Nürburgring.
Marco Wittmann (GER) claimed pole position and a podium
finish at the Nürburgring (GER) on Sunday – and closed the gap to
the leading pack in the drivers’ championship. Thanks to his first
pole position this season and the 15 points for third place in the
race, the reigning DTM champion is in fourth place after 14 of 18
races. Bruno Spengler (CAN) put on a great chasing performance in
Sunday’s race and finished fourth, just behind Wittmann. In a
tight finish, Timo Glock (GER), Augusto Farfus (BRA) and Tom
Blomqvist (GBR) also scored points by finishing in eighth, ninth
and tenth positions respectively. Maxime Martin (BEL) crossed the
line in eleventh place
.
The qualifying:
The qualifying session for Sunday’s race took place in dry
conditions and cool temperatures of around ten degrees
Celsius. Marco Wittmann (Red Bull BMW M4 DTM) was the best-placed
DTM driver, recording a best time of 1:20.936. He was rewarded with
three points in the drivers’ championship and started from pole
position for the ninth time in his DTM career. It was the
63rd DTM pole position for BMW, and the seventh of the
current season. Four more BMW drivers made it into the top ten in
qualifying. Tom Blomqvist (BMW Driving Experience M4 DTM), Timo
Glock (DEUTSCHE POST BMW M4 DTM), Augusto Farfus (Shell BMW M4 DTM)
and Bruno Spengler (BMW Bank M4 DTM) were in fifth, sixth, seventh
and eighth places respectively. Maxime Martin started the race from
twelfth place in the SAMSUNG BMW M4 DTM.
The race:
Marco Wittmann started from pole position, but was second best
in the acceleration stakes to the first turn, dropping to second
place after losing out to Paul di Resta (GBR, Mercedes). Maxime
Martin made a jump start and received a drive-through penalty. After
a few laps, Wittmann put pressure on di Resta and recovered the
lead. He stayed out in front after his pit stop but cold tyres meant
that he had to let Robert Wickens (CAN, Mercedes) pass. Spengler
delayed his mandatory pit stop until the 25th lap and
lead the race at that point. Timo Glock collided with Nico Müller
(SUI, Audi) and damaged the front of his DEUTSCHE POST BMW M4 DTM
but was able to continue. In the final stages of the race, Wittmann
had to let di Resta by once again and crossed the line in third
place, just ahead of Spengler. Victory went to Wickens. Glock,
Augusto Farfus and Tom Blomqvist finished in eighth, ninth and tenth
places respectively. Martin took the chequered flag in
11th place.
The reactions:
BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt:
“
The 78,000 spectators here at the Nürburgring experienced two
unbelievably intense races. We cannot be happy with the outcome as
we missed out on too many points. Our strategy was not ideal on
Saturday, which meant that we were not involved in the battle for
the win. We saw a tough fight out on the track on Sunday too. Marco
Wittmann probably could not have done better than third place today
under the given cirumstances. He damaged the front of the car trying
to overtake Robert Wickens and struggled with understeer afterwards.
We got five BMWs in the top ten and scored some good points. Overall
it was a hard race – sometimes too hard. We now need to concentrate
fully on Spielberg. We will carry on pushing.
”
Stefan Reinhold (Team Principal, BMW Team RMG):
“We had hoped to get more out of our home race
weekend. The podium for Marco Wittmann was a nice finish today but
we are disappointed overall. We were unlucky on Saturday when the
rain turned everything into a lottery and we could have done better
today. Nonetheless, a big thank you is due to my team, who kept on
fighting to the end as usual.”
Marco Wittmann (#11, Red Bull BMW M4 DTM – Grid position:
1st place, race result: 3rd place – 70 races,
8 wins, 19 podiums, 9 pole positions, 638 points, 2 drivers’
titles): “We had a good first stint. Just before the
pit stop, I was able to overtake Robert Wickens, move back into
first place and extend my lead. I felt pretty good in the car. After
the stop, I was behind him again. I started to try and overtake in
turn one, but we touched. My car was damaged and I had some graining
on the front tyres. I wasn’t able to maintain the pace. It is a bit
disappointing to finish third after starting from pole position but
at the end of the day, we scored some important points
.”
Augusto Farfus (#15, Shell BMW M4 DTM – Grid position:
7th place, race result: 9th place – 80 races,
4 wins, 12 podiums, 6 pole positions, 374 points):
“
That was a strange race. We did our job but we couldn’t match
the pace of Mercedes. We finished the weekend with just a few
points. It is a shame as it could have been more. But that’s the way
it is sometimes. We’ll continue to give our all and go back on the attack.
”
Timo Glock (#16, DEUTSCHE POST BMW M4 DTM – Grid position:
6th place, race result: 8th place – 70 races,
4 wins, 8 podiums, 3 pole positions, 321 points):
“Just like yesterday, it wasn’t our day today. I had
some clutch problems at the start. Then I ended up on the wrong side
in turn two and lost some places on the outside. My race speed after
that was actually very good and I was able to battle back. Then, it
seemed to me that Nico Müller braked too early before the chicane. I
was not able to react in time and drove into his rear end. That
really damaged the front of my car and I was lucky to be able to
finish the race and score a few points.”
Bart Mampaey (Team Principal, BMW Team RBM):
“Bruno Spengler drove a very good race today. His
strategy with the late pit stop worked well and he had very good
pace. Tom Blomqvist did a good job, battled hard and scored a
point. It was not a great weekend for Maxime Martin. The fact that
he nearly made it into the points after a penalty for a jump start
shows that he drove a fantastic race. But if you want to reach the
podium in the DTM, everything has to be perfect. And this weekend,
it was not perfect for us.”
Bruno Spengler (#7, BMW Bank BMW M4 DTM – Grid position:
9th place, race result: 4th place – 153 races,
15 wins, 48 podiums, 18 pole positions, 832 points, 1 drivers’
title): “The team strategy today was outstanding.
Tactically, we all did a great job. The car was fantastic in the
race. I was able to move up from ninth place to fourth. I am
delighted for the whole team. The lads have earned it.”
Tom Blomqvist (#31, BMW Driving Experience M4 DTM – Grid
position: 5th place, race result: 10th place –
50 races, 1 win, 5 podiums, 2 pole positions, 194 points):
“It was a big battle, right from the word go. The
start was OK and I came into the pits early. My car was OK and there
was a lot of action on track. There was only one thing going on:
fighting, fighting, fighting. At least I managed to score a point. I
am sure it was a great race for the fans to watch
.”
Maxime Martin (#36, SAMSUNG BMW M4 DTM – Grid position:
12th place, race result: 11th place – 60
races, 3 wins, 10 podiums, 3 pole positions, 333 points):
“A jump start meant that I got a drive-through
penalty that knocked me back a long way. After that, I just drove my
own race. At the end, I was suddenly involved in the battle for
points again. I gave my all but it wasn’t quite enough
.”
The standings:
Drivers:
1. Mattias Ekström (136 points), 2. Lucas Auer (127), 3. René
Rast (124), 4. Marco Wittmann (115), 5. Jamie Green (113), 6. Mike
Rockenfeller (110), 7. Timo Glock (108), 8. Maxime Martin (102),
9. Robert Wickens (100), 10. Paul di Resta (97), 11. Gary Paffett
(76), 12. Bruno Spengler (74), 13. Maro Engel (51), 14. Nico Müller
(49), 15. Edoardo Mortara (47), 16. Augusto Farfus (29), 17. Tom
Blomqvist (22), 18. Loic Duval (18).
Teams:
1
. Audi Sport Team Rosberg (237 points), 2. Audi Sport Team Abt
Sportsline (185), 3. BMW Team RBM (176), 4. Mercedes-AMG Motorsport
Mercedes me (176), 5. Mercedes-AMG Motorsport BWT (174),
6. Mercedes-AMG Motorsport SILBERPFEIL Energy (148), 7. BMW Team RMG
(144), 8. BMW Team RMR (130), 9. Audi Sport Team Phoenix (128)
.
Manufacturers:
1. Audi (550 points), 2. Mercedes (498), 3. BMW (450).
The service:
BMW Motorsport offers an innovative Chatbot service for journalists
for the first time in the 2017 DTM season. This allows users to
receive the latest information directly to their smartphone via
WhatsApp Messenger. The information available includes driver
statistics, statements and photos. You can register for the BMW
Motorsport Chatbot at the following link: http://bit.ly/BMW_Motorsport_Media_Broadcast_EN