In 1983, the Russian driver and mechanic, Edgar Lindgren, won one of the most difficult championships of his country when he was already over fifty. That was in the USSR before the iron curtain fell. Ten years later, he became triple champion of Russia from 1993 to 1995. The man who can be dubbed the motorsport legend, from the time of the Union of the Socialist Soviet Republics to the present-day Russian Federation, is still as passionate: he is going to start racing seriously again in 2016 with Motul supporting his team! Here's the interview:
- How did you come to motorsport?
'Ever since my childhood, racing has always been on my brain and, like many adolescents in the USSR, I took basic motorbikes to pieces and modified them untiringly. I first practised motocross in the middle of the 1950s by joining the team of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University. We were very competitive and sometimes managed to beat the drivers of the Central Sport Club of Army, the best team of the time. I was both a driver and engineer in the team because as a student I worked in the combustion engines department. I even designed and built my own motorcycles. Fifteen years after my start on two-wheelers, at age 35, I discovered motorsport by chance, with the team of another university, Moscow Automobile and Road Construction University (MADI). I had broken my knee and had lent my machine to one of the riders of their team. The team was also entering a car and proposed that I drive it. At the time, I was still working at Bauman University. The university administration learnt of my situation and accepted to transfer me to the other university...'
- There too, your role exceeded that of simply driving?
'I tuned and drove racing cars, while at the same time developing other projects like for example fire brigade vehicles or stock cars. That led me to building a single-seater that has been exhibited at the Bikernieki Circuit museum near Riga in Latvia for the past 20 years. I had the pleasure of driving it on that track at the Dzintara Volga competition partnered by Motul.'
- Are you familiar with the brand Motul and its products?
'I don't know by what miracle, but in the middle of the 1970s we could obtain Motul lubricants from France for our racing activities! Ever since, I've never wanted to use any other.'
- What are your plans for the 2016 season?
'I am going to participate again in the Moscow Classic Grand Prix, on Moscow Raceway. Driving historic cars on that magnificent modern track is very pleasant. I've also planned to take the start of several races at the wheel of our retro single-seater. I'm going to set to work so it's raring to go for my return!'
