The DTM is back at the Nurburgring this weekend for the last race of a triple-header. Only this time, the shorter sprint layout will be used. After Jamie Green and Nico Mueller led the practice sessions on Friday, it was Rene Rast who took his third pole of the season in qualifying.
In the first practice session on Friday, Green topped the timesheets with a best time of 1:20.052 – a good start to the weekend for the DTM veteran. Green scored a podium in the season opener at Spa-Francorchamps but hasn’t been in the top three in a race since. Sheldon van der Linde headed up a trio of BMW drivers, with Marco Wittmann and Philipp Eng third and fourth, followed by Robin Frijns in fifth.
Later that afternoon, Audi’s Nico Mueller returned to the top of the timesheets in the second practice session. His best time – a 1:19.943 – was only 0.109 seconds faster than Green’s time in the first session. Though, this second practice was a much closer session, with the entire field covered by less than a second. First practice pace-setter Green was second ahead of Rockenfeller in third, only 0.061 seconds behind Mueller. Eng showed good pace again in fourth. Rast struggled earlier in the day, only being able to drive eight laps due to a gearbox oil leak. The reigning champion finished fifth in the second practice session.
Dry and warm conditions for qualifying again for Saturday morning’s qualifying session. This is actually quite unusual for the Nurburgring, so we’ll see how long the good weather lasts. Early on in the session, it was Green who was the first to break Mueller’s best time of yesterday. However, soon the improvements started coming in with multiple drivers trading fastest laps. When the first runs were finished, Frijns held provisional pole with a 1:19.607. The Dutchman, who is known for his strong qualifyings this year, was followed by Rast and Eng.
With seven minutes to go, drivers headed out for their second runs. Multiple drivers were on a good run with improvements, when Fabio Scherer caused a red flag. The WRT rookie beached his Audi in the gravel at Turn 1 as he was late under braking. Stewards decided to restart the session with three minutes on the clock – enough for one final push lap.
Rast claimed his third pole position of the season with a time of 1:19.472. Frijns was second, only one tenth behind. Championship leader Mueller scores one point, after climbing up to third. BMW’s Eng has been strong in all sessions, being the best of the Munich-based brand again today in fourth. Sharing the third row on the grid are Jonathan Aberdein and Marco Wittmann. Ferdinand Habsburg was one of the drivers who managed to improve after the red flag, finishing seventh. Completing the top ten are Green, Scherer and Glock with the latter five-tenths off the pace. The whole field was covered within 0.893 seconds.
The race will get underway at 13.30 local time (12.30 UK time).
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