Hello Fabio, can you tell us a bit about your background and how you first got involved in racing?
I am Fabio Scherer. I have started my career with racing in karting when I was 8 years old, but really just on the fun and hobby side. I had to convince my dad first. My dad raced for 15 years in karting and was an 8 times National Swiss Champion, so he knew what racing means. My first kart races; I started at the age of 10 and more professional between the age of 12-13.
You’ve had a diverse career across single-seaters, touring cars, and endurance racing. Looking back, which transition challenged you the most—and how did it shape your development as a driver?
Single seaters worked really well for the background I had, I won a couple of races and got some podiums.
The most difficulties as a driver, I had from switching from F3 to DTM (Class One type of cars) in 2020. That was sporting wise hard in the beginning. Finally, I got the hang of it and was in the top 5 in the races towards the end of the season.
The switch to endurance racing and back to DTM (GT3) is working pretty well so far. Through, with all these experiences I gained more and more experiences and was able to develop myself into a complete racing driver.
I don’t want to miss any of it, but there are always things to learn and improve to get more experienced and even better. You always must work hard and be ready to learn.
Can you describe a time when you faced a significant setback in your career and how you managed to overcome it?
There were clearly more than just one. After the F3 season, when I was Sauber F1 junior, I thought my career would be over. That was because the team they put me in, was not that experienced and the whole collaboration was pretty difficult.
Luckily, I managed to sign a DTM (Class One) deal for the 2020 season and that was a game changer, till COVID-19 was coming. This meant, that I had only a couple of races left to save my career and to show my potential. As it started quite difficult and I knew I just had one year to show what I’m capable of, there was a lot of pressure on my shoulders. Nevertheless, I never gave up and fought like a lion for my passion and my dreams.
In 2025 your car is the new Ford Mustang GT3, which you will be driving in DTM. How do you feel about this car and what is the strongest point of this car?
I really like to drive this car. She might be a bit cumbersome to drive in slow corners, but we have a lot of power on the straights and the sound is the best for me. For sure, it’s not an easy task to drive in such a challenging and high levelled category like DTM with a new car. I’m happy with the good progress, we already did well during the last races and I’m sure that there is a lot of more potential. I feel very comfortable at my new team; HRT. We are fully bagged by the factory Ford Performance. I’m really proud to be part of such a nice project.
Every driver has their own routine. What’s one pre-race habit or ritual that keeps you focused and grounded before getting in the car?
I always listen to music and do rope jumping and juggle some balls.
What do you enjoy doing in your free time when you’re not on the track?
In wintertime, I spend a lot of time in the mountains for skiing. In the summer I like to be near the lake and do things like wakeboarding etc.
Generally, I’m doing a lot of different things in sport; biking, supping and jogging for example. I like spending time with my girlfriend, family and friends.
How do you analyse and utilize telemetry data to improve your performance on the track? Can you give us an example of a specific adjustment you made based on this data?
After every session you are sitting together with your engineer and discuss all topics. You look where you can improve, as an example; in which corner you accelerate earlier or later, brake earlier or later. It is that kind of things.
I personally always check the corners where I got the feeling that I could go quicker. We check the car balance situation if it’s not totally clear.
The biggest change we recently did, based on data, was a big setup change for the wet race on Saturday in Zandvoort. At the end you rely also on the racing instinct, but you definitely need both.
Looking at the long game—what kind of legacy do you want to build in motorsport? Are there goals beyond winning that drive you forward?
One goal will be to be the first Swiss driver who wins the DTM title and apart from that; I would like to win the top class in 24h of Le Mans after my class victory in LMP2 in 2023.
Further, I would like to make the motorsport big and more popular in Switzerland and would like to show the people the real motorsport world.
My goal as a human is to always remain loyal, realistic, down-to-earth and close to the people regardless of the success I will achieve in the future.
Many young drivers look up to professionals like yourself. What’s one piece of advice you wish you had been given earlier in your career?
I think, the key is always to work harder and stronger than everyone else. It doesn’t matter on which topic. Never give up and keep believing in yourself, always. To be a racing driver, it’s the coolest thing.
Originally published: 2nd of July, 2025
© of photo: Martin Bormann – Martin Motorsport
