Auer celebrates second DTM victory of the season at the Dekra Lausitzring

• Mercedes-AMG driver finishes first at the Lausitzring for the fourth time
• Brand team-mate Maro Engel claims second place
• BMW drivers Rast and Wittmann in the top five

Klettwitz. Lucas Auer (A) is the man of the moment in the DTM. The Mercedes-AMG driver produced a dominant performance to claim victory at the Dekra Lausitzring on Saturday, topping the podium for the second time this season. “I was able to pull away a bit at the start, which was important for that tight first corner. After the tyre change, I have to admit that I wasn’t sure if I would get past Maro Engel. But I battled away and it worked out. The Lausitzring is just a perfect fit for me. I recorded my first DTM win here in 2016 and I simply love driving on this circuit,” explained the 30-year-old. Brand team-mate Maro Engel (Monaco) from the Mercedes-AMG Team Winward Racing finished second, crossing the line 1.3 seconds behind him. René Rast from Schubert Motorsport was the best BMW driver in third position.

Key Facts, Dekra Lausitzring, Race 3 of 16

• Track length: 3.478 kilometres
• Weather: 13 degrees, cloudy
• Pole position: Lucas Auer (Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf, Mercedes-AMG GT3 #22), 1:19.827 minutes
• Winner: Lucas Auer (Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf, Mercedes-AMG GT3 #22)
• Fastest race lap: Jules Gounon (Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter, Mercedes-AMG GT3 #48), 1:20.968 minutes

Pole-setter Auer defended his position at the start of the third DTM race of the season on Saturday afternoon, extending his lead to two seconds as the race progressed. He was pursued by Engel in second place ahead of Rast, who was able to move up two places in the early stages. On lap 22, Auer was the first driver from the leading pack to switch to new Pirelli slicks. Engel waited two more laps before completing his pit stop and returned to the track ahead of the Austrian driver.

Racing on cold tyres, however, the Monaco resident was unable to stay ahead of Auer, who made the most of his warmer slicks to move back into the lead. After 42 laps, Auer secured his eleventh victory in the DTM, finishing ahead of Engel and Rast. Jules Gounon in the Mercedes-AMG GT3 and Marco Wittmann (Fürth) in the BMW M4 GT3 Evo enjoyed some tough duels in the second half of the race, with the Frenchman coming out on top to claim fourth position.

Thomas Preining (A) finished the third championship race in sixth place in the Porsche 911 GT3 R. Seventh spot went to Ferrari driver Jack Aitken (GB) from Emil Frey Racing, while Ayhancan Güven (TR) drove the second 911 from Manthey EMA to eighth place. Ben Dörr (Butzbach) finished ninth in the McLaren 720S GT3 Evo, claiming a top-ten finish for the second race in a row. DTM newcomer Ben Green (GB) crossed the line in tenth place in the Ferrari 296 GT3.

Maro Engel: “A fantastic result for Mercedes-AMG! After the pit stop, I tried everything to defend the lead against Lucas Auer while I was on cold tyres. It is precisely these duels that make the DTM so exciting. Unfortunately, I was unable to hold on for the win as Lucas drove smart on warmer tyres.”

René Rast: “I was able to move up two places during the first lap. After that, I had to work hard to defend against Ricardo Feller. I am really pleased with third place. I always like coming to the Lausitzring. Eight years ago, this was where I claimed the first podium finish of my career.”

Result, 3rd race, Dekra Lausitzring
1. Lucas Auer (A/Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf)
2. Maro Engel (D/Mercedes-AMG Team Winward Racing), +1,344 seconds
3. René Rast (D/Schubert Motorsport), +5,083 seconds
4. Jules Gounon (F/Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter), +6,778 seconds
5. Marco Wittmann (D/Schubert Motorsport), +7,347 seconds

All the results from the Dekra Lausitzring are available here: dtm.com/en/results.