Robert Lechner (racing driver)

Robert Lechner (born October 1, 1977 in Salzburg ) is an Austrian entrepreneur, TV commentator and former automobile racing driver .

He is the son of Walter Lechner senior and the older brother of Walter Lechner junior , both of whom were or still are internationally successful as racing drivers and team bosses. Together with his brother, he is the owner and managing director of Lechner Racing GmbH, which looks after and markets various business areas relating to motorsport.

Racing career

Kart racing and formula series

Robert Lechner, born in Salzburg in 1977, started his motorsport career at the age of 12 in kart racing. In 1995 he was promoted to the Austrian Formula Ford , which he completed as a champion this year and the following year. In 1997 he switched to German Formula Renault , where he was also the overall winner in his first season. At the same time, he completed a race in the Porsche Supercup in 1997 . In 1998 he switched to German Formula 3 , where he immediately finished second and fourth in the overall standings the following year. Lechner has been named "Rookie of the Year" several times. During his time in the various junior formula series, he drove against future Formula 1 drivers such as Jenson Button and Mark Webber .

In search of new challenges, he started as a Toyota works driver in the Japanese Formula 3 in 2000, which he also finished in fourth overall at the end of the year.

Touring car and sports car races

In 2001 he tried his last time in a monoposto racing series with a few races for KSM in the German Formula 3 before switching to the German V8 Star series, where he immediately celebrated two racing victories. In his first full season in 2002 he drove for Zakspeed- Jaguar, won two races and was runner-up behind his team-mate Johnny Cecotto . In the last year of the series in 2003 , Lechner won three races and came fourth in the overall standings.

He also celebrated one of his greatest successes in motorsport for the Zakspeed team: Victory at the Nürburgring 24 Hours in 2002 on a Dodge Viper GTS-R together with Pedro Lamy and Peter Zakowski .

From the 2004 season Robert Lechner drove in the FIA GT Championship and competed in endurance classics in Spa-Francorchamps and on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife . Robert Lechner contested his last 24-hour race in 2008 as a works driver for Aston Martin Racing on a DBRS9 together with his team-mates Thomas Enge, Stefan Mücke and Karl Wendlinger .

Career as an entrepreneur

During his active career as a racing driver, Robert Lechner and his brother Walter Lechner founded Lechner Racing GmbH based in Salzburg. As an agency, the company has since looked after various business areas related to motorsport. The offer also includes the internationally successful racing team Lechner Racing and the brand snowtraining.com.

Career as a TV commentator

Robert Lechner also worked as a co-commentator for ORF during his Formula 3 time in Japan . At the side of Heinz Prüller he reported live from the Japanese Grand Prix 2000 from Suzuka.

Today Robert Lechner is a sought-after motorsport expert and regularly comments on races of the Formula 1 World Championship for ORF alongside Ernst Hausleitner . Together with Marc Wurzinger, he commented several times on the Le Mans 24-hour race for ORF. He also appears as a studio guest on "Sport und Talk im Hangar 7" on Servus TV .

Web links

personal data
SURNAME	Lechner, Robert
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Austrian racing driver
DATE OF BIRTH	1st October 1977
PLACE OF BIRTH	Salzburg