Porsche driver Güven thrills Turkey - and has no plans to stop in Lusatia

• Güven: "Fantastic to see how many people are getting behind me"
• First Turkish winner of a DTM race discusses his close father-son relationship

Munich. When the DTM lines up at the Dekra Lausitzring from 23rd to 25th May, Turkey's Ayhancan Güven will do so with an extra dose of self-confidence. The Porsche driver from the Manthey EMA team celebrated his maiden victory at the DTM opener at Motorsport Arena Oschersleben - and in doing so made history, becoming the first Turkish driver ever to win a race in the DTM. "The victory felt incredible. After the race I was still full of adrenalin and just crazily happy – I couldn't get to sleep for a long time that night," says Güven. In Lusatia, the man from Istanbul is hungry to back up his impressive start to the season and add another highlight to his career.

The first to congratulate him next to the podium was dad Hakan, who follows his son's career closely from the role of mentor. "He has supported me with great dedication and hard work for more than 20 years. That moment was something very special for me and my father," says Güven, whose route into professional sport was an unusual one. He started in karting, but Güven spent the majority of his youth driving Esports racers in a simulator. Among those he teamed up with during this time was four-time Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen.

He returned to real motorsport as a 17-year-old. Güven had never lost sight of his goal: to win races in top international series like the DTM. He received support as a Porsche Junior and continuously worked his way up through the sport. "I received an unbelievable number of messages after my win: from family, friends, fans, the Turkish Motorsport Federation, and even from the Turkish Ministry of Sports. It is simply fantastic to see how many people are following and getting behind me," says Güven.

The support from his homeland gives the 27-year-old extra motivation. "There has always been interest in motorsport in Turkey, particularly in Formula 1. GT and sports car racing, on the other hand, are not so well known. However, we are currently developing a new and fantastic Turkish motorsport culture. I am proud to be the first to trigger this new enthusiasm. It is really nice to see how Turkish motorsport is growing," says a delighted Güven. The next opportunity to pick up another top result awaits Güven at the Lausitzring – a circuit, of which the Porsche works driver has fond memories: "I won my first ADAC GT Masters race at the Lausitzring in 2022. We will do our best to get the most out of it again. I am hugely excited about the weekend."

Tickets for round two of the DTM at the Dekra Lausitzring are available online at dtm.com. Admission is free for under 16s when accompanied by an adult.