BMW keen to “turn the page” at the Lausitzring
The DTM heads to the Lausitzring for the next two rounds of the 2020 calendar where BMW are keen to catch back up to Audi following a tough season start at Spa.
“We have analysed the issues and are working hard to improve our total package. We start from scratch at the Lausitzring, and our goal is to turn the page at the Lausitzring,” said Jens Marquardt, head of BMW Motorsport.
Audi Sport Team Rosberg driver Jamie Green believes the qualifying sessions will be key to achieving a good result on the short Lausitzring layout that has been chosen for this weekend.
Green had a strong start of the season two weeks ago at Spa-Francorchamps and is third in the standings behind fellow Audi drivers Nico Müller and René Rast. The Briton has three victories at the track located 90 kilometres south east of Berlin, making him the most successful of all active DTM drivers.
“We last raced on the short version back in 2017,” says Green. “It doesn’t offer as many overtaking opportunities as the longer version, which we’ll be using a week later. So, the two qualifying sessions are even more important in order to back up your chances in the races with good grid positions.”
Team RBM driver Philipp Eng is looking forward to the challenge of catching the Audi driver following the disastrous start of the season at Spa.
“The Lausitzring is very technical and completely different to Spa,” he said. “There are no high-speed bends, but medium and slow corners. However, it is a big challenge for us drivers to put together the perfect lap in qualifying.”
“Having a double-header at the Lausitzring with two different layouts is definitely an attractive prospect,” added Team RMG driver Marco Wittmann. “You have to prepare a little more specifically for it.
“Generally speaking, we have to make amends for the opening round in Spa. We want to close the gap to Audi and obviously to put on a great battle,” added the 2012 and 2014 champion. “We will do our best to come back strongly there.”
Müller and Rast shared the victories at the opening round and lead the championship with 46 and 39 points, respectively, with Green in third, 16 points adrift. Team RMR’s Lucas Auer is BMW’s best-placed driver, seventh with ten points.
In the manufacturers’ table, Audi’s dominance at Spa translated into 152 points for the Ingolstadt-based manufacturer, compared to 34 points for BMW.
“I assume the gaps will not be as big as at Spa and that we will face more competition,” said Audi’s Motorsport boss Dieter Gass. “But, I think that with our current package we are well sorted out everywhere.”
The second round of the season will see a return to a three-day weekend format, with two free practice sessions on Friday. All the DTM action can be followed live at grid.dtm.com.
Timetable
Saturday 1st August
13:00 – Free Practice 1
16:30 – Free Practice 2
Saturday 1st August
10:45 – Qualifying for Race 1
13:30 – Race 1 (55 minutes plus one lap)
Sunday 2nd August
10:45 – Qualifying for Race 2
13:30 – Race 2 (55 minutes plus one lap)
