Bruno Spengler hits out at Audi drivers in DTM
BMW's Bruno Spengler has hit out at the treatment he has received from Audi drivers in recent DTM rounds, following an incident-packed opening Nurburgring race
The 2012 champion was running second to victor Maxime Martin when Edoardo Mortara forced his way down the inside at Turn 1, with 12 minutes remaining.
Mortara found his way past after heavy contact between the pair, which damaged Spengler's car, and the BMW driver retired after being swamped by the pack behind.
The Canadian also dropped down the order in Sunday's Oschersleben race a fortnight ago, following a clash with Jamie Green.
"I'm very disappointed, quite pissed off actually," Spengler said.
"It's the second time in a row that my race gets totally broken by an Audi.
"We try to play fair, as much as we can, with no team orders or anything, but the others just drive into you.
"Inside the car it was quite clear. [Edoardo] came to me and said it was a bit on the limit.
"On the other hand, I'm pretty sure that if I wasn't there he wouldn't have made the corner."
Mortara, who finished second, admitted the move was "brave", but insisted he had to force his way past to stay clear of Pascal Wehrlein.
"I had to make a move, otherwise Pascal would have got me," he told AUTOSPORT.
"The only opportunity for me was to brake very late and he didn't expect that.
"I try to race as fair as I can overall, but sometimes you have these situations that happen and you have to take a decision.
"Otherwise if you wait too long you're going to be overtaken by the entire field behind you, that is also waiting for the first opportunity to overtake you."
WEHRLEIN REVISITS MARTIN CLASH
Championship leader Wehrlein had a Turn 1 incident of his own, at the start with Martin.
While he jumped out of his Mercedes to remonstrate with the Belgian through the window of his BMW when the race was red flagged, Wehrlein's view had changed post-race.
"When we had a stop at the red flag I was very angry," he said.
"I didn't see the replay, so now I just saw it after the race and there was a gap and he just went for the gap, so everything was fine.
"After the start you have so many emotions so I have to apologise to your [Martin's] door."
Previous article
DTM Nurburgring: BMW's Martin wins after clash with Wehrlein
Next article
Nurburgring DTM: Miguel Molina puts Audi on race two pole
DTM: Round 4 - Nurburgring Race 2 highlights
DTM: Round 4 - Nurburgring Race 1 highlights
DTM: Zolder Race 2 highlights
DTM: Round 1 - Zolder Race 1 highlights
Round 2: Lausitzring - Race 2 Highlights
The number-crunching behind the new-look DTM's equalisation drive
Switching to GT3 regulations marked a fresh start for the DTM in 2021, but it has also drawn a line in the sand against other series using similar cars by engaging AVL Racing to develop a bespoke Balance of Performance system. Here’s how it works
The initial verdict on DTM's move to GT3 cars
OPINION: Facing collapse last year, the DTM has shifted its philosophy from a championship for silhouette-based touring cars to GT machines not too dissimilar to those racing across multiple series worldwide. But despite some initial BoP-based teething troubles, there were some pleasant findings as the 'new DTM' got underway at Monza
Why Albon has his work cut out in the new-look DTM
The DTM moves into its bold new GT3 era with welcome support from Red Bull, which enters two AF Corse-run Ferraris. That includes one for ex-F1 driver Alex Albon, who’s determined to make a success of his GT switch - but he knows it won't be easy...
The slow-burner threatening to unseat Audi's DTM king
It's taken him a while to emerge as a consistent title challenger, but in the final year of DTM's Class One rule set, Nico Muller has smoothed the rough edges and has double champion stablemate Rene Rast working harder than ever to keep up in the title race
How a DTM failure became an unlikely Nurburgring conqueror
Opel's fortunes in the DTM had taken a turn for the worst by 2003 - hardly the pedigree that suggested it could take on the toughest 24-hour race of them all. But that's exactly what it did
The season that revitalised a sleeping giant
On the 20th anniversary of the resumption of hostilities in the DTM, Autosport revisits a classic season that brought a staple of German motorsport back to life with a bang and set in motion the careers of some notable names
Does 2000 hold the answers to DTM's current crisis?
It's 20 years since the DTM roared back into life at a packed Hockenheim with a back-to-basics approach as the antidote to its high-tech past. Now it's on its knees again, so is it time to recall the lessons learned in 2000?
The last-chance saloon of Germany's forgotten tin-top champions
The Opel Vectra GTS was the last in the line of the marque's DTM challengers, but failed to hit the lofty heights of its predecessors when financial constraints hit
