Matteo Cairoli (I/Emil Frey Racing) comfortably won the eleventh DTM championship race at the Nürburgring on Saturday. The Ferrari driver controlled the field as pole-sitter in midsummer temperatures and was the first to take the chequered flag after 39 laps with a lead of just under ten seconds.
“This victory feels fantastic after some rather disappointing weekends recently. Our team did a mega job last week and did everything possible to get us back on the road to success. It has fully paid off. First pole position, then the victory and the fastest race lap – the car was simply a rocket,” said a delighted Cairoli, who has already claimed three victories as a DTM rookie. Porsche driver Thomas Preining (A) finished second at his team Manthey’s home circuit. Third place went to Marco Wittmann (Fürth/Schubert Motorsport) in the BMW M4 GT3 Evo.
Keyfacts, 11th race of the season out of 16
• Pole position: Matteo Cairoli (Emil Frey Racing, Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo #14), 1:25.345 minutes
• Winner: Matteo Cairoli (Emil Frey Racing, Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo #14)
• Fastest lap: Matteo Cairoli (Emil Frey Racing, Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo #14), 1:26.031 minutes
Pole-sitter Cairoli maintained the lead ahead of Preining after a perfect start. Behind them, Ben Dörr (Butzbach/Dörr Motorsport) took third place ahead of Wittmann and Lucas Auer (A/Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf), who lost two positions. While there were some hard-fought battles further down the field, the gaps between the top five remained constant. The 30-year-old Cairoli had built up a lead of more than three seconds by the time of the mandatory pit stop and returned to the track in first place after a quick tyre change.
Preining had fitted new Pirelli slicks one lap earlier and reduced the gap to the Italian in his Porsche 911 GT3 R, but was unable to get within striking distance. Wittmann was able to pass Dörr after an early pit stop, while Auer remained in fifth. As Cairoli continued to extend his lead, Dörr closed in on Wittmann but was unable to challenge the experienced driver from Fürth. The Ferrari driver ultimately secured his third victory with a comfortable margin, giving him more race wins this season than any other DTM driver. With second place, Preining also moved up to second in the overall standings. Wittmann and Dörr followed in third and fourth. Auer finished fifth and therefore remained third in the standings.
Championship leader Maro Engel (Monaco/Mercedes-AMG Team Ravenol) tactically stayed out of the hard-fought battles and maintained his lead in the drivers’ standings with sixth place. Luca Engstler (Kempten/Red Bull Team Abt) was the best-placed Lamborghini driver in seventh. Jules Gounon (F/Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter) was classified eighth. Ricardo Feller (CH) finished the eleventh race of the season in ninth place in Manthey’s second Porsche 911 GT3 R. Bastian Buus (DK) completed the top ten in the Porsche of Land-Motorsport.
Thomas Preining: “A great race for us! The important thing was that I was able to defend second place at the start. Matteo Cairoli was simply too fast to put him under serious pressure. The 20 points are important for the championship, and we have to continue like this on Sunday. I have been driving for Manthey for so many years that, as an Austrian, the Nürburgring weekend already feels like a home race to me.”
Marco Wittmann: “The Nürburgring is a track that suits me really well. We have been at the front since the first practice session on Friday and didn’t have to make any major setup adjustments over the weekend. As a driver, that gives you the confidence you need in a DTM race. I had to keep a close eye on the rear-view mirror during the final laps, so I’m all the happier with the result.”
Result, 11th championship race
1. Matteo Cairoli (I/Emil Frey Racing)
2. Thomas Preining (A/Manthey), +9.973 seconds
3. Marco Wittmann (D/Schubert Motorsport), +13.756 seconds
4. Ben Dörr (D/Dörr Motorsport), +14.569 seconds
5. Lucas Auer (A/Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf), +15.373 seconds
The complete result is available here.