Photo: DTM Media

Hockenheim II preview: Duel under the sun

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The DTM celebrates the season finale this weekend at Hockenheim, with the spotlight on the two-way title battle between BMW’s Marco Wittmann and Audi’s Edoardo Mortara.

The series has enjoyed a competitive season, with nine different winners in 16 races. The fight for the title has been boiled down to the only two drivers to have set foot on the top spot of the podium on repeated occasions: Marco Wittmann has three wins to his name, with Edoardo Mortara counting four victories.

The Team RMG driver has a 14-point lead over the Team Abt Sportline driver, with the the Italian betting on winning both races to secure his first title in the series, not a far fetched plan given Audi Sport’s team strategy in Budapest three weeks ago, where they secured an all top six result for the manufacturer in Saturday’s race. On the other hand, Wittmann plans to remain focussed and out of trouble to make his points’ advantage definitive on Sunday afternoon.

Audi’s Jamie Green also has a mathematical chance for the title. But, with just 50 points in contention, his 39-point disadvantage to Wittmann seems definitive under normal circumstances.

In the manufacturers’ table, Audi Sport has a 37-point lead over BMW Motorsport, with the Ingolstadt squad having achieved eight victories so far this season, with the Bavarian formation accounting only four. Audi has had the strongest and most consistent car this year, and Hockenheim will see whether the four-ring manufacturer can convert their advantage into a title, after losing all three crowns at the last gasp last year.

Mercedes AMG arrives on home soil with no chance to win any of the titles, but ishoping to put on a good show for their fans. The C63 DTMs will start the weekend as the heaviest cars on the track, with a base weight of 1,125kg, against the 1,120kg of the RS 5 DTMs. The BMW M4 DTMs will again be the lightest on track, with a base weight of 1,112.5kg.

The DRS activation will be limited to 39 for Saturday’s race, with 57 for Sunday’s. There is a maximum of three activations per driver per lap.

Timetable for the weekend.

Friday 14th October
16:45 – Free Practice 1.

Saturday 15th October
10:50 – Free Practice 2.
12:40 – Qualifying for Race 1.
14:58 – Race 1 (40 minutes plus one lap).

Sunday 16th October
10:55 – Free Practice 3.
12:55 – Qualifying for Race 2.
15:18 – Race 2 (60 minutes plus one lap).