Test: TK leads the way
Tom Kristensen set a scorching pace as the DTM hit the glorious sand dune-surrounded track at Zandvoort in Holland, the six-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner heading an Audi 1-2-3 as the championship chase heads into its endgame
Kristensen, who won his maiden DTM race in the previous round at Oschersleben, lapped his Audi A4 in 1m34.891s, almost four-tenths clear of series leader Mattias Ekstrom's similar Abt-run A4. Christian Abt rounded out the top three as local hero Christijan Albers, who lies second in the championship, led the Mercedes chase in fourth.
Martin Tomczyk made it four Audis in the top five, while Peter Dumbreck led the Opel charge in sixth. Former F1 hero Jean Alesi was seventh for Mercedes but team-mate Gary Paffett, another of the title protagonists, suffered a disastrous day and was down in 13th. Heinz-Harald Frentzen, another ex-F1 star, was ninth despite an off.
Tom Kristensen, Audi A4, 1m34.891s
Mattias Ekstrom, Audi A4, +0.382s
Christian Abt, Audi A4, +0.510s
Christijan Albers, Mercedes C-Class, +0.520s
Martin Tomczyk, Audi A4, +0.589s
Peter Dumbreck, Opel Vectra GTS, +0.779s
Round 12: Assen - Race Highlights
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
How Audi's new DTM star is channeling Rast to achieve his "childhood dream"
Having learned the ropes in GT3 alongside Rene Rast, Kelvin van der Linde is in line to take up the three-time champion's baton as Audi's new DTM king. From humble origins in South Africa, it's been a remarkable journey so far for the current series leader, but he knows that the 2021 title is a long way from settled just yet
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?
