In front of 80,000 spectators at the fourth round of the DTM (German Touring Car Championship) at the EuroSpeedway in Lausitz, Germany, Timo Scheider extended his lead in the points standings by fnishing second. The Audi A4 team performance was completed by Mattias Ekstrm and Martin Tomczyk in third and fourth.
The results were based on flawless starts by Timo Scheider, Mattias Ekstrm and Martin Tomczyk. On the first lap, all three got in line behind the subsequent winner Paul di Resta and his Mercedes colleague Bruno Spengler. Thanks to the job done by Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline, the three A4 drivers passed Bruno Spengler after their first mandatory pit stops and solidified their positions as the race progressed.
This gives Audi a favourable starting base for the next race at the Norisring: while Timo Scheider increased his points lead, which he has held for the past three races. Furthermore, the weight of the new Audi A4 DTM and the new Mercedes are now equal - as they were at the beginning of the season - thanks to the win ballast added to the Mercedes after this event.
As early as the first lap, Tom Kristensen in a fourth new Audi A4 DTM lost any chance of complementing the results of his three team-mates when he spun and had to have the damaged front of his car repaired in an additional pit stop.
Nevertheless, Oliver Jarvis brought his Audi home in eighth place, again scoring points in his year-old car. This means that for the third time in a row, the best car from last year was an Audi.
With Mike Rockenfeller following Jarvis, a fifth Audi factory driver finished in the top ten. The Frenchman, Alexandre Prmat, who had originally occupied eighth place, was subsequently disqualified when he was found to have used a tire that was not marked for the race.
In the ladies' duel, Audi also succeeded at the Lausitzring, with Katherine Legge defeating Mercedes driver Susie Stoddart, who retired towards the end of the race.
However, Audi factory driver Markus Winkelhock did not see the checkered flag after a puncture caused him to spin into the wall while braking for the end of the main straight, forcing him to retire.
Quotes after the race
Timo Scheider (GW:plus/Top Service Audi A4 DTM #10): "A good weekend for Audi. We knew this would be a tough round for us. With my second place and positions three and four for Mattias (Ekstrm) and Martin (Tomczyk), we can be proud. And it's great to go to the Norisring with a three-point lead in the championship."
Matthias Ekstrm (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM #1): "It really feels good to go home today with third place. I'm only six points behind the leader of the standings when we go to the Norisring six weeks from now. That's a great starting point. Also, during this weekend at the EuroSpeedway, we managed to adapt my Audi A4 DTM to my driving style even better than before. All in all, this lets me enjoy the small summer break in a very relaxed mood."
Martin Tomczyk (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM #2): "We can be satisfied with the result. My car was very good, my own performance flawless. With a different strategy, I might have been able to keep Mattias behind me."
Katherine Legge (Audi A4 DTM #20): "At the start I wasn't able to see the lights and just followed the other cars. Later, I had a nice duel with Susie Stoddart, who did a good job defending her position until she had to pit. All in all, I'm satisfied with the race because I made another step forwards in my learning curve."
Results from EuroSpeedway Lausitz
1 Paul di Resta (Mercedes) 51 laps in 1h 10m 23.407s
2 Timo Scheider (GW:plus/Top Service Audi A4 DTM) + 5.562s
3 Mattias Ekstrm (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM) + 8.629s
4 Martin Tomczyk (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM) + 10.379s
5 Jamie Green (Mercedes) + 15.911s
6 Bruno Spengler (Mercedes) + 18.188s
7 Bernd Schneider (Mercedes) + 20.668s
8 Oliver Jarvis (Best Buddies Audi A4 DTM) + 34.508s
9 Mike Rockenfeller (S line Audi A4 DTM) + 35.107s
10 Gary Paffett (Mercedes) + 35.752s
11 Maro Engel (Mercedes) + 50.698s
12 Mathias Lauda (Mercedes) + 57.739s
13 Ralf Schumacher (Mercedes) + 58.367s
14 Christijan Albers (Audi A4 DTM) + 1m 09.220s
15 Katherine Legge (Audi A4 DTM) + 1m 11.202s
16 Tom Kristensen (Audi A4 DTM) - 1 lap
17 Susie Stoddart (Mercedes) - 11 laps
Not classified:
Markus Winkelhock (Audi) - 49 laps
Disqualified:
Alexandre Prmat (Audi Bank/Shell Helix Audi A4 DTM)