After what seemed a lifetime without top European tin-top racing the 2018 DTM series got its new season underway at the famous Hockenheimring south of Frankfurt near Baden-Württemberg on Saturday.
After an enthralling 36 lap opening race, it was the most experienced driver in the field who took the winner’s laurels when Gary Paffett was first to cross the finish line. The Mercedes-AMG driver won the first of this season’s 20 DTM races by scant 1.449s from his fellow Mercedes-AMG driver Lucas Auer.
Third place went to ex-F1 racer and BMW M4 driver Timo Glock who with his teammate Bruno Spengler, in sixth, were the only two Munich representatives in the first eight cars to take the chequered flag after a Mercedes walkover. Edoardo Mortara and Pascal Wehrlein took fourth and fifth while Paul Di Resta and Daniel Juncadella were seventh and eighth for the Silver Arrows.
In the end it was Gary Paffett who triumphed for his 21st DTM series win after having to wait an extraordinary 1,784 days since his last one on 13 June, 2013, at the Lausitzring.
“After this long drought, this victory is a really special one,” Paffet said afterwards. “I am really delighted both for myself and for the team. Today, the early pit stop was the key to success. The car was really great.”
In the opening stages of the race, Auer momentarily took the lead from Paffett, but the pole sitter was quickly back in charge, seeing off his younger rival and teammate.
“Of course, that is a pity, because I was in front of Gary before the pit stop and I was behind him after it,” Auer said. “But tomorrow is another day, I want to beat him on Sunday…”
Third-placed Glock admitted afterwards that he had no chance to even put the two Mercedes-AMG drivers up front under pressure.
“That did annoy me a little bit,” Glock added.
Audi’s finest, and best placed finisher at the flag, was reining DTM champion René Rast, who came home in ninth to take just two points away from his first race defending his title!
“That wasn’t an easy race, we got the maximum out of it,” said a defeated Rast. “At the start, I almost stalled. After the pit stops, I managed to overtake a few cars, but it wasn’t like we had planned. We still have some work to do there.”
After the first race of the new season, Paffett leads the drivers’ standings with a perfect score of 28 points (25 for the win and 3 for pole position) from Auer with 18 and Glock on 16 before it all continues once more on Sunday afternoon at Hockenheim for race two.
