Mike Rockenfeller not downbeat about losing championship lead

Audi’s Mike Rockenfeller insists he is not disappointed to have lost the DTM championship lead to BMW’s Bruno Spengler.

The Phoenix team driver came into the Spielberg race with a one point advantage over the Canadian, but Spengler’s victory has put him 12 points clear of the Audi man who finished the race in fourth, despite starting 13th after a five-place grid penalty in qualifying.

However, Rockenfeller is not downbeat about the situation and believes he can still fight for the championship given the pace shown by the RS5, which was also underlined by stablemate, Mattias Ekstrom, who powered through from 15th to fifth come the end of the race.

“If you advance from 13th place on the grid to fourth in the DTM you can be pleased,” said Rockenfeller.

“It’s a shame that we were penalised yesterday because today it was obvious what would have been possible with the car.”

He also paid tribute to the standard-option-standard tyre strategy used by the Phoenix outfit as it was pivotal in elevating him through the standings.

“The car was a dream [and] the strategy was brilliant, [so] ‘thank you’ to Audi and to Team Phoenix: We’re battling for the championship!

“I was hoping for more, but you take what you can.”