Excitement all the way for Brose employees
Employees and executives of the Brose Group were at Oschersleben to cheer on Tiago Monteiro and the SEAT team.
They started off early from Coburg, Gifhorn, Meerane and Rastatt. They first gathered in front of the track’s gates for a photo along with representatives of management. The shareholders Michael and Maximilian Stoschek, as well as Kurt Sauernheimer and the head of the Meerane and Gifhorn plants, Jörg Graichen, were also in attendance.
As the sponsor of Tiago Monteiro and his SEAT team, the Brose Group had organized a meet-and-greet opportunity with the Portuguese driver. That gave employees the chance to form their own opinion of the likeable racing driver, who patiently answered all questions from Brose employees in SEAT’s VIP area. Monteiro had also brought along a small gift for every employee. After that, Tiago Monteiro offered his visitors a special highlight: they were allowed to accompany the former Formula 1 pilot into the pits, take a look at his car and experience the final preparations for a race at first hand.
Then Tiago Monteiro and his SEAT team got down to the serious business. The immediate preparations began for the start, the spectators took their seats and an exciting first race commenced amid deafening noise. Brose’s employees were also enthralled by the race fever: “The atmosphere is unique and my hair was really standing on end during the flying start when all the cars roared across the line almost alongside each other,” recalls Brose employee Sabine Grußendorf.
Whereas Monteiro went on to capture fourth spot in a successful first race, he suffered bad luck in the second: a collision with his rivals right at the start forced him to retire, much to the disappointment of his fans.
The day left a lot of new and interesting impressions and a number of new WTCC fans, above all of Tiago Monteiro: “When I watch TV now, he will not just be any old WTCC pilot for me. It was a great feeling to have the chance to stand next to a racing car – especially when the bodywork sports Brose’s logo. The visit has totally motivated me to perform even better in my work,” was how logistics employee Timo Armbrecht from Gifhorn summarized his experiences at Oschersleben.
When the race was over and Brose’s employers were making their way home, the smell of exhaust fumes and tires, dust that had been swirled up and a hint of adventure still lay over the arena. Some of them have doubtlessly been infected by the special feeling and now have the desire to get behind the wheel on a racing track.
