Budapest. Marco Wittmann (GER) claimed his first victory of
the season at the wheel of the BMW Driving Experience M4 DTM in
Sunday’s race at the Hungaroring (HUN). Timo Glock (GER, DEUTSCHE
POST BMW M4 DTM) and Philipp Eng (AUT, SAMSUNG BMW M4 DTM) followed
him home for a BMW one-two-three. However, the race result was of
minor importance at the end of a chaotic sixth race of the season.
Several people were injured in incidents in the pit lane and had to
be treated in hospital.
Seven laps in, the race stewards suspended the race after several
incidents occurred in the pit lane during a shower. A number of cars
coming in for their tyre change were unable to stop in time on the wet
and extremely slippery concrete in front of the garages. Several
people working in the pit lane were injured as the cars struggled to
stop. Spengler’s BMW Bank M4 DTM was one of the cars that skidded too
far, hitting a BMW Team RBM mechanic who, according to the team
doctor, suffered slight bruising on his foot. He was already back
working on Spengler’s car by the time the cars took their place on the
grid for the re-start.
Spengler eventually came home seventh. Like all the BMW drivers, he
benefitted from the fact that the six BMW M4 DTMs had already
completed their mandatory pit stops by the time the race was
suspended. When the previous leading group came in for their tyre
change after the re-start, Wittmann moved into the lead and controlled
the race from that point, going on to claim his tenth victory in the
DTM. Glock was second and returns to the top of the Drivers’
Championship with 90 points. BMW Team RMR leads the team competition
with 131 points.
Behind Eng, who achieved the second podium finish of his fledgling
DTM career, Joel Eriksson (SWE, BMW M4 DTM) and Augusto Farfus (BRA,
Shell BMW M4 DTM) came home sixth and eighth.
Reactions from Sunday’s race in Budapest:
Rudolf Dittrich (General Manager BMW Motorsport Vehicle Development
):
“The race action is of secondary importance today. The most important
thing is that the people involved in the incidents in the pit lane
were not too seriously injured and will hopefully be back fit and well
soon. Bruno Spengler’s stop was a close thing. I am very happy that
nothing serious happened to anyone at BMW Team RBM. From a sporting
point of view, the weekend was an emotional rollercoaster. We had a
poor race on Saturday, but turned the result on its head today –
thanks to our aggressive race strategy and the particular
circumstances. Congratulations to Marco on his win, and to Timo and
Philipp on their podiums. The way the race panned out obviously played
into our hands, but we also saw that our speed was much better today
than on Saturday.”
Stefan Reinhold (Team Principal, BMW Team RMG):
“We would obviously like to dedicate today’s win to everyone who was
hurt during today’s race. Our thoughts and best wishes are with them.
On one hand, we are pleased that yesterday’s hard work paid off today,
and that we were able to claim a one-two with Marco and Timo. On the
other hand, you would rather win under different circumstances.
Despite that, it is obviously a very good result for us.”
Marco Wittmann (#11 BMW Driving Experience M4 DTM, BMW Team
RMG – qualifying result: 14th place, race result:
1st place, points: 51):
“My team brought me in for my tyre change on the right lap when it
started to rain and the conditions were deteriorating. The pit lane
was very slippery. I too went slightly too far. I saw photos and
videos of the accidents afterwards. That obviously takes the shine off
the win. I hope the guys are doing ok, under the circumstances, and
that they have not suffered any serious injuries. That aside, my team
pulled off a masterstroke with the timing of the pit stop. In the end,
the race suspension and the re-start played into our hands. To score
25 points from 14th on the grid today, after yesterday’s
result, is mega.”
Augusto Farfus (#15 Shell BMW M4 DTM, BMW Team RMG –
qualifying result: 12th place, race result:
8th place, points: 6):
“We stopped too early, which possibly cost us an even better result.
One positive we will definitely take with us is that we were quick in
the race. It is a great shame, but at least we picked up a few points.
I’d like to send my best wishes to everyone who was hurt in today’s incidents.”
Timo Glock (#16 DEUTSCHE POST BMW M4 DTM, BMW Team RMR –
qualifying result: 8th place, race result: 2nd
place, points: 90):
“We had good pace out on the track, and the racing gods were on our
side in the end too. It was all very chaotic from the start. It all
started with the spin on lap one. That dropped me to the back of the
field and is why I stopped so early. Then we had the rain, which we
were actually no longer expecting. Then there were the accidents in
the pit lane. I hope the marshal, who is here as a volunteer and a big
motorsport fan, recovers quickly. The same goes for everyone involved.
That kind of thing is particularly tragic, and nobody wants to see
bystanders get hurt.”
Bart Mampaey (Team Principal, BMW Team RBM):
“Fortunately, none of our mechanics were seriously hurt during
Bruno’s pit stop. I hope that all the other people who were hurt get
well soon. We knew that the pit lane here can be very slippery, but
when it rains as heavily as it did then, the drivers do not have a
chance on slicks. You can see how professional my team is: despite the
incident, they still performed a normal tyre change on Bruno’s car,
and we even went on to score points. Congratulations to Marco, Timo
and Philipp on the BMW one-two-three. We could not have seen that
result coming.”
Philipp Eng (#25 SAMSUNG BMW M4 DTM, BMW Team RMR – qualifying
result: 15th place, race result: 3rd place,
points: 41):
“The most important thing is that, given the circumstances, everyone
involved is doing ok. I wish everyone involved a speedy recovery. The
race itself was a tactical masterstroke from us – particularly the
engineers. We stopped on exactly the right lap and fitted the right
tyres. After that I had good pace. In the end, it was good enough for
third place.”
Bruno Spengler (#7 BMW Bank M4 DTM, BMW Team RBM – qualifying
result: 18th place, race result: 7th place,
points: 29):
“First of all, I would like to apologise to my mechanic. Although I
was already driving much slower than usual, the wheels locked. As a
result, I could not avoid hitting him. I am very sorry. Fortunately,
nothing serious happened. We should probably have come in a lap
earlier and switched to wet-weather tyres. Maybe the pit lane would
have been drier then too. However, it is not easy in those chaotic
situations. After Saturday’s result, it was important for BMW to score
heavily today.”
Joel Eriksson (#47 BMW M4 DTM, BMW Team RBM – qualifying
result: 17th place, race result: 6th place,
points: 23):
“The circumstances of this race were obviously far from pleasing. We
ultimately benefitted from having already stopped when it started to
rain. As a result, we were able to score valuable points, although we
did not actually have the pace to finish sixth.”