Subscribe

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe

DTM Hockenheim: Rast snatches the title in finale as Wittmann wins

Rene Rast denied Audi stablemates Mattias Ekstrom, Jamie Green and Mike Rockenfeller the DTM title by finishing second in a tense final race of the season at Hockenheim

Rast crossed the line three seconds adrift of the winning BMW of outgoing champion Marco Wittmann to claim the crown by just three points from Ekstrom, with Green six adrift and Rockenfeller 12 behind.

DTM rookie Rast always looked the favourite after qualifying his Team Rosberg-run RS5 on the front row, while Ekstrom and Green were mired down the field with grid penalties.

But it was a nervous race for Rast, who was barged aside at Turn 1 after the start by the Mercedes of Lucas Auer, and completed the opening lap in fifth place.

Rast looked to have great speed, and passed Robert Wickens's Mercedes for fourth on the fifth lap.

He then hunted down Auer, passing the Austrian four laps later.

Rast was right on the tail of the leading BMW duo of poleman Tom Blomqvist and Wittmann when Wittmann peeled into the pitlane for his mandatory stop.

Blomqvist pitted three laps later to promote Rast to the lead, and Audi decided to leave all four of its title contenders on the track until deep into the second half of the race.

On fresh rubber, Wittmann was able to take several tenths per lap out of Rast, and the Audi man rejoined a distant net second after his stop.

Rast looked as though he could be passed by the battling Blomqvist and Wickens as he got up to speed, but this duo took care of themselves when Wickens shovelled Blomqvist out of the way at the Spitzkehre hairpin, giving himself a drive-through penalty and forcing Blomqvist out of the race as a result of the damage.

The next nervous moment for Rast came when he tried to pass the ultra-late-stopping BMW of Bruno Spengler at Turn 2 - they made contact here, before Rast surged ahead down the back straight.

Rast carved chunks out of Wittmann's lead, but the title depended on the progress Green and Ekstrom made through the early stoppers on their fresh Hankooks.

Ekstrom had bumped Green's rear end on the opening lap, the Briton plummeting to 18th and last position as he seemed to struggle.

But Green regrouped and passed Ekstrom before the stops.

While Rockenfeller took third from top Mercedes finisher Gary Paffett, Green completed a remarkable recovery to fifth by passing Maxime Martin's BMW on the final lap, but it wasn't enough.

Augusto Farfus (BMW) took seventh from Ekstrom, with the Mercs of Edoardo Mortara and Auer rounding out the points.

Race two result

Pos Driver Team Car Laps Gap
1 Marco Wittmann RMG BMW 36 56m47.699s
2 Rene Rast Rosberg Audi 36 3.143s
3 Mike Rockenfeller Phoenix Audi 36 6.280s
4 Gary Paffett HWA Mercedes 36 15.844s
5 Jamie Green Rosberg Audi 36 17.835s
6 Maxime Martin RBM BMW 36 19.372s
7 Augusto Farfus RMG BMW 36 20.386s
8 Mattias Ekstrom Abt Audi 36 21.229s
9 Edoardo Mortara HWA Mercedes 36 22.902s
10 Lucas Auer HWA Mercedes 36 29.260s
11 Nico Muller Abt Audi 36 30.428s
12 Timo Glock RMR BMW 36 33.274s
13 Maro Engel HWA Mercedes 36 41.344s
14 Bruno Spengler RBM BMW 36 41.591s
15 Loic Duval Phoenix Audi 36 42.972s
16 Paul Di Resta HWA Mercedes 36 1m35.770s
17 Robert Wickens HWA Mercedes 29 7 Laps
- Tom Blomqvist RMR BMW 26 Retirement

Final drivers' standings

Pos Driver Points
1 Rene Rast 179
2 Mattias Ekstrom 176
3 Jamie Green 173
4 Mike Rockenfeller 167
5 Marco Wittmann 160
6 Lucas Auer 136
7 Timo Glock 133
8 Maxime Martin 132
9 Robert Wickens 119
10 Gary Paffett 102
11 Paul Di Resta 99
12 Nico Muller 81
13 Bruno Spengler 75
14 Edoardo Mortara 61
15 Maro Engel 51
16 Augusto Farfus 35
17 Tom Blomqvist 25
18 Loic Duval 22


Be part of the Autosport community

Join the conversation
Previous article DTM Hockenheim: Blomqvist grabs pole, points leader Ekstrom is 14th
Next article BMW says it made too many mistakes after Audi's DTM title whitewash

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe