What a Formula 1 race with Max Verstappen can bring about. Michael Folmering attended the Austrian GP at the Red Bull Ring in 2021 and saw Verstappen win. That was when Folmering knew it too: “I want to race!” The 21-year-old resident of Nijmegen is now racing successfully in karting, as evidenced by his podium finish at the final race of the Dutch Karting Championship, and is already cautiously looking ahead to motorsport!
Folmering is competing in the full NK 4-stroke championship this season, supplemented by a few races in Assen. “Those races in Assen are mainly for training for the NK,” he said. “But it is also just a fun track to drive on.”
The Nijmegen native has been karting for about three to three and a half years now. His first experience in a kart came in 2021, when he got into a rental kart with friends at the kart track in Eefde. “I had just returned from Formula 1 in Austria, where Max Verstappen won, and I was still completely full of adrenaline,” he recalled. “Then I thought: I want to try this too. We went karting and since then I have been addicted to the racing bug!” After about a year and a half in the NKH, he ended up at The Grid Racing via a try-out. “We drove pretty well there right away,” he said. “After that, we did a few training days and in 2023 I drove my first NXT race with the Tillotson karts.” What appeals to him about the sport? “Mainly the competition,” said Folmering. “And just the sport in general. Karting might not be mega-fast compared to other motorsports, but it remains just really cool to do.” His ambitions now extend beyond just karting. Behind the scenes, work is underway on a possible move to the BMW M2 Cup. “If all goes well, we want to do that next year,” he said. “First, we want to test on the simulator for half a day with guidance this year and hopefully also participate in a race weekend.” Additionally, he hopes to take part in the T4 World Championship in Valencia, Spain, later this year.
During the National Championship weekend in Strijen, his day in the Tillotson T4 club got off to a difficult start. Things went wrong in the final corner during qualifying. “I went into the final corner a bit too aggressively and then I had to go through the gravel.” Because of the mistake, he had to start the heats last in his class, but a strong comeback followed. “The first heat actually went fine; I drove to third place.” He then finished fourth in heat two and concluded the final in second place.
Nevertheless, he remained remarkably calm about his podium result afterwards. “I was actually more concerned with whether I had a click bumper than with that trophy,” he said. “I just want to finish fairly.” After all, in large fields of competitors, penalties can immediately cost a lot of places.
In addition to The Grid Racing, Folmering also runs his own team structure. “We have our own team: MF Racing Team,” he explained. “That stands for Michael Folmering. We race together with The Grid Racing.”
Finally, he thanked the people around him. “My sponsor Berrie, of course, my regular mechanic Thijs who always helps with the setups, Geert who guides drivers, and Martijn, the team owner. I also want to thank my father for the support and helping out on the weekends, and my mother, family, and friends for the support from afar.” With his strong comeback race in Strijen and his plans towards motorsport, Folmering seems to be building his career step by step. With plans towards motorsport, Michael Folmering is looking for partners who wish to support him in his future career. Interested parties can contact him via MichaelFolmering9@gmail.com.
Source: RaceXpress, Celine Boerboom