Wickens converts Norisring pole to second DTM career win
HWA Mercedes’ Robert Wickens has taken the second victory of his DTM career at the Norisring by 23-seconds ahead of the Audi pairing of Jamie Green and Mattias Ekström.
Wickens won the race 82 lap race from pole-position and overcame safety car periods, as well as wet-dry conditions to take the Mercedes DTM squad’s 12th victory in 14 DTM seasons around the streets of Nuremberg.
It would have been a 1-2 for Mercedes as Wickens’ HWA team-mate, Christian Vietoris, was running in second behind Wickens in the closing stages of the race. However, a loose front-right wheel after the second round of pit-stops halted Vietoris’ progress, and the German was forced to retire on lap 75.
Vietoris’ retirement promoted the Audi RS 5 DTMs of Jamie Green to second, and Ekström to third. Ekström started 12th, but took advantage of the changing conditions to work his way up to third, while Green also served a 5-second stop-go penalty on lap-47.
Edoardo Mortara finished fourth, one position ahead of Abt Audi team-mate Adrien Tambay. The Audi RS 5 DTM of Tambay also survived contact with Pascal Wehrlein’s Mercedes on lap 69, which saw the Mercedes spin and eventually finish sixth.
Marco Wittmann was the best-placed BMW in seventh, while BMW stablemate Joey Hand finished eighth.
The 2013 DTM champion Mike Rockenfeller was ninth, despite his best efforts to pass Hand on lap 78. Rockenfeller’s Phoenix Audi team-mate Timo Scheider rounded out the top 10 after starting 21st.
Gary Paffett was running strongly early on the race, but following contact with the BMW M4 DTM of Martin Tomczyk on lap 58, he eventually finished 12th while Tomczyk retired.
