Winkelhock to sub for Kristensen
Markus Winkelhock will replace Tom Kristensen at Audi for this weekend's DTM race at Lausitz
The 26-year-old will fly to Germany for the race straight from Paul Ricard, where he has been testing for the Spyker Formula One team.
"I'm extremely happy to get this chance with Audi, even though I know how difficult it will be," said Winkelhock.
"Things aren't made any easier for me since I have not been able to test the car beforehand, but I hope that I can live up to my own expectations and can produce the best for Audi."
Audi had been hoping that Kristensen would be fit for the third race of the season after missing the last round at Oschersleben, but doctors are still not sure when the Dane will be able to return to action.
Wolfgang Ullrich, Audi's head of motorsport said: "Tom needs more time to fully recover from the effects of his serious accident.
"At this time, doctors are unable to predict when he will be 100 per cent fit again, but Tom will get all the time in the world from us."
Ullrich added that Winkelhock will remain on standby to replace Kristensen at any additional events after this weekend.
Frank Biela, who struggled in the car on his DTM return at Oschersleben two weeks ago, will now switch his focus to preparing for the Le Mans 24 Hours.
Winkelhock raced in the DTM in 2004, although he failed to score a point during his season with a one-year-old Mercedes.
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
F1 2019 game includes official driver transfers for first time
F1 testing: Toro Rosso's Albon on top, Mercedes starts to show pace
Michael Schumacher's top 10 F1 victories
Formula E’s new Gen3 Evo car breaks cover
The weekly reality check that has kept MotoGP hype off of Acosta so far in 2024
F2 veteran Ghiotto to make IndyCar debut with Dale Coyne Racing at Barber
History of the F1 points system with proposed structure for 2025
Autosport writers' most memorable moments of 2022
The plug in and play stand-ins who got their timing just right
The longest-serving Red Bull driver revealing F1’s true brutality
How the DTM has come back stronger from its Norisring nadir
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments