This is how the EuroNASCAR debut season went for Austrian talent Patrick Schober
Patrick Schober made his EuroNASCAR debut with Double V Racing in 2022 – The Austrian has consistently performed well in his first season
The switch from formula or GT cars to a V8 monster in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series (NWES) is not easy for young, but also experienced drivers, as there are no electronic driving aids available and the cars have a unique character due to their power and weight. Patrick Schober experienced this in his EuroNASCAR 2 debut season in 2022. As a rookie, the race driver from Austria has nevertheless shown several times that he can succeed in the NASCAR world.
Schober competed in the Double V Racing Ford Mustang fielded by Italians and remained somewhat under the radar in the first half of the season despite consistent top 10 results. In the No. 27 car, the Austrian, who was born in Spain but lives in Slovakia, finished 13th in his first race, but the 18-year-old was already in the top-10 for the first time on Sunday at the Indy Circuit at Brands Hatch when he finished eighth.
A total of four further top-10 finishes followed in Italy, the Czech Republic and Belgium, bringing him to tenth overall and fifth in the Rookie Trophy standings at the end of the 2022 NWES season. At the last race in Grobnik, Croatia, after a solid twelfth place on Saturday, he was involved in an accident with Gil Linster right at the start. Although the front of his Mustang was badly damaged, Schober gave everything to fight his way back to the front.
Schober caught the eye with an overtaking maneuver against Ulysse Delsaux, Christian Malcharek and Claudio Cappelli, all three of whom he passed at once. As a result, the youngster took over eighth place. “But then the fender came loose and hit the emergency stop switch for the electronics, of all things, which is why the car shut down,” he tells ‘Leadlap.net’. That’s why he only finished in 19th place. With a little more luck, another top-10 result would have been within Schober’s grasp.
The Austrian sums up the 2022 season as follows: “We scored many top-10 finishes and I’m actually quite satisfied with that, although we were unlucky a few times. I’m highly motivated and already looking forward to next season.” About the start accident with Linster, he adds: “There was a situation with Linster again [on Saturday Schober had overtaken the Luxembourger on the track]. There was contact because he pulled into me. But maybe there was something happening on his right side.”
With tenth place overall and fifth in the Rookie Trophy behind champion Liam Hezemans, Alberto Naska, Tuomas Pontinen and Paul Jouffreau, Schober has shown that he is a promising driver to be reckoned with in the future. At his home track, the Slovakiaring, Schober has the opportunity to test an EuroNASCAR car and continue to develop his skills. He has already celebrated many successes in Formula racing, taking the Austrian national championship and the F4 Central Europe Championship title in a Formula 4 car.
