With a very good start, Thomas Preining improved from sixth to third place by the first corner on Sunday – before the race was red-flagged shortly afterwards. After the restart, the driver of the number 91 Porsche, together with the Ferrari duo in front of him, increasingly pulled away from the rest of the field. Another perfectly executed tyre change moved him up to second place after the first round of pit stops. From there, Preining was able to put increasing pressure on the leading Jack Aitken, but was initially unable to find a way past. The Manthey EMA driver completed the second mandatory pit stop one lap ahead of his rival. When the Brit returned to the track just ahead of him, Preining overtook him a short time later in the Schöller-S section.
“Great performance here at the Norisring by Thomas Preining – after second place yesterday and today’s victory, we can speak of a very successful DTM weekend,” said Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport. “I would like to congratulate Team Manthey and thank everyone involved for their great work – including those who are supporting us from Weissach. With Manthey leading the team standings and second place among the drivers and the manufacturers, we can look ahead with excitement. I think we’re in for a great second half of the season. We are involved in the title fights, so I’m really looking forward to it. Now we’ll see if we can achieve this year.”
“We experienced a very special kind of motorsport today, a thrilling duel between modern gladiators,” said Sebastian Golz, Project Manager 911 GT3 R, summarising the action on Sunday. “It remained absolutely thrilling until shortly before the end to see who would take victory. Huge praise and thanks to Thomas Preining and the Manthey crew, who got the maximum out of the race both on and off the track. Morris Schuring, who drove from last place at the restart into the points, also deserves a round of applause. He didn’t give up and rewarded himself with this comeback as best rookie.”
Schuring was an innocent victim of the collision that led to the race being interrupted. He tackled the restart from last position and improved to 13th place at the finish in the Manthey Junior Team’s 911 GT3 R with up to 416 kW (565 hp). Ayhancan Güven from Turkey lost what he thought was a top ten place due to an unfortunate second pit stop and finished Sunday’s race in eleventh place in the second Manthey EMA Porsche.
Thomas Preining already in impressive form on Saturday
His third Norisring victory was already within reach for Preining on Saturday. From fourth on the grid, the former Porsche Junior moved up to second place. The fact that the 911 GT3 R works very well at the Norisring was also underlined by the other two Porsche drivers, who both finished in the points. From grid positions 18 (Güven) and 19 (Schuring), the duo moved up to eleventh and 14th respectively.
Quotes after the race
Thomas Preining (Manthey EMA, Porsche 911 GT3 R #91): “Both races were physically and mentally very demanding, with the outside temperatures causing the interior of the car to heat up considerably. On Sunday, I could barely keep up with the two Ferrari in front of me during the first stint. But our pit stop strategy paid off. After the first tyre change, I was able to put more and more pressure on Jack Aitken from second place. Shortly after the second stop, I made the decisive manoeuvre. My three pit stops this weekend all came at exactly the right time and the crew executed them perfectly. A big thank you to the whole team.”
Ayhancan Güven (Manthey EMA, Porsche 911 GT3 R #90): “Two eleventh places that feel different. On Saturday, I was able to work my way forward from a poor grid position and achieve the maximum possible for us on the day with eleventh place. On Sunday, on the other hand, we left a lot to be desired. I was in fifth position and had fourth place in my sights. Unfortunately, I got stuck in traffic at the second pit stop and lost valuable time. This eleventh place is therefore a disappointment.”
Morris Schuring (Manthey Junior Team, Porsche 911 GT3 R #92): “After the red flag, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to finish the race. With this in mind, to end it in 13th position as the best rookie makes me very happy. I have now extended my points-scoring streak to five races. I want to work on my qualifying performance next. For now, though, I’m looking forward to the short DTM break before continuing at the Nürburgring in five weeks’ time.”
Race 7 result:
1. Jordan Pepper (ZAF), TGI Team by GRT, Lamborghini #63, 65 laps
2. Thomas Preining (AUT), Manthey EMA, Porsche 911 GT3 R #91, +3.055 seconds
3. Maro Engel (DEU), Team Winward Racing, Mercedes-AMG #24, +4.132 seconds
11. Ayhancan Güven (TUR), Manthey EMA, Porsche 911 GT3 R #90, +30.026 seconds
14. Morris Schuring (NLD), Manthey Junior Team, Porsche 911 GT3 R #92, +35.822 seconds
Race 8 result:
1. Thomas Preining (AUT), Manthey EMA, Porsche 911 GT3 R #91, +64 laps
2. Jack Aitken (GBR), Emil Frey Racing, Ferrari #14, +1.592 seconds
3. Thierry Vermeulen (NLD), Emil Frey Racing, Ferrari #69,+ 5.209 seconds
11. Ayhancan Güven (TUR), Manthey EMA, Porsche 911 GT3 R #90, +24.590 seconds
13. Morris Schuring (NLD), Manthey Junior Team, Porsche 911 GT3 R #92, +26.102 seconds
Drivers’ standings after eight of 16 races:
1. Lucas Auer (AUT, Team Landgraf, Mercedes-AMG), 109 points
2. Thomas Preining (AUT, Manthey EMA, Porsche), 102 points
3. Jordan Pepper (ZAF, TGI Team by GRT, Lamborghini), 102 points
8. Ayhancan Güven (TUR, Manthey EMA, Porsche), 83 points
15. Morris Schuring (TUR, Manthey Junior Team, Porsche), 26 points
Team classification after eight of 16 races:
1. Manthey (Porsche), 201 points
2. Winward Racing (Mercedes-AMG), 184 points
3. Schubert Motorsport (BMW), 155 points
Manufacturers’ standings after eight of 16 races:
1. Mercedes-AMG, 230 points
2. Porsche, 210 points
3. Lamborghini, 174 points
All results at: www.dtm.com
Further information, film and photo material in the Porsche Newsroom: newsroom.porsche.com
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