Mattias Ekström to sport a special livery at the Norisring
Audi Sport will celebrate a very special anniversary next week: the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters at Norisring, third round of the 2015 season, marks the 25th anniversary of the manufacturer’s debut in the series. To commemorate such an special occasion, Mattias Ekström’s RS 5 DTM will sport a retro livery.
Back in 1990, Hans-Joachim Stuck took the Audi V8 quattro to the victory at the Norisring, at the start of a bid that won two consecutive titles in 1990 and 1991. The celebration of the silver anniversary of this landmark result for Audi takes place at the manufacturer’s home track, almost to the exact date.
Audi Sport has chosen to mark this occasion redesigning Ekströms car to sport the white, red, gray and brown colours of Stuck’s car which, in time, became a sign of identity for the four-ring manufacturer.
1990 champion Hans-Joachim Stuck is now the DMSB (German Motorsport Association, the country’s national sporting authority), but will be present at the Norisring to celebrate the anniversary, also doing an exhibition with his V8 quattro around the street circuit, one of the most popular in the world of Touring Cars, but also one of the main sporting events in Germany.
The choice of Mattias Ekström for this retro livery comes as the Swede is the most successful driver in the history of Audi in the DTM, counting 20 race victories and two titles in 2004 and 2007. The driver from Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline is thrilled by the occasion: “In the early 90s, I was sitting in front of my TV and started developing an interest in the DTM. Drivers like Stuck and Röhrl they were my heroes. They gave me the motivation for my career. Seeing my Audi RS 5 DTM and the V8 quattro from those days standing side by side with the same graphics, and being able to race at the Norisring with the livery from those days, is very special for me.”
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, head of Audi Sport, is grateful to Red Bull for their cooperation in making this special occasion possible, emphasizing his personal memories of the time: “1990 is when I seriously began to take notice of Audi Sport and the DTM. I still have fond memories of the many red Audi caps in the grandstands, especially at the Norisring. I think its marvelous that our partner Red Bull spontaneously agreed with our special feature and that, at the Norisring, there won’t be a blue but a white Red Bull Audi for the first time. This special feature is meant as a token of our appreciation to the many loyal fans that kept their fingers crossed for us in the DTM as far back as 25 years ago and continue to do so today.”
The Norisring race, third round of the season, takes place around the streets of Nuremberg next week, from the 26th to the 28th of June.
