Dominating in the DTM (German Touring Car Championship) is extremely difficult due to the tight regulations. Nevertheless, this is exactly what Audi did at the first two DTM races of 2008: with two commanding victories at Hockenheim and Oschersleben, the new Audi A4 DTM hit the headlines. The same is true for Timo Scheider, who celebrated his first DTM win and, on the first weekend in May, will go to a DTM race as the leader of the standings for the first time in his career.
The 29 year-old German, who lives in Lochau, Austria, is now regarded as the "man to beat" in the DTM. In his eighth year in the series he has made his debut as a member of the small circle of title candidates. A self-professed fan of Italy, he is particularly looking forward to the DTM's Italian round at Mugello - although his memories of the circuit in Tuscany are not necessarily the best: last year he retired after a collision on the first lap, and earlier this year he slid off the track in the new A4 DTM while testing in the rain.
The perfect start to the season has given Scheider as much self-confidence as it has to the entire Audi squad. Meanwhile, their rivals and the media tend to be more puzzled about how the new Audi A4 DTM is so fast. At Audi Sport in Ingolstadt the answer is pretty clear, but the squad intends to keep it on close hold for as long as possible in order to retain its advantage.
Despite the technological advantage, conditions at the new Audi A4 DTM's first international showing in Italy will be anything but easy: the cars driven by Mattias Ekstrm, Tom Kristensen, Timo Scheider and Martin Tomczyk will weigh 20 kilograms more than the 08-spec Mercedes-Benz cars at Mugello - as required by the DTM regulations. And - according to computer simulations performed by Audi Sport - 20kg at Mugello could cost 0.5sec per lap.
On the other hand, the new A4 DTM should be able to play to its strengths in the areas of aerodynamics and weight distribution, particularly on the longest - and arguably most demanding - circuit on the DTM's schedule. Last year, Audi dominated Mugello as well - even though, due to a safety car period, Mika Hkkinen won in a Mercedes. This means that Audi still has a score to settle.
The quickest driver at the pre-season tests at Mugello was Markus Winkelhock, suggesting that the A4 cars from last year can still be counted on as well.
Who will actually have the best chances at Mugello will be revealed no later than at Saturday's (3 May) qualifying practice. The free practice session on Saturday morning will be broadcast live on www.dtm.tv.