An interview with Timo Habermann

The Werner Habermann Racing team will not be contesting the 2013 FIA European Top Methanol Dragster Championship. 2009 and 2010 FIA European Champion Timo Habermann, his younger brother and 2010 runner-up Dennis, and Team Principal Werner Habermann say that they have their reasons, and Markus Münch of the der Beschleuniger web site had the chance to ask Timo all about it.

Markus has kindly translated the interview into English for Eurodragster.com.

der Beschleuniger: Could you please explain the reasons behind your decision?

Timo Habermann: There are a number of reasons for us not to participate in the European Championship this year. One of these have to do with rule changes which did not happen. Four years ago there was a rule change in the USA. The nitro percentage of the A/Fuellers was reduced from 97% to 94%. The FIA should have adopted that rule the year after but they did not. Normally they change the rules the year after.

der Beschleuniger: Do you know why it was handled his way?

Timo Habermann: It seems that the A/Fuellers have a strong lobby within Speedgroup. This seems to be an advantage when it comes to such rule changes. Speedgroup decided this case with statistics which said that the blown dragsters had won more races and Championships than the A/Fuellers. The point is that those statistics did not consider the better Reaction Times of the blown cars and the quicker ETs of the A/Fuellers. Since the time those statistics were compiled the A/Fuellers became quicker both in ET and RT. We won our Championships by better RTs and not by having the quickest cars.

der Beschleuniger: Tell me about your other reasons?

Timo Habermann: Another important reason for us not to compete is that there has been cheating in our class and there are not enough checks carried out. One example: at the 2011 FIA European Finals fuel checks were carried out after the first qualifying run. From a trustworthy source we know that three cars did not use correct fuel in their runs. For example it was cooled or other things weren't right. All three drivers should have been disqualified and their times declared incorrect. But nothing happened. The Championship was still open between three cars at that time. The cars were on the scales after every run, but there were no or too few fuel checks, blower checks or cylinder capacity checks. Things only got checked if there was a protest. There had been other things but they never got proven as no checks were carried out.

der Beschleuniger: Your team was also under suspicion of cheating. Traction control and nitro in the tank are examples. What do you say to that?

Timo Habermann: I only can say that we never cheated in any way. This traction control thing was created by an American who spread his opinions on his internet forum. That was complete rubbish. Nitro, yes I had nitro in the tank. It was in 2005 at the NitrOlympX when I was given the chance to take a ride in Rico's Top Fuel Dragster. So that's also complete rubbish. The fuel thing, you mean one run by Dennis at the 2009 Easter Thunderball when the magneto of his engine came loose and the timing was very late. The result was nice flames in the dark but no power at all so he clicked it off after sixty feet.

People who know us know that we would not cheat. It's no fun to cheat and win because the victory is not real. Also you can only cheat big. That's the way we see things.

der Beschleuniger: At last year's Speedgroup meeting at Hockenheim you mentioned that the addition of the second Tierp race in the middle of the FIA schedule was a bad thing. What has to change for you to say it's worth returning to FIA competition?

Timo Habermann: We are not that excited about driving to Sweden or Scandinavia two or three times a year. We put a lot of money and time into our hobby as do all the other teams. We love to compete with other teams to see who is best. But now it is at a point where it is nearly too much. Five races for a European Championship doesn't sounds that much but it is stressful and costs a lot of money and you can hardly get a crew together for that task. In 2012 we had six races and it was even more stressful, cost even more money, and we had a crew which was mixed together at some races. It's hard to find mechanics who can spend twenty days of their vacation just racing.

There can be six races each year, no problem, but only five of them should count for the Championship. Like 95% of drag racers in Europe we do this on a hobby basis. We all act at a very professional level. We all have big expenses and in return there is only small travel and prize money up for grabs. For example the entry fee at Tierp is nearly double what it is at other races. The prize money is not paid correctly according to FIA rules. We had to wait for eight weeks and we had to ask all the time for it and still there was €200 missing. Others had similar or worse experiences, they got their money late or are still waiting for it all. Where will all this lead to? I thought we ran under the FIA flag.

der Beschleuniger: So is there still a chance to see you back in FIA competition any time?

Timo Habermann: If the nitro rule is changed we will be back. Until then we will take some time off and take a little vacation on a sunny beach. There we will get more for our money.

der Beschleuniger: So, after listening to your reasons, will you also skip your home race, the NitrOlympX in 2013?

Timo Habermann: This will be decided very soon, because if we want to race we must have all of the SFI certification done even for one race. That's something like €2500, so we will see.

der Beschleuniger: Thanks for your words, and we hope to see you guys on the track soon again.