Photo: TouringCarTimes

Timo Glock takes pole position at Hockenheim

BMW Motorsport secured the front row for the penultimate race of the season at Hockenheim, with Timo Glock taking pole position followed by Maxime Martin. Audi’s Jamie Green and René Rast followed, the top qualifiers from the championship contenders.

Mike Rockenfeller, who had set the pace in the two free practice sessions, led the field as the cars ventured to the track. The 2013 champion then set the pace during the initial stages, beaten by BMW’s Augusto Farfus and Marco Wittmann, Mercedes’ Lucas Auer and fellow Audi driver Jamie Green as lap times came tumbling down. The Briton led the classification as the field returned to the pits for fresh tyres.

Action resumed with seven minutes left on the clock, with the Audi drivers being the first to return to the track. Green was investigated for allegedly blocking BMW’s Tom Blomqvist, with the Audi driver reported to the stewards.

BMW’s Timo Glock stole the top spot with a minute left on the clock, with team-mate Maxime Martin climbing up to second. Green was unable to improve but his first stint effort was enough to secure third place, followed by René Rast, who improved from his first run but was unable to get close to the pole-position time, a tenth and a half off Glock’s time.

Edoardo Mortara was fifth, followed by fellow Mercedes driver Robert Wickens. Rockenfeller, also under investigation for blocking Mortara, was seventh, with BMW’s Marco Wittmann in eighth, two-tenths off the pace.

Audi drivers Nico Müller and Mattias Ekström completed the top ten, with the Swede struggling with balance issues during the session.

The start of Race 1 is scheduled for 14:48 CET.