Kelvin van der Linde can still do it! The Abt driver celebrated his first DTM victory in two years at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg – the 27-year-old most recently triumphed at the Hockenheimring in the 2021 season.
Abt sports director Martin Tomczyk sums up what his driver has been feeling in the last few months: “Something like this is grueling,” says the 2011 DTM champion at “Motorsport-Total.com”.
“When you see that your teammate is fighting for the championship and you actually know that if it weren’t for the failures or spin-outs, you would also be at the front, then it’s really grueling,” says Tomczyk. As a reminder: Abt teammate Ricardo Feller is in third place in the overall standings and still has every chance of winning the championship title before the finale in Hockenheim.
Van der Linde is currently in seventh overall position, but he isn’t letting that bother him. “He also handles these situations excellently within the team,” reveals Tomczyk. “He motivates the team, he motivates his mechanics. He’s happy for Ricardo. He’s been there for so long and knows what it’s about.”
“As a racing driver, at some point you become an egoist because you want to win,” the Abt sports director knows from his own experience as a racing driver. “But you’re a complete professional when you show that you can also be happy for others, even if things aren’t going so well for you.” A strength that Tomczyk greatly appreciates: “I’m glad I have him on the team!”
Tomczyk highlights character
“His character is one of the best here in the paddock, you can see that in every interview, in all fan activities, but also when he gets into the racing car,” says Tomczyk. “He is absolutely focused and does perfect work with his team. This combination makes a likeable, extremely fast racing driver.”
“I’m glad that Kelvin is such a complete professional to be able to overcome such a dry spell and is still motivated again and again, even though he had a lot of setbacks this year,” recalls the Abt sports director. Van der Linde has been turned around several times this season or lost secure podium places due to technical problems.
“I know what it’s like. It’s not easy. You can only master it if you’re an experienced racing driver,” Tomczyk told Motorsport-Total.com. “He did that today too [im Samstagsrennen in Spielberg] proved once again that he is one of the fastest drivers under the most difficult conditions.”
Van der Linde relieved after success
Van der Linde was also relieved after his success: “It felt good to finally win a DTM race again after almost two years,” beamed the South African. There were times when things went much better for van der Linde. In the 2021 season, the Audi driver celebrated a total of four DTM victories and fought for the title until the finale at the Norisring.
“When you win a lot, you don’t notice it that much,” van der Linde tells Motorsport-Total.com. “Verstappen is currently experiencing that in Formula 1. But it’s nice to have a dry spell sometimes. Then you can enjoy it more and celebrate it much better with the team.”
“I had years when everything went well and I had the feeling that I couldn’t do anything wrong. All the accidents happened somewhere else, you’re never involved, you make the right strategic decisions,” said van der Linde after his podium success at the Lausitzring . “And then there are years when everything you do seems to go wrong.”
“There were situations this year where I was shot down in the first corner, no matter where I was on the grid,” says the experienced DTM driver, reflecting on his season so far. “You learn to enjoy the good moments more. That’s part of sport – and we all go through it.”
Race engineer an important support
Racing engineer Leon Wippersteg, whom van der Linde brought into the team himself last year, provided important support in the Spielberg victory. “It’s the best joy, it’s always difficult with work and friendship, it has to be right. Sometimes things fly because the friendship is so strong,” smiles Tomczyk.
“But the performance fits together very well,” says the Abt sports director happily. “That’s why I’m happy that Leon achieved his first DTM victory. That’s something great for him and they really deserve it.”