DTM testing: Joey Hand quickest for BMW on day three at Hockenheim
Joey Hand kept BMW on top of the timesheets for a third straight day of DTM testing at Hockenheim on Thursday
The American, who has switched from the RMG team to RBM for his second year in the series, set the pace in 1m33.284s on his final lap of an afternoon session that began wet and dried out as time wore on.
Track conditions were wet from the start of running, with the morning times 15 seconds slower than those managed later on.
With few cars on track at the end of the day, Hand's advantage to the second-placed Rosberg Audi of Edoardo Mortara was over a second. Mortara ended his day with a spin.
Abt Audi newcomer Jamie Green was third fastest, ahead of champion Bruno Spengler in his Schnitzer BMW.
Spengler said that the conditions had made honing his car's set-up, ahead of the season-opening round at the same track next month, difficult.
"It was an interesting day of testing, but due to the changeable conditions, executing good set-up work proved to be difficult," the Canadian said.
"On the other hand, all the three manufacturers had to cope with the same conditions.
"I'm happy with our achievements despite the adverse weather conditions and think that we made good progress. And we still have got tomorrow, haven't we?"
BMW rookie Timo Glock, eighth overall, set the pace during the morning session.
Pos Driver Car Time Gap 1. Joey Hand RBM BMW 1m33.284s 2. Edoardo Mortara Rosberg Audi 1m34.309s + 1.105s 3. Jamie Green Abt Audi 1m34.829s + 1.545s 4. Bruno Spengler Schnitzer BMW 1m35.473s + 2.189s 5. Robert Wickens HWA Mercedes 1m35.634s + 2.350s 6. Adrien Tambay Abt Audi 1m35.645s + 2.361s 7. Pascal Wehrlein RSC Mucke Mercedes 1m35.740s + 2.456s 8. Timo Glock MTEK BMW 1m35.757s + 2.473s 9. Christian Vietoris HWA Mercedes 1m35.910s + 2.626s 10. Miguel Molina Phoenix Audi 1m35.972s + 2.688s 11. Andy Priaulx RMG BMW 1m35.972s + 2.688s
Previous article
DTM testing: BMW's Marco Wittmann ahead again at Hockenheim
Next article
DTM testing: Augusto Farfus completes BMW domination at Hockenheim
About this article
| Series | DTM |
| Author | Jamie O'Leary |
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
Ranking the 10 best Audi DTM drivers
Audi last week announced it would be exiting the DTM at the end of 2020, bringing the curtain down on 20 years of continuous participation since the series' reboot in 2000. Autosport's expert panel ranks its 10 best drivers from the period
How the DTM landed itself in crisis
Audi's announcement that it will withdraw from the DTM was the latest bodyblow for a series that has lost three manufacturers in as many years. Some major soul-searching will now be required to assess how it can survive
The FE cynic who had to accept change in his series
DTM boss Gerhard Berger was an ardent detractor of Formula E and was reluctant for his series to embrace greener engine technologies. But this cynic's tune has had to change to ensure the DTM's existence in the future of motorsport
