A word from ... Dieter Gass
The Head of DTM at Audi Sport about the new rules in DTM. Mr. Gass, behind the scenes a lot of time was spent on fine-tuning the new format for the DTM race weekends. Now the key parameters have been established. As Head of DTM at Audi Sport, are you happy with the result? We manufacturers extensively discussed the new format with the ITR as the marketer of the series and the German Motorsport Association (DMSB) for a long time. There were numerous constructive ideas and proposals. I think we came up with a good approach. The DTM fans can look forward to a thrilling season and to DTM weekends with high entertainment value. One thing happens right after the other and our teams still have a lot of work to do especially after the first race on Saturday. You have to explain this to us... We are driving two races per weekend this year – one on Saturday and one on Sunday. After the first race, there is not much time to prepare the cars for the next day – especially if there are any accidents during the race. This will be a great logistical challenge. We’ll have to make even better use of every minute. The first race on the DTM weekends lasts 40 minutes without a pit stop and the second one for 60 minutes with a pit stop. What does that mean? For one, the tires have to last for 40 minutes in the first race – that’s basically not a problem but may well pose a minor challenge on some of the race tracks. In addition, qualifying and the grid position are particularly important in the first race because without a pit stop the drivers can only overtake on track. That’s why they can activate the DRS, in other words the adjustable wing flap, three times per lap this year. This is intended to result in as many overtaking maneuvers as possible – of course during the second race on Sunday as well. The qualifying format has been changed too: Q1, Q2, Q3 or even Q4 are DTM history... The motto is: ‘Keep it simple.’
EKS Audi Sport in third and fifth positions at the Estering
Following day one of Audi’s home round in the FIA World Rallycross Championship (World RX) at the Estering near Hamburg, EKS Audi Sport is ranked in positions three and five. Andreas Bakkerud in an Audi S1 EKS RX won the second qualifying session in his group of starters and finished day one in third place of the overall classification. “I had a good start and managed to pass Timmy Hansen on lap two,” said Bakkerud. “Third position after day one is a perfect starting base for Sunday because, as a result, we’ll only start in the last race in Q3 and will be in the middle of the grid. At the Estering, where the track may still be damp in fall, both are a big advantage.” His teammate, Mattias Ekström, is in fifth overall before the last two qualifying sessions on Sunday. “Although I had a good start in Q2 I hit gravel on the first lap and lost a few positions,” said last year’s winner. “Now we’re going to work overnight in order to find a few crucial hundredths of a second.”