Steiner's Supercar takeaways from Courtney hot laps
Supercars
17 Mar
Guenther Steiner taken for Supercar hot laps with James Courtney
Steiner lapped in ex-Tickford Ford, now a spare BRT chassis
Courtney was Jaguar test driver when Steiner was Team Principal
Guenther Steiner has enjoyed his first taste of Gen3 Supercar machinery, saying he felt his age as he was whipped around Adelaide loop James Courtney.
The former Haas Formula 1 Team Principal was a special guest at the Adelaide Motorsport Festival, and went for hot laps with Courtney.
Courtney took Steiner for a ride in an ex-Tickford Racing Ford Mustang, which is now a spare Blanchard Racing Team chassis.
The Italian-American was particularly wowed by Courtney’s commitment through the Senna Chicane, with the 2010 Supercars champion getting stuck into some burnouts.
The festival itself is a celebration of all things motorsport, with 10 Bathurst-winning cars one of the headline on-track acts.
Steiner’s laps came on a shortened Adelaide Street Circuit, the Victoria Park loop, which came back around to Turn 11 after the chicane.
"Pretty good. I would rate [Courtney] pretty good,” Steiner said in an interview with Supercars.
“It was a good experience, you know. It's like, they are fast cars and we know that they are fast, with the roof on.
"So it was cool, you know, and for me having this possibility to do these things is as well.”
Courtney knows the circuit better than most, having won the Adelaide 500 in 2014 and 2015, and the second of three races in 2016.
Despite the short length of the loop circuit, Courtney still managed to get Steiner’s heart rate up.
"You feel your age, you know, I feel my age. You know, it's not as easy as getting in there, it's quite tight,” the 58-year-old joked.
“But no, it was not too difficult, but it's getting all the gear on and all this stuff, but that's what needs to be done on these cars.
“When you get in, obviously it isn't cold in there, you know, there's no air con. I'm still sweating now!
“But, I still could do it, you know, so I'm not too old.”
The Adelaide experience was also a reunion of sorts, with Courtney a Jaguar F1 test driver when Steiner was Team Principal.
Courtney shifted to Supercars in the mid-2000s, having left F1 behind after recovering from a major testing crash at Monza in 2002.
The current BRT driver is now one of the most experienced stars on the Supercars grid, and gave Steiner the full experience on Saturday.
When asked if Courtney still ‘has it’, Steiner replied: “Yeah, I would say so.
“The most exciting part of the racetrack has the twist in it — there you can see, or there you feel, how fast these cars are going.”
An in-depth Steiner interview will be shown during the upcoming Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix weekend, where Courtney will compete in the MSS Security Melbourne SuperSprint.
Courtney is 18th in the points, after finishing 15th and 19th at the season-opening Thrifty Bathurst 500.
