Lucas Auer secured win in Race 1 of DTM weekend in Oschersleben ahead of Jordan Pepper, as Ayhancan Guven did so in Race 2 from Jules Gounon.
Race 1 –
Auer made a perfect start from pole position on Saturday afternoon, in front of packed grandstands at Motorsport Arena Oschersleben: the 30-year-old immediately pulled clear of the field and opened up a lead of more than four seconds. He was followed by South African Pepper and Mercedes-AMG driver Jules Gounon (F), who had managed to overtake Porsche works driver Thomas Preining (A). The experienced Engel slotted into fifth place.
After the first mandatory pit stops, Auer lost a lot of time behind drivers who were slower on new and cold tyres. Then came the showdown on lap 18, when Auer, Pepper and Preining came into the pits at the same time for their tyre change. Despite being stationary for a little longer, Auer still managed to return to the track just ahead of the South African and his compatriot Preining. Auer then set about opening a lead of roughly two seconds. The driver from the Tyrol region held onto first place and went on to celebrate his first DTM victory for about two and a half years. Pepper followed him home in second place. Auer’s fellow Mercedes-AMG driver once again demonstrated his tactical prowess, making a late switch to the Pirelli slicks and beating Preining to third place. In contrast, Gounon dropped two positions after an earlier pit stop and eventually finished fifth.
Ferrari driver Jack Aitken (GB) from Emil Frey Racing took sixth place, while Ayhancan Güven (TR) steered the second Manthey EMA 911 to seventh. Marco Wittmann (Fürth) was the best-placed BMW driver in eighth place for home team Schubert Motorsport. Reigning DTM champion Mirko Bortolotti (I) climbed three places to end Saturday’s race in ninth place in a Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2 run by Abt Sportsline. Luca Engstler (Kempten) from TGI Team Lamborghini by GRT rounded out the top ten.
Result: https://www.dtm.com/en/results?season=2025
Race 2 –
The start of the second DTM race saw pole-sitter Gounon defend his lead ahead of Jordan Pepper (ZA) from TGI Team Lamborghini by GRT. Güven climbed one position into third. However, the first mandatory pit stop shook things up somewhat. While their rivals came in early to switch to the Pirelli slicks, Güven and BMW driver René Rast (Bregenz), who had started from 15th for Schubert Motorsport, delayed their pit stops by two laps. That strategy paid dividends: Güven and Rast returned to the track in first and second place. They were followed by the previous leading duo of Gounon and Pepper, with Preining lurking in fifth place.
The new race format means the DTM stars must complete a second mandatory pit stop in each Sunday race this season. Güven did so flawlessly and stayed out in front, while Gounon climbed into second. Porsche works driver Preining pulled off some impressive overtaking manoeuvres to move up to third, followed by Pepper and Rast. The top five went on to take the chequered flag in the same order after 40 laps of racing.
Marco Wittmann (Fürth) made up seven places and followed his team-mate Rast home in sixth. Luca Engstler (Kempen) ended Sunday’s race in seventh place in a Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2. Ben Dörr (Butzbach) claimed the best result of his fledgling DTM career, finishing eighth for Dörr Motorsport in a McLaren 720S GT3 Evo. Reigning champion Mirko Bortolotti (I) from Abt Sportsline came home ninth. Saturday’s winner Luca Auer (A) had to settle for tenth place in a Mercedes-AMG GT3.
Result: https://www.dtm.com/en/results?season=2025
[The story is as per press release]
