Road racing
VW Polo Cup Championship summary
ADAC Volkswagen Polo Cup The 2009 Polo Cup Champion: a portrait of Maciek Steinhof Wolfsburg (26 October 2009). Maciek Steinhof did it: The 23-year-old Pole is the new champion of the ADAC Volkswagen Polo Cup. By finishing the season finale at ...
Published: Oct 27, 2009, 10:39 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
ADAC Volkswagen Polo Cup
The 2009 Polo Cup Champion: a portrait of Maciek Steinhof
Wolfsburg (26 October 2009). Maciek Steinhof did it: The 23-year-old Pole is the new champion of the ADAC Volkswagen Polo Cup. By finishing the season finale at Hockenheim in fifth place, the driver from Cracow made his dream come true. He will enter the history books of Volkswagen's one-make cup as the last Polo Cup champion. In 2010, the popular junior racing series will be replaced by the new Scirocco Cup with Bio-CNG engine power.
Only on rare occasions can Maciek Steinhof be seen alone in the DTM paddock. He is usually surrounded by a small crew: His brother Bartek, cousin Kristofer and father Tomek as well as his friend Piotr, who takes care of the car's set-up in the pit lane, accompany him. Clearly, for Maciek motorsport is a team sport - although in the cockpit of his 150-hp Racing Polo he is ultimately on his own. "We all have jointly clinched this exploit. Without the support of my family and friends the title would never have been possible," stresses Steinhof. He knows his roots; the whole family has petrol running in their veins. His grandfather was already a racer; his brother has several titles in Polish circuit and rally racing under his belt.
Accordingly, when everyone's stress is relieved after the last chequered flag has been waved, the group joins in endless jubilation. "Actually, I can't believe it. For me, a big dream has come true," Maciek rejoices, beaming all over his face. This milestone in his still brief career is the result of clear ideas. "For me, the main thing in motorsport is to believe in myself, to have a clear goal and to pursue it with a direct approach," says the business administration student who also has clear ideas about his professional aspirations: "I'd like to start my own business later. And I believe that motorsport can help me in this endeavour: Concentration, psychological strength, coolness in stressful situations - these are the things I'm learning for life."
The title win in the ADAC Volkswagen Polo Cup has an exceptional significance for Maciek. "To become champion here is something special. The drivers' field is incredibly balanced, everyone has the same chances. You cannot afford any slips throughout the year if you want to clinch the title." For Steinhof, who already drove touring cars in Poland before making his debut in the Polo Cup, switching to Germany was an important aspect. "In Poland, motorsport has not achieved the level of development it has in Germany. The whole environment here is very professional and top-class, you can learn a lot." Steinhof has not yet decided on the next stage of his journey: "The new Scirocco Cup sounds very interesting. But this is not the time for decisions - now it's time for a really big party!"
-credit: vw
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Volkswagen Scirocco Cup to launch in 2010
Next article RACE: MAZDASPEED announces shootout finalists
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
Latest news
Who slept worst last night: Fernando Alonso
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
48 min
Who slept worst last night: Fernando Alonso
Carlos Ezpeleta: Qatar GP “noise” left MotoGP unnecessarily exposed
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Qatar GP
1 h
Carlos Ezpeleta: Qatar GP “noise” left MotoGP unnecessarily exposed
Oscar Piastri splits from Mark Webber management
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
1 h
Oscar Piastri splits from Mark Webber management
WEC drivers question lack of full-course yellow after heavy Monza crash
WEC
WEC WEC
Monza
3 h
WEC drivers question lack of full-course yellow after heavy Monza crash
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe