First DTM pole for SSR Porsche driver Dennis Olsen, who prevails over brand colleague Thomas Preining: Lucas Auer third, his title rivals stumble
Rain in Saturday’s DTM qualifying at Spa-Francorchamps – and Porsche strikes with the high-traction 911 GT3 R: SSR driver Dennis Olsen secures his first DTM pole in 2:30.488 ahead of Bernhard brand colleague Thomas Preining, who was 0.146 seconds off the pace
What was the Norwegian’s secret? “Maybe I got up on the right foot today,” he jokes to ‘ran.de’. “No, honestly the team built me a good car. We woke up and saw that there was a high chance of rain. And we definitely did our job.”
Olsen says the race, where the weather forecast also says it could rain, will now be a “challenge. “
Radio problems with Auer: “Was a little blind “
This also has to do with the unpredictable situation: “The weather seems unstable. We had a lot of rain this morning, now it has stopped. That has a big impact on the track in terms of tyre pressures. It will certainly be tough for the tyres when it dries up. Then strategy comes into play. Hopefully we’ll make the right decision. “
Third place went to Winward Mercedes driver Lucas Auer, who was 0.146 seconds off the pace. “That was a good qualifying,” the Austrian told ‘ran.de’ happily. “But I’m a bit miffed because we have radio problems. And in those conditions it’s so important that you’re in the right place at the right time. I was a bit blind. “
Auer also warns of tyres breaking in
Should it dry out in the race as it did in the closing minutes of qualifying, Auer also warns of potential tyre problems: “That was so brutal. The tyres have a maximum of one lap and then they drop like crazy.” So, he says, you have to come up with something in terms of air pressure and tyre protection.
It worked for Auer in qualifying, though, as the third-placed driver in the championship makes up another point with third on the grid, while his title rivals failed to finish up front.
Only 22nd place: perplexity for DTM leader van der Linde
DTM leader Sheldon van der Linde had to settle for 22nd place in the Schubert-BMW, 2.650 seconds behind, but that only put him two positions behind his pursuer Mirko Bortolotti in the Grasser-Lamborghini. Nevertheless, the South African was at a loss. When asked by ‘ran.de’ why he was so far behind, he said: “If I knew the answer, I would probably be in front. “
However, he hints that the conditions were not ideal for the M4 GT3, as Marco Wittmann, the best BMW driver in 17th place, was also 1.774 seconds behind. “The BMW just didn’t work today,” said van der Linde. “Somehow I had no front axle, I had a lot of understeer.”
After his first attempt, things had looked even worse: “There I was third last or something,” says the Schubert-BMW driver. “And also in the second run with the new tyres it didn’t go forward. I have no idea what’s going on. I’m disappointed.”
The only positive aspect: “It’s good that Mirko is also at the back,” says van der Linde, looking at the championship – and at his first pursuer. And hopes for dry conditions at least in the race: “Because I think: If it rains again, then we’ll be far behind. “
Rast gains two places due to demotion
Fairly better off than van der Linde and Bortolotti – second best Lamborghini driver behind Clemens Schmid in 19th – was Abt Audi driver Rene Rast, who is fourth in the championship and finished eleventh in qualifying.
Due to the demotion of Winward-Mercedes driver David Schumacher and GruppeM-Mercedes driver Maro Engel, who are each demoted by five grid positions due to collisions at the Nürburgring and start from positions eleven and twelve, Rast moves up to ninth place.
Nürburgring winner and HRT-Mercedes driver Luca Stolz, who also still has a chance in fifth place in the championship, did not really finish at the front either, in 15th. Qualifying was interrupted at half-time by a spin by Abt Audi driver Kelvin van der Linde, who spun at the Pouhon corner.
Luck for Kelvin van der Linde after spin
“This white line is painted – and once you drive on it, you have no grip anymore,” he described his incident to ‘ran.de’. “I waited for the tow truck and thank God there was no red flag. Otherwise my lap would have been cancelled then as well. “
KelvinVanDerLinde causes the Qualifying interruption DTM SpaFrancorchamps pic. twitter.com/DabFa4ONeu
– Motorsport-Total.com (@MST_DTM) September 10, 2022
Race director Scot Elkins left it at a full-course yellow, however, and the Audi was pulled out of the gravel to resume the session. In the end, the South African finished eighth as the best Audi driver.
“Of the mid-engined cars, we came through best,” the brother of Sheldon van der Linde was not dissatisfied – suggesting that the Audi, Lamborghini and Ferrari did not necessarily have an advantage in these conditions.
At the end of qualifying, Rosberg-Audi driver Dev Gore also recorded a spin, which meant that the times did not improve in the final seconds. The start of the race will be at 13:30.
