With Nicki Thiim and his commitment to the T3 team, a resounding name returns to the DTM: What this means for a possible Aston Martin entry
Nicki Thiim grabs the second Lamborghini cockpit with the T3 Motorsport team alongside fellow driver Esmee Hawkey, making the jump to the DTM! This was announced as a surprise by Dennis Rostek’s agency Pole-Promotion, who also looks after the 32-year-old Dane, in a press conference.
“DTM! What can I say? The biggest dream of my career is coming true,” Thiim rejoices. Through his commitment, a resounding name returns to the traditional series, because his father Kurt Thiim, who became champion in 1986 and took many of his 19 victories in a Mercedes, was already one of the big stars of the old DTM.
The DTM field grows to 27 cars with the sixth Huracan GT3 Evo (click here for the overview). Unless another surprise happens, only the two Ferrari cars of the AF-Corse team will now be announced.
Thiim’s design is reminiscent of Rockenfeller’s Phoenix Audi
Thiim, who is actually an Aston Martin works driver, had already tried to sign with T3 Motorsport last year, but the deal fell through then. This year, the venture succeeded, giving the Dresden-based T3 squad a top driver in its line-up.
The car design of the T3 Lamborghini is the responsibility of German automotive workshop supplier Twin Busch, who already sponsored Mike Rockenfeller’s Phoenix Audi in 2020.
Thiim already has a number of successes to show in his career: In 2013, the Dane took the title in the Porsche Supercup with DTM newcomer Attempto as well as victory in the 24-hour classic on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife, which he claimed in the Black Falcon team’s Mercedes.
Exemption of Aston Martin
In 2014, he docked with Aston Martin and took the biggest win of his career in his very first year, winning the GTE class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This triumph also ensured his promotion to works driver for the British luxury brand, for which he competed in the WEC from then on. He was successful, winning the title for Aston Martin Racing in 2016 and again in the 2020 season.
Due to Aston Martin’s factory GTE withdrawal at the end of 2020, the manufacturer was no longer able to offer Thiim such an attractive programme, which meant that a release for a DTM commitment was already an issue in 2021.
What happens in the event of a clash of dates?
The fact that he has also received an exemption from Aston Martin to compete in the T3 Lamborghini in 2022 is a clear indication that there will be no Vantage GT3 on the grid in the DTM this year either. Because otherwise Thiim would have driven that car.
This year, in addition to the DTM, he is competing in the Pro-Am class of the WEC for the Northwest AMR team, which is why there is a clash of dates on the Spa weekend from 8 to 11 September. No decision has been made yet on whether Thiim could skip the WEC’s Fuji weekend, but Aston Martin has clear priority on paper, which is against the DTM.
Due to his father’s history, the DTM was always a goal for him anyway, he tells himself. “I grew up with the DTM. For breakfast, lunch and dinner, there was always the DTM on TV – and my father was my hero, of course,” he says. The DTM was therefore in his DNA – and it was “always just” about “driving there”.
The fact that he has now achieved his goal with T3 Motorsport “after more than 20 years, a few detours and a few titles” is “absolutely something special. I’m happy to be the first son of a DTM champion to compete there.”
