- Pepper, third in the table, is the only driver to dip below 1:18.000 minutes in practice
- McLaren driver Glock sets second-fastest lap time at the Sachsenring
- Fine margins at the top: 0.232 seconds separate top five
Hohenstein-Ernstthal. Strong statement from Jordan Pepper (ZA/TGI Team Lamborghini by GRT): The driver currently third in the table set the fastest lap time of Friday's practice at the Sachsenring, leaving his rivals in no doubt that they can expect an assault on the top spot in the DTM this weekend. The South African recorded the best time of the day in the morning session, stopping the clock at 1:17.967 minutes, and remained the only racer to dip below 1:18.000 in practice. Timo Glock (Kreuzlingen/Dörr Motorsport) was in fine form again: the former Formula 1 driver was the fastest man in the afternoon session, when he produced the second-best lap of the day. In doing so, Glock backed up his performances in practice at the Nürburgring, when he achieved the first top time for McLaren in the DTM.
"The last time I raced at the Sachsenring was with Formula 3 in 2002, when I actually won. I really enjoy the track, particularly the fast second sector," Glock revealed. Third place went to championship leader Lucas Auer (Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf). The Austrian looks well-prepared to fend off the inevitable attacks from his rivals. Fellow Mercedes-AMG driver Jules Gounon (F/Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter) set the fourth-fastest time at the 3.645-kilometre circuit. Fifth fastest was Porsche works driver Thomas Preining (A/Manthey EMA). Defending champion Mirko Bortolotti (I/Abt Sportsline) completed the top six in his Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2.
Pepper set the day's fastest time in the morning. "We did a qualifying simulation in the first session, then made a few different adjustments to the set-up in the afternoon. The Sachsenring is a special place for me. It was here that I started my first DTM race a year ago," said the 29-year-old.
The first qualifying session at the Sachsenring gets underway at 09:10 on Saturday. Fans can follow qualifying in a livestream at
ran.de. ProSieben is showing all 16 of this season's races live on free-to-air TV, with coverage starting at 13:00 on Saturday and Sunday. The two races are also being streamed live and free of charge on
Joyn,
ServusTV ON and the
YouTube channel @DTM.
All the results from the Sachsenring can be found at
dtm.com/en/results.