corner of the second to last lap. I thought the seven laps were over already, so I was sad, but when the AI didn’t take over control of my car, I noticed I had one more lap to go. There I made the pass.
Danny owes me something, really… We share a room in Brno so he might find a way soon, haha!

How did you prepare for the races?
The main problem was the laptime stability, because the tires wore out pretty fast. So keeping the pace up somehow took us quite some setup work, especially since we are pretty new to RACE 07.

How did you become a simracer?
OK, you want it short? Haha. The best present I ever had for Christmas were Grand Prix 2 and the Thrustmaster T2 wheel my father gave me. I was eight years old and in the best condition for learning. I made it through GP3, GP4 and some of the EA games. I also tried Nascar 2003 and ended up in Live for Speed in the summer of 2003.

Are you a real racer as well?
I’m still planning it, but time is pretty limited at the moment. Rallycross is really great and the cars are not too expensive, but also the VLN races are also an option.

What are your expectations for the Semi-Finals in Brno?
I want to win: that’s why I’m racing! Chances are good to score at least top 3.

Do you have any tips for new drivers?
Dont give up! Laptimes drop when u get used to everything. Let the game tell you how to do it and don’t force the car around the track. Brake and don’t steer to the maximum all the time.

Who will win the V-WTCC 2008?
SK-Gaming, if Greger Huttu and Mattieu Prevot get beaten…