Cupra and Abt Sportsline have revealed Nürburgring 24 Hours winner and German Touring Car Champion Claudia Hürtgen as the second half of their Extreme E line-up alongside Mattias Ekström.
Hürtgen has been a star of circuit racing for over 25 years, starting off in single-seaters before switching to touring cars and GT sportscars. She has two Nürburgring 24H class wins, one Daytona 24H class win and overall victory in the Dubai 24H on her CV, as well as three national touring car titles and the championship crown in the Nürburgring’s own VLN Endurance Championship in 2005.
Both Ekström and Hürtgen have already had their first runs on the all-electric Odyssey 21 SUV, which the team has named the e-CUPRA ABT XE1, that they will be racing in XE in 2021. Next week is an official pre-season test in Spain where they will face off against their opposition for the first time.
“Even after 25 years in motorsport Extreme E is an all-new and exciting challenge for me that I’m very much looking forward to,” said Hürtgen.
“What makes this competition special among other things is the fact that this is an all-new adventure for all entrants that we’re jointly embarking on.
“I learn something new on every kilometer and try to handle each corner with greater perfection. Needless to say, it’s great to have such an experienced and open-minded team mate in Mattias who superbly supports me in this effort.”
According to Abt CEO Thomas Biermaier, Hürtgen’s seat was earned in a shootout contest.
“We met Claudia for the first time at a small shoot-out with several female candidates this summer and were soon convinced that she’d be the right choice – not only because of her strong performance in the cockpit, but also due to her professional cooperation, her precise feedback to our engineers and her overall demeanour. Claudia is simply a good fit for us,” Biermaier revealed.
While founding partner Cupra is a Spanish organisation, the team’s Odyssey 21 will be prepared by Abt in Kempten, Germany.
