Raceland Gold Edition by Spark. Exclusive model.
The early 1990s saw an unprecedented euphoria for motor racing in Germany, setting up generous budgets for young talents to get to the very top. The Ferrero Group had discovered Formula 1 as an international platform to promote their successful tic tac peppermints worldwide. Michael Schumacher’s much-noticed Formula 1 debut in the Jordan at Spa in 1991 was the most prominent example but German Michael Bartels received similar backing. With additional funds from German oil company Liqui Moly a first F1 test with Lotus was organized at Hockenheim. The British team had their backs to the wall and gladly welcomed pay drivers alongside Mika Hakkinen.
The Liqui Moly stickers were removed from the car for the German Grand Prix weekend. Michael Bartels made it through the tough pre-qualifying but with the weak Judd V8 engine lacked three tenths of a second to qualify for the race. The German made three more attempts but never succeeded in qualifying the Lotus. After the Spanish GP the F1 fairy tale of German tennis legend Steffi Graf’s former boyfriend Michael Bartels had failed.