Mike Rockenfeller Wins Russian DTM Round

[OverTake.gg]

45,000 fans descended on Moscow Raceway to watch German Mike 'Rocky' Rockenfeller drive from pole to take the first ever DTM round staged in Russia.

Rockenfeller takes his second win of the season, extending his championship lead (94 pts) to 27 points above Canadian Bruno Spengler (67 pts), with McLaren F1 test driver and DTM veteran Gary Paffett in third (57 pts).

“When you want to become champion, you have to score many points. That is what we did today. At Norisring, I was too slow, but today, everything was spot-on. A weekend couldn’t be better. First pole, then the race win,” said Rocky.

The German battle it out with second place Markus Ekström for much of the race, with Rockenfeller pitting late after a long stint on hard tyres. By the end of the 74 lap race, Rockenfeller brought his Audi RS 5 over the line 1.3 seconds ahead of fellow Audi pilot, Ekström.

BWM's Augusto Farfus went head-to-head with Adrien Tambay for the bottom step of the podium, with Farfus coming out on top after keeping the #24 Audi behind him.

“My third place isn't bad at all. We have had some difficult weekends, but here in Russia, things went well,” concluded the Brazilian, who sits fifth in the overall standings.

Briton Gary Paffett (Mercedes-Benz) finished fifth, with Audi newcomer Jamie Green behind him. Joey Hand (BMW), Dirk Werner (BMW), Timo Scheider (Audi) and Christian Vietoris (Mercedes-Benz) round out the top ten.

Dieter Gass, head of DTM, Audi: “For Audi, the DTM premiere in Russia couldn't have been any better. First and second place, five of our cars in the race and now a clear points’ lead for Mike Rockenfeller, who, just like Mattias Ekström, has driven an absolutely perfect race, although the two got caught up in traffic time and time again. The race was held in front of a great crowd and the Audi RS 5 DTM clearly was the strongest car here at Moscow Raceway.”

Jens Marquardt, BMW Motorsport Director: “This first race here was a great success with a great echo from the spectators. I am very happy for Augusto and with Joey and Dirk, we had two more drivers in the top ten. Of course, Bruno had a tough time. I hope that this doesn't affect his chances in the championship too much. We really have to push hard at the Nürburgring.”

Wolfgang Schattling, head of DTM Management Mercedes-Benz: “Today certainly wasn’t our day. It already showed in qualifying that we didn't do as well as our competitors at this track. However, Gary has shown a great performance and achieved the best possible result for us.”

Image: Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters

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