Munich. For the BMW DTM teams, the weekend in the Eifel marks
the start of the final sprint of the 2019 season. The Nürburgring
(GER) is set to host the penultimate race weekend of the year this
coming weekend (13th to 15th September), with races number 15 and
16.
For BMW Team RMG it is their home event; the team HQ in
Andernach (GER) is located just a few kilometres away from the Nürburgring.
BMW Team RMG is also celebrating a milestone: Marco Wittmann’s (GER)
100th race for Stefan Reinhold’s (GER) team. After seven
race weekends, Marco Wittmann (GER) in third place overall with 167
points is the best-ranked BMW driver in the DTM driver’s standings.
Right behind him is Philipp Eng (AUT) with 140 points in fourth place.
Eng and Bruno Spengler (CAN) will get the weekend at the Nürburgring
started with a special race for a good cause: the ONE-World Charity
Simrace on Thursday evening. At this simulator event, each team is
made up of one DTM pro and one fan, who secured their place during an
auction. The teams will complete a total of 30 laps on the virtual
Grand Prix track at the Nürburgring. Proceeds from the event will go
to the children’s hospital in Cologne (GER) via the Lukas Podolski Foundation.
Quotes ahead of the DTM races at the Nürburgring.
Jens Marquardt (BMW Group Motorsport Director):
“BMW’s history in motorsport is closely linked with the Nürburgring,
which is why the races on this iconic track are always particularly
significant for us. We will head into the finishing straight of the
2019 DTM season there, a season that has brought us highs but also
lows so far. In the last races in particular, we haven’t matched up to
our own expectations. But this season has also shown that we are
capable of winning. And now we have to build on these successes. We
will give it everything from the first to the last minute and focus on
providing our drivers with the best possible package. This also
includes being stronger in qualifying again, so that we have the
chance to achieve top results in the races. Our objective is clear: We
want to keep the fight for the title open down to the wire and put on
exciting DTM action for the fans in the final spurt of the season.”
Stefan Reinhold (Team Principal BMW Team RMG):
“The weekend at the Nürburgring is always a highlight of the season
for us because it is the home event for our whole team. It is fair to
say that we all love the Nürburgring. And this year we are celebrating
a special milestone at the Ring: Marco Wittmann’s 100th
race for our team. We have celebrated major successes together
previously, and this year Marco has already won four races. We will
keep working hard and fight since it isn’t over until after the final
race in Hockenheim. Bruno Spengler has also been on the top step of
the podium this season and has celebrated successes at the Nürburgring
in the past. Timo Glock has been very unlucky this year, which has
prevented him from converting his pace into the corresponding results.
We hope that the tide will turn for him in the Eifel region. As a
team, we will really give it our all to have a successful home event
with all three of our drivers.”
Bruno Spengler (#7 BMW Bank M4 DTM, BMW Team RMG, Drivers’
standings: 8th, 79 points):
“I really enjoy the Nürburgring. I have won there several times
already, and the crowd is always amazing. I hope that we will be more
competitive again there than we were recently at the Lausitzring. We
will work hard to improve our performance. If we manage that, we are
in with a good chance of bringing home a podium. It would be great to
make it onto the podium at BMW Team RMG’s home event. I’m also really
looking forward to competing in a Simrace with our cars. It’s going to
be an awesome event, and it’s fantastic that lots of DTM drivers will
be involved. We will have a lot of fun with the fans, and it’s all for
a good cause. It’s going to be a great start to the race weekend.”
Marco Wittmann (#11 Schaeffler BMW M4 DTM, BMW Team RMG,
Drivers’ standings: 3rd, 167 points):
“I hope that we will be in a stronger position again at the
Nürburgring. It’s a track that has always suited us really well in the
past, and me personally. We have celebrated a few wins at BMW Team
RMG’s home event in the past as well. I’ve known the track for a long
time through the DTM, 24-hour races and the VLN. So I’m looking
forward to the weekend and hope that we will be able to bring home
good results.”
Timo Glock (#16 BMW M4 DTM, BMW Team RMR, Drivers’ standings:
13th, 33 points):
“I’m looking forward to the Nürburgring. It is the team’s home race,
which always makes it special. We hope to be able to perform well
there – and that our luck returns.”
Bart Mampaey (Team Principal BMW Team RBM):
“We are highly motivated going into the final spurt of the season.
The races at the Lausitzring didn’t go quite as we had hoped, but the
deck will be shuffled in the Eifel region. The Nürburgring has its own
special challenges, which both our team and all three drivers Philipp
Eng, Joel Eriksson and Sheldon van der Linde are very familiar with.
It will be important for us to return to the strength in qualifying
that we have already shown at many race weekends this season. Then our
three drivers will be able to convert their good pace in the races
into corresponding results again. The whole team has been preparing
intensely. We are all working hard to make sure our drivers are able
to be up there battling for the top spots in the remaining four races
of the season so that they can pick up the maximum number of points.”
Philipp Eng (#25 ZF BMW M4 DTM, BMW Team RMR, Drivers’
standings: 4th, 140 points):
“The Nürburgring is like a second home to me, and I will have to be
careful that I don’t turn onto the Nordschleife. Seriously though: I
am looking forward to the Nürburgring, I love being there, I like the
track and the area. The track is very technical in the first sector in
particular, then you have medium-speed turns in the second sector, and
finally the chicane with the high kerbs, you need to know exactly how
to take them without damaging the car. It will definitely be
interesting. I hope that we will be able to repeat our good qualifying
performance from last year and then pick up plenty of points in the
races. I’m also really looking forward to the Simrace on Thursday.
It’s going to be cool driving on a virtual version of the Grand Prix
track, alongside the fans and all for a good cause. It will be a lot
of fun.”
Sheldon van der Linde (#31 Shell BMW M4 DTM, BMW Team RBM,
Drivers’ standings: 12th, 36 points):
“Nürburgring is probably the track that I know best on the DTM
calendar. So from that point of view I’m really looking forward to it.
I hope that it will suit our car a bit more than the Lausitzring has –
and by the nature of the track it normally should. In general, the
performance and race pace are good, and I am looking forward to
bringing it all together now and making a good end to the season.”
Joel Eriksson (#47 CATL BMW M4 DTM, BMW Team RBM, Drivers’
standings: 10th, 47 points):
“Nürburgring is a track I like. My pace has always been quite good
there, also already in single seaters. The track is fun in the BMW M4
DTM, and of course it’s a classic circuit. Everybody knows the
Nürburgring. We have some work to do, but we will do everything in our
power to make sure we have a strong weekend there.”
Media Schedule (all times CEST).
Friday, 13th September
14:30-15:00, ITR press conference with Sheldon van der Linde, Media Centre
Saturday, 14th September
15:40-15:50, Mixed Zone with all BMW drivers, Media Centre
Sunday, 15th September
09:00-09:30, Media Round Table with BMW Group Motorsport Director
Jens Marquardt, BMW Hospitality
15:40-15:50, Mixed Zone with all BMW drivers, Media Centre