Photo: BMW
The first race on Hungary’s premium Formula 1 circuit, the Hungaroring, started on Saturday with the qualifying rounds and ended on Sunday with a BMW combo on the podium.
Marco Wittmann, the rookie of the year in 2013, managed another pole-position for the Bavarians, the 41st in its DTM history, aboard his Ice-Watch BMW M4 DTM. It was already shaping up to be a great race, with Timo Glock claiming the second spot on the starting grid, on two tenths of a second behind.
The starting line was animated by BMWs, six of the first ten cars wearing the blue and white roundel on the bonnet. Behind Marco and Timo, Maxime Martin was to start fourth (the best starting position in his DTM career) with Antonio Felix da Costa fifth and Augusto Farfus sixth.
Bruno Spengler claimed the ninth spot on the grid while Joey Hand and Martin Tomczyk were 14th and 18th respectively. Those were the starting positions for the 8 BMW drivers on the first race on the Hungaroring after 26 years.
Nobody expected what came on Sunday, though. From start to finish, Marco Wittmann would not let go of the first position he worked so hard to achieve on the qualifying rounds. Over the 41 laps he proved that BMW made a great choice investing in him and his future. The surprise though, came from Bruno Spengler that made an impressive comeback.
Starting out ninth, he fought back aboard his BMW Bank M4 DTM and managed to claim his first podium of the season, finishing third. At first, due to choosing the wrong tires, he started to fall behind but all that changed when the 2012 champion switched to option tires and started climbing, all the way to the podium.
Two other BMW pilots also finished in the points, Maxime Martin finishing sixth and Antonio Felix da Costa claiming the eighth position, pitching in for the Manufacturer’s Title rankings.
Unfortunately, despite starting out second on the grid, Timo Glock finished the race 19th due to a bad choice of tires and a puncture. Augusto Farfus wasn’t any luckier, starting out with technical problems on his M4 and retiring with ten laps to go.
“That was a very intense race against a great backdrop, in which Marco Wittmann once again put on an absolutely outstanding display. He dominated the race right from the start and stayed clear of trouble at all times,” said Jens Marquardt, BMW Motorsport Director, after the race.
“The key was winning the start. After that I was able to open up a lead and pull clear of the DRS window. The pit stop was also flawless. The guys at BMW Team RMG did a fantastic job. After that, I just had to remain focussed and avoid making any mistakes. On the primes I was able to maintain my lead over the second-placed car – and then to cross the finish line as the winner,” said Marco.
“It is an awesome feeling to finally be back on the podium. It was great fun ploughing through the field on the option tires today. The tires were consistently good, meaning I was able to push hard even at the end of the race, and was able to make up positions on a circuit on which it is difficult to overtake,” said Bruno Spengler about his performance.
This was the 61st victory for BMW in the DTM, the second in three races for Marco Wittmann this season and the second for the new BMW M4. In the Driver’s Standings, Wittmann is now leading with 50 points, followed by Mike Rockenfeller with 31 and Edoardo Mortara with 27, while in the Manufacturer’s Standings Audi leads with 144 followed by BMW with 118 and Mercedes with 41. The next race of this season will take place on the Norisring on June 29th.
The starting line was animated by BMWs, six of the first ten cars wearing the blue and white roundel on the bonnet. Behind Marco and Timo, Maxime Martin was to start fourth (the best starting position in his DTM career) with Antonio Felix da Costa fifth and Augusto Farfus sixth.
Bruno Spengler claimed the ninth spot on the grid while Joey Hand and Martin Tomczyk were 14th and 18th respectively. Those were the starting positions for the 8 BMW drivers on the first race on the Hungaroring after 26 years.
Nobody expected what came on Sunday, though. From start to finish, Marco Wittmann would not let go of the first position he worked so hard to achieve on the qualifying rounds. Over the 41 laps he proved that BMW made a great choice investing in him and his future. The surprise though, came from Bruno Spengler that made an impressive comeback.
Starting out ninth, he fought back aboard his BMW Bank M4 DTM and managed to claim his first podium of the season, finishing third. At first, due to choosing the wrong tires, he started to fall behind but all that changed when the 2012 champion switched to option tires and started climbing, all the way to the podium.
Two other BMW pilots also finished in the points, Maxime Martin finishing sixth and Antonio Felix da Costa claiming the eighth position, pitching in for the Manufacturer’s Title rankings.
Unfortunately, despite starting out second on the grid, Timo Glock finished the race 19th due to a bad choice of tires and a puncture. Augusto Farfus wasn’t any luckier, starting out with technical problems on his M4 and retiring with ten laps to go.
“That was a very intense race against a great backdrop, in which Marco Wittmann once again put on an absolutely outstanding display. He dominated the race right from the start and stayed clear of trouble at all times,” said Jens Marquardt, BMW Motorsport Director, after the race.
“The key was winning the start. After that I was able to open up a lead and pull clear of the DRS window. The pit stop was also flawless. The guys at BMW Team RMG did a fantastic job. After that, I just had to remain focussed and avoid making any mistakes. On the primes I was able to maintain my lead over the second-placed car – and then to cross the finish line as the winner,” said Marco.
“It is an awesome feeling to finally be back on the podium. It was great fun ploughing through the field on the option tires today. The tires were consistently good, meaning I was able to push hard even at the end of the race, and was able to make up positions on a circuit on which it is difficult to overtake,” said Bruno Spengler about his performance.
This was the 61st victory for BMW in the DTM, the second in three races for Marco Wittmann this season and the second for the new BMW M4. In the Driver’s Standings, Wittmann is now leading with 50 points, followed by Mike Rockenfeller with 31 and Edoardo Mortara with 27, while in the Manufacturer’s Standings Audi leads with 144 followed by BMW with 118 and Mercedes with 41. The next race of this season will take place on the Norisring on June 29th.
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