DTM Norisring preview: the action comes to town

The Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters visits the Norisring this weekend for the fourth round of the 2016 season. Mercedes AMG driver Robert Wickens leads the standings coming to a track that traditionally has been good to the Stuttgart manufacturer.

The Nuremberg track is the only street circuit of the calendar, characterised by long straights, a fast chicane and two tight hairpins. With only 2.3 kilometres in length, it’s also the shortest, with a low-grip tarmac and bumpy braking zones.

The 2016 season has been one of the most competitive in the series in the recent years, with six winners in as many races held so far. Robert Wickens, not a race winner yet this season, leads the Drivers’ table with 58 points, only three more than BMW’s Marco Wittmann.

The new performance weight and DRS regulations have also done a good job of levelling out the field, with BMW Motorsport leading the Manufacturers’ standings with 228 point, 30 ahead of Audi Sport and 48 over Mercedes AMG.

The Stuttgart manufacturer holds the most impressive record at the Norisring, having won there for the last 14 years. Mercedes AMG hopes to prevail again, and leave Nuremberg in front of the classifications.

The performance weights calculations have put the BMW M4 DTM with a base weight of 1,122.5 kg, being the heaviest on the grid. The Audi RS 5 DTM will start the weekend on 1,120 kg, whilst the Mercedes AMG C63 DTM will have a base weight of 1,115 kilos. All these base weights will be recalculated after Saturday’s qualifying session.

The DRS activations are limited to 75 for Saturday’s race, with the allowance raised to 111 activations for Sunday.

The fourth round of the season at the Norisring has the following agenda:

Friday 24th June
17:00 – Free Practice 1.

Saturday 25th June
9:15 – Free Practice 2.
11:05 – Qualifying for Race 1.
13:28 – Race 1 (40 minutes plus one lap).

Sunday 26th June
9:00 – Free Practice 3.
10:50 – Qualifying for Race 2.
13:13 – Race 2 (60 minutes plus one lap).