Marco Wittmann wins Race 2 in Moscow and retakes championship lead

Marco Wittmann took his second win of the season today at the Moscow Raceway, after dominating from the lights to the chequered flag. The race was a party for BMW Motorsport, who achieved a 1-2-3-4 result at the Russian track.

The DTM field prepared for the race expecting the rain to make an appearance at some point, giving way to varied strategies to tackle the compulsory pit stop. In the end, the weather held out and the race was run under dry conditions.

At the lights, Marco Wittmann made his pole position count and took the lead, followed by fellow BMW driver Tom Blomqvist. Mercedes’ Robert Wickens was third, with team-mate Daniel Juncadella right behind him.

Soon Bruno Spengler got through the Spaniard, taking fourth position. Juncadella tried to come back at the BMW at Turn 15, but went too deep and wide, just managing to defend himself from losing more positions.

Wittmann went into the distance, and Robert Wickens tried his earnest to overtake Tom Blomqvist. The team radioed the Canadian to make use of the DRS until the pit stop, but Wickens complained that the straight-line speed of the BMW was too much. Soon after, the Team HWA I driver reported vibrations at the steering wheel of his Mercedes C63 DTM.

Further back, the Audis were on a recovery strategy, with Edoardo Mortara pulling Jamie Green through the pack. The Italian overtook the BMW of António Félix Da Costa at Turn 13 and, when the Briton tried the move at Turn 15, he tagged the Portuguese into a spin. The manoeuvre would cost Green his first ‘drive through’ penalty of the day.

Mortara continued working his way up, colliding side-by-side with Maximilian Götz’ Mercedes. The German driver was deemed responsible for the incident and was given a five-second penalty at his next stop.

The pit stop window was now open, with Wittmann completing his tyre change early, whilst fellow BMW drivers Bruno Spengler and Augusto Farfus were the last ones to do so.

Jamie Green’s day went from bad to worse when, in his second visit to the pit lane to complete his tyre change, the Briton exceeded the speed limit. The Team Rosberg driver was given a second ‘drive through’ penalty, which sent him to the bottom of the classification.

Robert Wickens’ day also worsened when the Canadian had trouble with his right front tyre during the pit stop, losing three seconds and any possibility of challenging Tom Blomqvist for second place.

Mercedes AMG driver Gary Paffett was also having problems of his own, with two separate incidents with BMW drivers Timo Glock and Martin Tomczyk to be investigated after the race.

Robert Wickens reported a power steering failure late in the race, and team-mate Daniel Juncadella, right behind him in fourth position, was in charge of protecting the Canadian from losing positions and points. Bruno Spengler came out of his pit stop between the pair and, with the ailing Mercedes lapping three seconds slower than the ultimate pace, didn’t take long to overtake taking the inside at Turn 2.

The number 6 C63 DTM’s slow pace caused a group of cars to form behind him. Paul Di Resta collided with Timo Glock at Turn 3 when trying to overtake for sixth, sending the BMW into the gravel and causing the officials to implement a slow zone. The Scot would have to serve a ‘drive through’ for the incident, and is also under investigation for breaching the slow zone.

The final laps were focussed on how long could Wickens hold out, with recovering Augusto Farfus and Edoardo Mortara pushing their way through the pack. Soon the Brazilian took fourth position from the Canadian, also opening a gap. Edoardo Mortara tried to overtake Daniel Juncadella, who was guarding his team-mate. On the penultimate lap Mortara managed to pass the Spaniard on the outside at Turn 15. Juncadella, trying to defend, left the door open for Audi’s Nico Müller, who also went through at Turn 1.

Marco Wittmann won the race, followed by Tom Blomqvist, Bruno Spengler and Augusto Farfus, with BMW Motorsport scoring a 1-2-3-4, while Mortara made a charge at the final turn to try and pass Wickens, with the two heading down the main straight in a drag race, with Wickens coming out on top by less than a tenth of a second.

Mattias Ekström launched himself on the inside of Daniel Juncadella at Turn 15, with both colliding. Audi driver Adrien Tambay took advantage to go through the inside and take eighth place, followed by the Swede. Juncadella was slowed running over the kerb and passed by Mercedes driver Lucas Auer, who took the final point, and Audi’s Miguel Molina.

Marco Wittmann said after the race: “It was a great day, we came back after yesterday, so I’m happy for a fantastic race and having the pace all day to fight on.”

The next round of the DTM takes place at the Nürburgring from 9-11th of September.