After a part-time appearance in 2023, former EuroNASCAR Club Challenge contender Jennifer Maas will be racing in Raceway Venray’s V8 Oval Series for the full 2024 season.
Jennifer Maas, the first female driver to compete in NASCAR Whelen Euro Series’ regularity division EuroNASCAR Club Challenge, is scheduled to make her return to full-time competition in Raceway Venray’s V8 Oval Series.
The news was initially reported by Willem J. Staat from Autosport.nl on 27 February 2024.
Maas will be racing in the ASCAR class with a brand new Ford Mustang that was prepared by famed Venray tuner Henk Hanssen.
“The racing season opens on Easter Monday or April 1, and this is no joke, at Raceway Venray,” reports Staat on Autosport.nl. “German Jennifer Maas, who made her debut last year at Raceway Venray’s big oval during the Motul Eurocup at the end of September, will compete in the ASCAR class with a brand new body for her Ford Mustang.”
“The Ford Mustang features a brand new ASCAR body that was purchased last winter. In principle, she drives the same car as last year but it was completely modified by Henk Hanssen in the last winter period, especially on the body as some adjustments had to be made.”
Maas had previously made an appearance in the final rounds of the 2023 V8 Oval Series with an older ASCAR Mustang, so she knows what to expect heading to the season opening Paasraces round, held on Easter Monday on 1 April.
“I’m very excited to race the full season of the V8 Oval Series and I’m very happy to do so with such an experienced team!” said Maas. “The participation in the last three races of 2023 were inevitable for the upcoming season.”
“I’m happy that I was able to make the racing experiences in a competitive but fair field. The other racers gave me the room that I needed and at the same time I did my very best to stay out of trouble by holding my line. I was able to learn faster than expected and the results even surprised myself.”
“Of course the racing experiences and the speed of the faster cars made it necessary for me to push myself more than a regular training would have done. The long off season for everyone involved is a disadvantage. I do hope I can continue at the same level where I stopped last year and constantly improve in the following races.”
The story of Maas’ participation in the V8 Oval Series was particularly intriguing as her entries last year came as a complete surprise.
Maas was invited by Harry and Barry Maessen – the latter a former EuroNASCAR driver himself, with a podium finish in both ENPRO and EN2 – for a rookie test in the weeks prior to the Motul EuroCup round of the 2023 season.
Credits: Racing-Total
Maas had prior experience with racing in Venray as she had competed in the Stockcar F2 class in 2018 – the same year that she made her Club Challenge appearances with Racing-Total, but the big and powerful V8 Oval Series cars were a new territory for the 38-year old driver.
Despite this, her performance in the test went so well that Harry Maessen decided that she’s ready to compete in the series. He immediately negotiated with Hanssen to prepare the No. 61 Ford Mustang ASCAR car for Maas to race with.
She impressed the fans with her appearances, securing a fifth place overall finish behind Philipp Bachor in Round 3 and having a fantastic battle with Colin White – the Ginetta veteran and another former EuroNASCAR driver – in Round 4.
“My start in that series was quicker than I ever expected,” said Maas on how her participation came to be. “I was invited to the test one day prior to the EuroCup as the people in charge were aware that I was waiting for a testing opportunity with an ASCAR.”
“As soon as I realized that it was THAT test before the EuroCup, I first said I won’t attend as I didn’t want to hinder anyone. But one night before I thought why not? Let’s try it.”
“The next morning I was at the Raceway to attend the test. The weather was rather mixed that day and not many teams showed up. From time to time I had the opportunity to be on my own on the track and get a little familiar with the car.”
“I immediately liked the setting of the car that Henk Hanssen prepared for any racer that would hire a Late Model from Raceway Venray. After the last test session, I was ready to go back home and wait for the next testing opportunity. But many asked me to attend the race the next day!”
“It happened faster than I could have thought. I had an appointment at 8:00 the next morning for the rookie test, a doctor’s appointment for my health check and others guided me through my paperwork. With a blink of an eye I sat in the race car at the starting grid.”
Maas is grateful that she was given a shot to compete in the V8 Oval Series and thanked not only her sponsors, but also the Maessen’s for making it a reality.
“These two days felt like a dream,” said Maas. “I was pumped to finally race again and to do so on such a special track is outstanding! It would not have been possible without Harry and Barry Maessen and their heart for the sport.”
For more on Willem J. Staat’s original coverage of Jennifer Maas’ V8 Oval Series plans, check out the report that he published on Autosport.nl in the link provided here.
Disclaimer: Credits for all photos are listed underneath each image.