Morris Schuring will make his debut in the Porsche Carrera Cup Germany this season. The sixteen-year-old driver from the Dutch town of Den Dolder is the youngest ever participant in this prestigious motor racing competition. He will be competing for the Dutch top team GP Elite, which took the Porsche Supercup title last year. Morris will also drive three weekends in this Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup.
“This is very cool. I’m very happy that it’s all finalised now”, the racing driver said. “I like the fact that I am the youngest ever. I do have a little less experience than the other drivers in this category, but it’s no excuse for my performance in the coming season. In the end, I think it’s an advantage that I’m already driving in this cup at my age.”
Things have been going very fast for Morris in recent months. At the end of last season, he became vice-champion in the Porsche Benelux Cup at the tender age of fifteen and early this year he was accepted in the KNAF Academy, the talent group of the Dutch motorsport federation. Last month he turned sixteen. This made him eligible for the International C-licence, which allows him to drive international races.
Morris will compete in the new Porsche 992 Cup this season. He has already tested it once and is impressed with the car. “It’s a very cool car, very fun to drive. It’s a bit easier to drive than the Porsche 991 Cup Gen 2 from last season, but it’s not very different. The principles remain the same.”
To prepare himself as well as possible, Morris receives plenty of professional support. This season he will again be trained by PorscheCarrera Cup Germany and Supercup champion Larry ten Voorde. For the physical part he will be coached part by Erwin Göllner, a well-known person in the Formula 1 world. The Austrian coached drivers like Jacques Villeneuve and Michael Schumacher. Morris also has a mental coach in the person of Willem van Kleeff.
All efforts are already producing results, Morris said. “I’m doing well. I notice that I’m more fit in the car. My heart rate is lower, I get out of the car less sweaty, and I am calmer when I’m in the car. I have also made great strides with the mental coach. Last year, for example, I was very preoccupied with what others were doing, such as their lap times or tyre choices. Now I am not anymore. I focus on myself and I can keep calm.”
The talented Dutchman and his team GP Elite leave nothing to chance in the preparation. Morris has already had the so-called roll out event of the German Carrera Cup, now his test programme is about to begin. “It will be very busy. It has to be. It’s a battle between the teams on the way to the first race. Who knows the most about the new car? We are also using different tyres and a different suspension than last year. The teams have to collect data.”
Last season Morris made his debut in motorsport. He did so with GP Elite. It’s obvious that he will be competing for the Dutch team this year as well. The team from the Dutch town of De Rijp became champion in the Supercup last season. Moreover, his trainer Larry ten Voorde also drives for the top formation.
“GP Elite is really a super team. Very cool that I’m part of it. Of course there are many good teams in the championship. They are all very close to each other, but GP Elite is the reigning champion.”
So although the team has remained the same for Morris, the environment is nevertheless different. “Last year I was the only one of the team driving in the Benelux Cup, now I’m in a team with six cars. They are good drivers, and the team dynamic is even better than last year. Everyone does what he has to do. There is peace and quiet. That’s very nice.”
The German Porsche Carrera Championship has eight race weekends this year, visiting Formula 1 circuits such as Spa-Francorchamps, the Red Bull Ring and Monza. In addition, Morris will make three appearances this season in the Porsche Supercup, which acts as a supporting act for Formula 1. Apart from the Grand Prix weekends at Spa-Francorchamps and Silverstone, he will also be making an appearance during the Dutch Grand Prix weekend. “It is really cool to be able to drive in front of full grandstands in my own country”, he said in anticipation.
When Morris is not in the car or working on his fitness, he can often be found on the simulator at home. For example, he and McLaren simulator-driver Rudy van Buren also participate in online races for the Porsche 24 by Redline team. Last weekend, for example, he finished fourth in the online version of the 12 Hours of Sebring.
Morris had to take over a stint from Van Buren because the latter suffered from faulty pedals. “That was a long time to concentrate. It was pretty tough to stay concentrated for almost 4 hours in a row, but it was still doable”, said the fast Dutchman who occasionally does online team training with Formula One driver Max Verstappen, who also competes online for Redline.
Morris leaves no stone unturned to make his dream come true: to become a professional racing driver. And then he also has to finish high school. “I’m away a lot”, he confessed. “This is one of the busiest times of year for me. I have to get through it, but for now I’m doing fine: school (Luzac College in Utrecht, ed.) is going well. They help me a lot as well. I get a modified schedule. Of course I will finish school, but ultimately I hope to become a professional racing driver.”
Source. Blatter Media
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