NEW YORK - In his quest to bring the Red Bull Air Race World Championship title back to Austria, Hannes Arch admits he is open to ideas and inspiration from unusual sources. The 2008 world champion surprised his great rival Paul Bonhomme of Britain in Windsor by thanking him at the post-race press conference for showing him the best racing line through one tough turn just before the final.
The Austrian ace also revealed he tries to listen to the TV commentary from former pilot Steve Jones for clues on how to best attack each race track.
Arch is on a record winning streak with victories in the last three races. His run of glory has cut Bonhomme’s lead at the top of the championship to just two points going into the New York race on June 19/20, the fifth of eight stops around the world this year. Arch’s hot streak has struck fear into the hearts of title rivals Bonhomme (41 points) and Britain’s Nigel Lamb, who is now third and two points (37) behind Arch (39). Arch has won a stunning 37 points in the last three races.
“It’s important to see where others are better and learn from them, that is the key in any sport to get better,” said Arch, who became the youngest world champion in Red Bull Air Race history in 2008 in only his second season after applying the same tactic of constantly learning from his more race-experienced rivals. He went from 10th in his rookie year in 2007 to first in 2008 thanks in part to his insatiable yearning for learning.
“But that only works if you have your own strategy. Otherwise you’ll just be copying what they’re doing and you’ll always be a step behind. I think the key is to think out of your own ‘bubble’ and see where others are better and see what they do. It could be a rookie or some pilot you do not like or something you even disagree with. But there is always room to learn about everything.”
Arch said that in the evenings, after training and Qualifying sessions, he sometimes even studies the TV commentary from Jones for inspiration. Jones, a straight-talking Brit and widely regarded as a thinking man’s pilot, switched from the cockpit to the studio booth after the 2008 season and now gives worldwide audiences memorable insights into flying the race tracks.
“I watch and listen to Steve, mostly in the evenings and I value his input a lot,” said Arch.
Arch led the 2009 championship through the midway point but lost the lead to Bonhomme towards the end of the season. This year the Austrian is hoping for a repeat of his 2008 championship campaign when he came storming from behind to overtake Bonhomme, the championship leader this year. The last pilot to lead the championship all season and win the title was American Kirby Chambliss in 2006.
“In Abu Dhabi I was really disappointed,” Arch said, after he finished in 11th place at the start of this year due to a penalty in the Top 12 round. It seemed at that moment like his title hopes for 2010 were destroyed. But Arch said it was his team’s encouragement, especially his technician Vito Wypraechtiger, that helped keep his spirits up.
“After Abu Dhabi, Vito said to me ‘Well, but we still want to win a couple of races this year, don’t we?’,” said Arch, who now has seven career victories. “I thought at that moment it would be difficult to win any race at all these days with everyone flying fast times so close together. But everything has worked out perfect since then. I never thought we would win three races in a row.”
Arch’s comeback this year has clearly put pressure on Bonhomme and Lamb. Lamb was once again flying superbly in training and Qualifying but ended up last in the Final Four after getting an untimely penalty. Arch remembers Bonhomme making costly mistakes late in the 2008 season, in London and Porto, and is hoping he might falter again this year down the stretch.
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