Hockenheim: Two podium places for the Swiss
MOTORSPORT After Philip Ellis from Zug secured the Audi TT Cup title, Marcel Fässler took third place in a race of living legends with the same cars. The DTM finale was disappointing for Nico Müller. Audi decided all three titles in its favor. The late summer weather and the exciting starting position before the DTM finale attracted [...]
The late summer weather and the exciting starting position before the DTM finale attracted a total of around 150,000 spectators to the Motodrom in Baden at the weekend. Among them were many Swiss, who were especially rooting for Audi factory driver Nico Müller in the two final races of the 2017 DTM.
So did the two FDP politicians Council of States member Philipp Müller and National Council member Christian Wasserfallen. Unfortunately, this did not help much. After the Bernese had finished a brilliant third in the two previous races in Spielberg (A) and could even have won without a stable order, he was left without any further points in Hockenheim, finishing 12th and 11th.
His Abt teammate Mattias Ekström, who led the standings by a large margin before the finale, also experienced a disappointment. The Swede only scored four points for eighth place in the second race. This was only enough for second place overall.
"We simply didn't find the necessary speed for our cars to be among the front runners," explained Müller, somewhat perplexed. The drivers' title and the team classification go to René Rast (D) and Audi Sport Team Rosberg, the manufacturers' title to Audi ahead of Mercedes and BMW.
Instead of Nico Müller, two other Audi drivers from Switzerland stood on the podium of frame races. With one victory - the fifth in 14 races in 2017 - and one second place, Philip Ellis from Baar secured the 2017 Audi Sport TT Cup. Although Ellis drives under the British flag (the nation of his father, who is from Wales), he lives with his mother Audrey in Baar, studies in Lucerne and speaks perfect Swiss German. In 2011, he won the Swiss Formula Lista Junior Championship.
At the end of the one-make cup after three years of running, Audi invited many of its current and legendary drivers to a guest race. After a turbulent race Marcel Fässler captured third place.
At times, the driver from Schwyz was even in second place in his first circuit race with a front-wheel drive car. In the end, like Sébastien Buemi in the 2016/17 Formula E season, he had to admit defeat to Brazilian Lucas di Grassi. The German Frank Stippler emerged as the winner.
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