Audi-drivers and crew comments 2008 season

The Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters starts in two weeks. Audi fields ten cars for Mattias Ekström, Martin Tomczyk, Tom Kristensen, Timo Schieder, Alexandre Prémat, Olivier Jarvis, Mike Rockenfeller, Markus Winkelhock, Katherine Legge and most recently announced Christijan Albers. Four of the cars are of the brand new A4-model and here follow comments from all of the drivers and team managers on the coming season.

Dr Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport): “In the DTM it’s particularly important to have a good, fast and reliable car from the outset. This is what we’ve been working on intensively during the past few months. The last tests at Oschersleben were promising. Now it’s crucial to do a perfect job at the first few races. The pit crews have to do their best and we’ve got to deliver a strong team performance. In the DTM, more than ever, speed will be more important than strategy.”

Mattias Ekström (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM #1): “Hockenheim is something special because, finally, we’ll be able to see how good our new Audi A4 is in comparison to our rivals. Last year I won the race. Of course I’d be delighted about a similarly positive result. At Oschersleben we’ve always been very competitive with the Audi A4. I’m assuming that the new car will be as good there as the old one was.”

Martin Tomczyk (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM #2): “I’m starting with high expectations. The season is now coming up quickly, and immediately there are two weekends back-to-back. If things go well, we can score really good points twice in a row. This will be my goal. That’s why I’m happy that the first two races – Hockenheim and Oschersleben – are at circuits where I’ve previously had pretty good experiences.”

Tom Kristensen (Audi A4 DTM #9): “Finally, the season’s starting. It’s very difficult to make any predictions at this stage. We want to give our best in order to win. But only after the first race and possibly at Oschersleben – my ‘DTM home’ circuit because it’s closest to Denmark – will tell where we stand exactly. The opening races are very important because, before them, the cards will not be put on the table. Only then will we be able to judge what kind of a job we did during the winter.”

Timo Scheider (GW:plus/Top Service Audi A4 DTM #10): “It’s nice that winter’s over and we can concentrate on the essential part – driving races. It’s also nice that Hockenheim is the first race, as we finished there last year with such a positive result. That’s why I’m going to Hockenheim with a very good feeling. Immediately afterwards, the race at Oschersleben is on the agenda, and before these races, the presentation in Düsseldorf – it is an action-packed programme.”

Alexandre Prémat (Audi Bank/Shell Helix Audi A4 DTM #14): “I’m really looking forward to starting my second DTM season at Hockenheim where I want to leave a good impression. We should definitely be able to manage this because the 2007-spec cars were very quick at Hockenheim last year. Why shouldn’t a podium be possible again with a 2007 model? At Oschersleben the Audi was strong in the past as well and the tests prior to the season went superbly too. My car feels good. This makes me feel confident.”

Oliver Jarvis (Best Buddies Audi A4 DTM #15): “I’m very much looking forward to Hockenheim. Unfortunately, I don’t know the track so it’ll be a very steep learning curve. I can hardly wait for the season to start. I’m eager to see where I stand compared with the other drivers. It would be great to be among the top ten in qualifying and to finish the race – ideally, in the points. The same goes for Oschersleben where I was able to test prior to the season opener.”

Mike Rockenfeller (S line Audi A4 DTM #18): “I’m expecting better results than last year and would like to finish in the points regularly. At Oschersleben, I had a great exploit last year. It would be nice if we could repeat this. It’s tough in the DTM but I’ll be giving my best. I think that with the 2007-spec car we’ll have a clearly better base than last year.”

Markus Winkelhock (Playboy Audi A4 DTM #19): “I’m not putting myself under pressure but I’m really eager to contest my first race as an official Audi factory driver. For one thing, Hockenheim is my home track and for the other, the season is finally starting. Hockenheim is a circuit that suits me quite well. At Oschersleben I haven’t driven any races in several years. But I used to get along well with this circuit. In 1998, in other words ten years ago, I celebrated my first ever victory there. That was in Formula König, and I have pleasant memories of it. So I’m looking forward to the second race of the season as well.”

Katherine Legge (Audi A4 DTM #20): “I’m not really sure yet what to expect of my first DTM races. I’m eager to see how a DTM weekend goes. Particularly before the first races there’s a lot of nervous tension because I’m venturing out into new territory this season. I want to finish and learn. Afterwards, we’ll analyse how things went and will continue moving forwards in our development.”

Christijan Albers (Audi A4 DTM #21): “One of the main factors in making my decision was to join Colin Kolles again and the number of people working at his team that I still know. With a number of these guys I already worked with in the past when I was racing in Formula 3, winning the championship in 1999. Working with these guys will certainly help me to enjoy racing again. It won’t be an easy first year back in DTM, especially racing a two year old car. But. I like to fight hard and try to make it back to the top.”

Hans-Jürgen Abt (Team Director Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline): “I’m happy that the DTM season is finally starting. We’re racers and waiting for the season opener with baited breath. Let’s face it, it’s an altogether different thing to be testing in front of empty stands or racing before an enthusiastic crowd of spectators, as we always have at the DTM races at Hockenheim and Oschersleben. Our friends from Stuttgart will do everything within their power to snatch the title from us again. But we’re well prepared and ready to defend the title. The fans can look forward to a great season opener.”

Ernst Moser (Team Director Audi Sport Team Phoenix): “We’ve got two quick, highly motivated drivers and a great car. I’m convinced that we’re well positioned with last year’s championship winning car. At the tests before the start of the season we saw how competitive the Audi A4 is. Our goal will be to finish the qualifying practice among the top eight with Alex (Prémat). If we manage this, anything’s possible, even with a car from last year. As a newcomer, Oliver (Jarvis) will find things to be a bit more difficult at the beginning but I’m sure that he’ll be joining the front of the field quickly as well.”

Arno Zensen (Team Director Audi Sport Team Rosberg): “We’re delighted that the season is finally starting because the winter break was very long indeed. The tests went well, that makes us feel carefully optimistic. We’re anxious to see the ‘power ratios’ in the field at Hockenheim. After that, we’ll know whether we can set a similar highlight as we did last year with ‘Rocky’s‘ podium position at Oschersleben.”