The DTM has reached the halfway point of the season with uA vibrant event at the Norisring with two very different races. The first was an ode to misunderstood chaos, with too many touches and incidents for a championship of the stature of the German event. The second one was much calmer, with a development closer to what can be expected from the talented pilots of the series. In the first Thomas Preining won, in the second Felipe Fraga. As a whole, Mirko Bortolotti has been placed at the head of the DTM general.
The Italian Mirko Bortolotti has added his first abandonment of the season at the Norisring. All in all, he remains one of the most consistent riders and with the podium achieved on Sunday he is at the top of the standings. Bortolotti adds 89 points for the 80 units that Sheldon Van der Linde has. The South African seems to be in ‘free fall’ after his two victories at the Lausitzring and if at Imola he saved some points, at the Norisring he came out empty-handed. Retirement and 15th place for the Schubert Motorsport driver.
René Rast has been one of the big winners of the weekend at Norisring. The German has achieved a double podium finish on the urban circuit and this allows him to definitively rejoin the fight for the title. After a difficult start to the season, René Rast and the Abt team hit the nail on the head in the second race at the Lausitzring. Since then, the German has added a win and three additional podium finishes in five races. Behind, Nico Müller and Lucas Auer appear with 62 and 60 points, both without any loot at Norisring.
As a result of his victory in the second race, on his birthday, Felipe Fraga has made an important leap in the general standings and is in sixth place with 50 points, two more than Ricardo Feller and Marco Wittmann. A point behind both emerges the figure of Luca Stolz. For his part, Thomas Preining is tenth in the standings with 43 points after achieving Porsche’s first victory in the DTM on Saturday. Still 10 pilots of the 32 who have disputed at least one race of the contest still without scoring.
Schubert Motorsport scores 111 points to lead the overall team standings. The advantage over GRT is still wide, as the formation led by Mirko Bortolotti has 87 units. Three of the Audi teams sit just behind with 81, 80 and 79 points. Abt Sportsline, Team Rosberg and the second Abt structure occupy third to fifth place, just ahead of SSR Performance, the best Porsche team overall. Finally, Audi is in command of the constructors’ standings with 240 points.
Photos: DTM