Marco Wittmann makes history for BMW at Spielberg

Marco Wittmann was ecstatic after achieving his first win of the season this afternoon at the Red Bull Ring, host of the second round of the 2016 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters season and racing home to his title sponsor.

The German driver from Team RMG qualified on pole position and got off the line well to lead the race in the early stages. Despite being pressured by fellow BMW driver Tom Blomqvist throughout the race, Wittmann managed to stay in front, achieving the first win for BMW this year.

Wittmann was happy to perform well in Spielberg: “The Red Bull Ring seems to suit me very well. With the pole position and the good start, I laid the foundation for the win. Nevertheless, it was not easy to maintain the lead since my rivals were able to use the DRS. I’m very happy that it was enough to get the win, particularly for the team. They earned this success.”

Tom Blomqvist completed BMW’s fortune in their 250th race in the DTM, qualifying in second place on the grid and maintaining the position during the race to score his first podium finish of the year: “It is fantastic to be on the podium so early in the season. Our car has been incredibly fast so far this weekend. We ended up getting the result we deserved, and overall things went well for BMW too. I am happy and naturally I will go on the attack again tomorrow.”

There were celebration bells at BMW, with the manufacturer celebrating their 70th win in the DTM, and placing six cars in the top ten. Motorsport director Jens Marquardt had nothing but praise and gratefulness to his men: “Thank you very much for this fantastic belated birthday present. It was an outstanding team performance by BMW, I am proud of the guys. After we put in a very good performance in qualifying, we were also able to achieve a superb result in the race. That was by no means as easy as it might have looked.”