DTM PRACTICE DAY PROMISES DISPOSAL IN LUSITRING

Not only was the temperature great, but it was hot on the track. At the end of the training day at Lausitzring Turn 1 at Autohero, the lap time of the four fastest DTM riders with three different marks on the 4,601-kilometer track was eight hundredths of a second. The fastest racer of the day was two-time (2014, 2016) champion Mark Wittmann (Germany), who passed his fastest lap of the race track between Dresden and Berlin in 1 m 32.035 s.

In the morning of the first free practice, 29 world-class riders have already shown high performance during the lap led by Swiss Nick Mueller (Team Rosberg, Audi), winner of Sunday’s race during the season opener in Portimao. Two SSR Performance Porsche riders, Lawrence Vanthor (BEL) and Dennis Olsen (NOR), also demonstrated strong performance, starting the race weekend with the second and fourth fastest times respectively. Among them was Sheldon van der Linde (RSA) of Schubert’s BMW, who had long led the time table in his second free practice until his car was stuck on the track, with about 17 minutes left and had to be rebuilt. The practice was briefly interrupted.

“It’s possible to start the weekend with a good feeling it’s always nice, but I hope we can continue this for tomorrow,” Whitman says. “We had a good program with long runs and a qualifying simulation with fresh tires. I feel comfortable, things are going well and I hope it will be the same tomorrow. Turn 1 is a speed turn, driving it is always an experience. The trick will be to move the tires to the distance in the race, in particular the front tires. Whitman Sheldon van der Linde finished 1-2 for BMW, despite his early resignation, followed by Dennis Olsen of SSR Porsche and two Mercedes GruppeM drivers Mara Engel (Germany) and Mikael Grenier (CAN).

DTM Trophy: Frenchman Kohaupe is the fastest

The fastest racer of the day in the DTM Trophy was Frenchman Eduard Kaupe, who topped the tables of both free training sessions at Mercedes-AMG, led by the BWT Mücke Motorsport team from Berlin. His time of 1 m 42,134 s in the first workout was the fastest of the day. Next were Thiago Vivaqua (BRA, Heide-Motorsport, Audi), Rodrigo Diaz Almeida (MOZ, BWT Mücke Motorsport, Mercedes-AMG), Ricky Capo (NZL, KÜS Team Bernhard, Porsche) and two BMW Project drivers 1. Team, Colin Koresani (NED) and Louis Henkefend (Germany), last year’s winner of the BMW M2 Cup. This made it drivers from six different countries with four different brands in the top six. The DTM platform talent team is starting its new season at Lausitzring Turn 1 based on Autohero.

DTM Classic, BMW M2 Cup, Red Bull 2-seater

The DTM Classic Cup, new for this year, also opened the season at Lausitzring Turn 1 based on Autohero. Exciting cars from the rich history of the DTM, from the Opel Calibra, which once involved former Formula One world champion Keke Rosberg, and the Ford Sierra RS 500 Cosworth to the legendary BMW M3, have already caused excitement during a training day in Lausitz. The entry-level BMW M2 Cup series also has its first two races of the season this weekend. Also present: a spectacular and loud two-seater Formula 1 car from Red Bull.

Source. DTM