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Mercedes confirm Paffett, di Resta, Mortara and Auer for final DTM season

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Mercedes AMG has confirmed the continuity of Gary Paffett, Paul di Resta, Edoardo Mortara and Lucas Auer ahead of the 2018 season, which will mark the end of the manufacturer’s involvement in the DTM.

After the departures of Robert Wickens and Maro Engel, Mercedes was expected to retain the remaining four drivers. Experienced Britons Gary Paffett and Paul di Resta will start their 15th and ninth season in the series respectively, always at Mercedes’ service.

“This will be my 15th DTM season with Mercedes-AMG, but unfortunately, the last for Mercedes in this series,” said Paffett. “We worked hard with the engineers during the winter and the team put in the same amount of effort as ever. They are really focused and we aim to round off the season with a successful result.”

Di Resta remains with the outfit after his bid for a Formula 1 return with Williams Racing failed. The Scot is looking forward to a strong final season for Mercedes: “It’s a little bit sad to think that this will be the end of an era for Mercedes in the DTM, but everyone in the team is showing that little bit of extra commitment, keen to end this final chapter on a positive note.”

“We’re all as keen as mustard and intend to round things off in a fitting manner,” said Auer, Mercedes’ contender for the championship last year. “2017 was a good year for me, and I’m really looking forward to 2018. It will be interesting to see how I progress.”

“There was a lot to learn in our first year together in the DTM,” said Mortara, who had a tough 2017 with the Stuttgart-based team. “We missed out on a couple of points, but ultimately, we found that we were on the right track during the last few race weekends. I didn’t have a terrific season, so I’m really looking forward to this year when I intend to do much better.”

Head of DTM at Mercedes AMG Ulrich Fritz reiterated the team’s commitment to mark Mercedes’ exit from the series with a successful campaign: ““2018 will be our final year in the DTM, but that doesn’t change anything as far as our readiness to take up the fight, our enormous team spirit and commitment are concerned.

“We intend to work together in pursuit of a common goal in order to bring a positive conclusion to the final chapter of Mercedes-AMG Motorsport’s involvement in the DTM which goes back 30 years.”