DTM: Tight program in England 🎥
STRESS TEST AT BRANDS HATCH This weekend, the DTM makes a guest appearance at Brands Hatch. The entire racing program will take place over two days on the former GP circuit. Nico Müller is looking forward to it. The sixth race weekend will take place on the traditional Brands Hatch circuit on Saturday and Sunday (August 10/11). At the same time, it is the only two-day event of the 2019 season [...].
The sixth race weekend will take place on the traditional Brands Hatch circuit on Saturday and Sunday (August 10/11). It is also the only two-day event of the 2019 season.
Local regulatory requirements for major events on the 3.908-kilometer GP circuit are the reason why the DTM can only run on two days. The result is an even more compact program, as the free practice sessions, which usually take place on Fridays, are cancelled and integrated into the already tight schedule. In the supporting program, the W Series for women will hold its finale.
A DTM weekend in 40 hours
The 18 DTM drivers will only have the opportunity to adjust to the conditions in a 45-minute practice session on Saturday morning. Qualifying for the eleventh round of the season, which will start at 1.30 p.m. local time (2.30 p.m. CEST) on Saturday, will begin just one hour later. On Sunday, qualifying for the second DTM race of the weekend will follow as usual according to the same schedule as the day before.
For the drivers and their teams, this rigorous program is therefore tantamount to a real stress test. A complete DTM race weekend is reeled off in just 40 hours. Especially before the race on Saturday, there is little time for the important set-up work on the 610-plus hp cars.
Nico Müller: "You therefore have to change your approach a little. You don't have much time for trial and error, so you don't go down any great new paths with the setup. You have to rely on the basic setup and try to optimize it."
Spectacular race track
The legendary hill-and-dale circuit with the famous Paddock Hill Bend is entirely to the Bernese driver's taste. A year ago, it was still new territory for the Swiss Audi factory driver.
Nico Müller: "Brands Hatch is a somewhat special track. It has relatively many bumps, no run-off zones and fast corners that require a lot of confidence in the car. It's a cool and spectacular track that I really like. I feel very well prepared. I'm looking forward to it and can't wait when it starts on Saturday."
Müller wants to do a little better in qualifying
The starting position before the sixth of nine race weekends: Audi factory driver René Rast leads the overall standings with 158 points ahead of his Swiss brand colleague Nico Müller (136) and BMW driver Marco Wittmann (118). Müller is the only DTM driver to have scored points in all races this season - and he doesn't want to change that.
Nico Müller: "I'm satisfied with the way the season has gone so far. We had built on a strong second half of the 2018 season. But to achieve good results, everything has to fit together, and that doesn't always depend on your own performance. We've looked very strong in the races so far, but we can still improve in qualifying. We'll be focusing on that in particular for the rest of the season. If we can do that, anything is possible."
Free TV channel SAT.1 will report live from Brands Hatch on Saturday and Sunday from 2 p.m. each day. SPORT1 will show the highlights of the compact DTM weekend in England on Sunday evening from 10.30 p.m. onwards.
