Gary Paffett: “Rast is strong but not stronger than us”

Mercedes-AMG driver and title contender Gary Paffett qualified in second place for the first race of the season finale but only could manage to be fourth position.

Despite Audi title rival René Rast winning the race, the Briton has recovered the championship lead and heads to Sunday’s final race with a slim advantage over team-mate Paul di Resta and the reigning champion.

Paffett was in second place, losing ground after a safety car period. “I’m not upset about the race, I’m just disappointed,” the Briton told TouringCarTimes. “I was P2 and we had nobody behind. I had some DRS but I tried a couple of times to overtake René (Rast) so I decided to save it for later, when maybe his tyres would be quite worked.”

The 37-year-old angrily complained about the state of the track to his team over the radio after crossing the finish line.

“After the safety car it wasn’t so much a problem of getting the tyres to work, but moreover the dust and the dirt on the track. Someone had gone off at the track after Turn 4 and dragged so much dirt on the track, and going down to Turn 6 it was wet. The dust continued until Sachs Kurve, so it was actually quite dangerous. I decided to be careful whilst others didn’t. Timo (Glock), for instance, was really out of shape and nearly lost the car when he overtook me,” said Paffett.

“We lost two places, which is disappointing, but we had a good day. We qualified in front of René, we had the same pace as René, so I think we should be pretty happy.”

The final race of the season will decide the champion and the strategy will be crucial. Paffett is confident about his possibilities.

“Strategy-wise, if you are in a fight with somebody for the championship you cannot do what they do and beat them. First of all we have to qualify at the front and then plan out what we will do about the race. I’m confident the car is quick, I know the guys are going to give me a good car, so I just have to do what I’ve been doing all the season, go out and drive,” said Paffett.

Asked if he would fight directly with his fellow Mercedes-AMG driver and rival for the championship Paul di Resta, Paffett said: “If it’s for P1, then yes. If not, there is no point, as you have to decide at some point to take the points. So if I’m in a race and I’m in a position to take the championship, no, I’m not going to fight. I know Paul is a respectful driver and won’t take me out of the race. We have to judge every situation and, if I’m not in a position to win the championship I will be more aggressive, if not, I will be careful.”

Rene Rast’s fifth straight win is a record in the DTM and makes the reigning champion look unbeatable, but Paffett refuses to think he can’t beat him: “René is not unbeatable. He got beaten twice at Spielberg and got handed the win. He was unbeatable at the Nürburgring, just as I was at Zandvoort. Here he’s strong, but not stronger than us. He had a bit more pace after the pit stop but we were on the same terms. We have out qualified him in the last two or three races, so no, he’s not unbeatable.”

Paffett leads the championship with 239 points, six ahead of di Resta and 15 over Rast. With 28 points still in play, anything is possible tomorrow.