René Rast has made history at the Nürburgring: like on the previous day, the 2017 DTM champion first claimed pole position and then went on to win the race on Sunday. Thus, he became the first driver to score the maximum number of 56 points on one weekend. “That is an unbelievable moment,” an overjoyed Rast commented after crossing the finish line. “I really am lost for words.” Mercedes-AMG driver Paul Di Resta finished second in the 16th race of the season after having progressed from eleventh on the grid. With his BMW, Marco Wittmann rounded out the podium in the Eifel. Thus, like on Saturday, all three manufacturers were represented on the podium. With four races remaining this season, the gaps in the DTM drivers’ standings have become even smaller: Gary Paffett (206 points) remains in the lead, but he is only two points ahead of Di Resta (204). Rast (149) is now third in the standings.
René Rast was the undisputed man of the weekend. A pair of pole positions and two race wins, a feat that nobody else had achieved prior to the reigning champion. At Zandvoort this season, Gary Paffett had come close, but on Sunday, it was Rast who won the race while Paffett came second. “It is hard to find words to describe the weekend at the Nürburgring. It will be almost impossible to top this in the next races. I was on the second page of the drivers’ standings and now I am in third place,” Rast summed up his impressions. What looked easy from the grandstands and on the screens, was hard work for the 31-year-old. “Now, we are looking ahead. Everything is possible and many things can happen. We have closed the gap.” Rast was presented with the trophy for the sixth DTM race win in his career by FIA President Jean Todt.
Another one who has closed the gap again is Paul Di Resta. With second place in the race on Sunday, he reduced the gap to Paffett in the drivers’ standings. With four races remaining, only two points separate the two Mercedes-AMG teammates. “Unlike yesterday, things were really going well today. Making it from eleventh place on the grid to finish second is by no means evident in the DTM,” the Scot commented. Marco Wittmann was also happy. After finishing fourth on Saturday, the German came third on Sunday. “Prior to the race, I was already optimistic, even though ninth place on the grid wasn’t the best position to start from. Of course, we have also benefited from others having bad luck, but we also did a good job in working our way up. I am happy for my RMG team that I have at least scored a podium finish in the team’s home race.”
One of the drivers who had bad luck on Sunday was the leader in the drivers’ standings, Gary Paffett. His mandatory pit stop on lap 19 took 11.1 seconds due to problems with the change of the right rear wheel. Instead of in second place behind Rast, he rejoined the race four places further down and ended up fifth behind Bruno Spengler (BMW).
In a fortnight, DTM action continues with the penultimate round of the year in Spielberg (Austria). From 21-23 September, 2018, the 18 DTM drivers from Audi, BMW and Mercedes-AMG will be taking on the 17th and 18th race of the season at the circuit in Styria.
