Spengler boosts DTM title hopes with commanding victory at the Nurburgring

The Canadian started from pole position, was a second ahead by the end of the first lap, and maintained his relentless pace to take a 6.7-second victory in his Schnitzer Motorsport-run M3.

Spengler's win was his second since joining BMW during the winter and the 11th of his career. It also moved him into second place in the championship, 20 points behind Paffett, who finished sixth.

Just as Spengler led for most of the race, so Edoardo Mortara held second for the majority of the laps, the Rosberg Audi driver easing away from his pursuers after the first round of pitstops.

Mike Rockenfeller sat on Mortara's tail for the opening stint of the race, but was passed by champion Martin Tomczyk shortly after the first round of stops - the RMG BMW man completing a move on the Phoenix Audi at Turn 3 that he had started two corners earlier. Tomczyk completed the podium.

Rockenfeller was demoted a further spot by Jamie Green at the second round of pitstops, with the HWA driver Mercedes' best finisher at the Nurburgring.

Paffett might have made it by Rockenfeller at this point as well, but he lost three seconds at his second tyre stop when his HWA crew had a problem attaching a right-rear wheel.

The Briton, who moved up from 11th to seventh on the opening lap, had passed Robert Wickens at Turn 1 just after the Canadian had exited the pits from his first stop. The Mucke Mercedes driver sat just behind Paffett for the remaining 37 laps to finish a career-best seventh.

Mortara's team-mate Filipe Albuquerque made a terrible start from third on the grid and ended the first lap in 10th. But some clever strategy, good pitwork and a cracking out lap enabled him to pass Timo Scheider's Abt Audi and the RBM BMW of Augusto Farfus for eighth at the final stops.

Adrien Tambay and Christian Vietoris were both hit with drive-through penalties for spinning, respectively, Miguel Molina and Andy Priaulx.

David Coulthard meanwhile spun exiting Turn 5 during the middle sector of the race, having earlier made contact with Roberto Merhi that resulted in the Spaniard driving into the side of Susie Wolff and spinning his Persson Mercedes team-mate around.

Results - 49 laps:

Pos  Driver              Team/Car               Time/Gap
 1.  Bruno Spengler      Schnitzer BMW      1h11m12.847s
 2.  Edoardo Mortara     Rosberg Audi           + 6.703s
 3.  Martin Tomczyk      RMG BMW               + 10.802s
 4.  Jamie Green         HWA Mercedes          + 22.019s
 5.  Mike Rockenfeller   Phoenix Audi          + 23.054s
 6.  Gary Paffett        HWA Mercedes          + 23.765s
 7.  Robert Wickens      Mucke Mercedes        + 25.041s
 8.  Filipe Albuquerque  Rosberg Audi          + 29.601s
 9.  Timo Scheider       Abt Audi              + 30.422s
10.  Augusto Farfus      RBM BMW               + 33.686s
11.  Mattias Ekstrom     Abt Audi              + 35.436s
12.  Dirk Werner         Schnitzer BMW         + 40.828s
13.  Ralf Schumacher     HWA Mercedes          + 42.526s
14.  Rahel Frey          Abt Audi              + 43.105s
15.  Miguel Molina       Phoenix Audi          + 46.558s
16.  Christian Vietoris  HWA Mercedes          + 53.240s
17.  Susie Wolff         Persson Mercedes    + 1m09.036s
18.  Joey Hand           RMG BMW             + 1m12.214s
19.  Andy Priaulx        RBM BMW             + 1m25.739s
20.  David Coulthard     Mucke Mercedes          + 1 lap

Retirements:

     Adrien Tambay       Abt Audi                14 laps
     Roberto Merhi       Persson Mercedes         9 laps