52.
2:25 p.m
Bortolotti catches up to Aitken
Bortolotti wants more after overtaking Kelvin van der Linde and has closed the gap towards Jack Aitken. Of course, every point is important for him in the fight for the championship.
49.
14:22
Overtaking maneuver by Mirko Bortolotti
SSR performance
The battle for sixth place is hot between Kelvin van der Linde and Mirko Bortolotti. Finally, Bortolotti manages to pass and takes sixth position.
47.
2:19 p.m
Preining continues to be confident
Thomas Preining continues to show himself confidently at the front and the Austrian has already managed to break away from Dennis Olsen by 4.1 seconds. Christian Engelhart is another 2.7 seconds behind and holds third place.
46.
2:19 p.m
Task by Arjun Maini
Mercedes-AMG Team HRT
Arjun Maini is the next driver who will call it a day before the checkered flag. This means there are now 22 drivers left in the race.
43.
2:15 p.m
Van der Linde has to be careful
Kelvin van der Linde also has to be careful in the duel with Mirko Bortolotti, because he has already exceeded the track limits a few times.
40.
14:12
Bortolotti is stuck
Mirko Bortolotti is currently stuck. The Italian is seventh, just behind Kelvin van der Linde in seventh place. At the top, Thomas Preining separated himself from teammate Olsen by 3.6 seconds.
38.
2:10 p.m
Task from René Rast
Schubert Motorsport
René Rast has now finished his race. 23 drivers are still in the race. So far everything continues to point towards Preining winning the championship.
36.
2:08 p.m
Damage to René Rast
Schubert Motorsport
Damage to René Rast! The German driver wanted to defend himself after his pit stop with cold tires and the tire on his BMW suffered damage. That should mean his race is over!
36.
2:07 p.m
Pit stop by Maro Engel
Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf
Maro Engel is the last driver to come in for his pit stop. So we now have an adjusted ranking again. Preining leads ahead of Olsen and Engelhart.
31.
2:03 p.m
Everything fits for Preining
Thomas Preining is currently having a clean race and is on course to decide the championship today. In the group of stopped drivers, he is easily ahead of his teammate Olsen.
28.
2:00 p.m
Many already in the box
The majority of the field was already in the pit lane and had completed the tire change. Six drivers still have to stop.
27.
13:59
Overtaking maneuver by Ricardo Feller
Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline
Strong maneuver by Ricardo Feller! The Swiss takes advantage of Aitken’s lack of attention when he wants to get past Perera and finally overtakes his Ferrari competitor.
26.
13:58
Pit stop by Thomas Preining
Manthey EMA
Now the leader comes in for the pit stop with Christian Engelhart in tow. Where will he get back on track? In sixth place ahead of teammate Olsen.
24.
13:57
Overtaking maneuver by Jack Aitken
Emil Frey Racing
Things are really going well now! Aitken and Feller clamp down on Bortolotti and maneuver past the Italian in tight maneuvers. Meanwhile, Dennis Olsen was also in the pits.
23.
1:55 p.m
Bortolotti spreads out
Bortolotti still has cold tires after the stop and now has to hold his own against Aitken and Feller, who want to pass again after losing their positions in the pits.
22.
13:54
Pit stop by Mirko Bortolotti
SSR performance
A lap later, Mirko Bortolotti goes in to change his tires. It works better for him and he manages to get past Kelvin van der Linde in the box.
20.
13:53
Pit stop at Aitken and Feller
Emil Frey Racing
The pit window opens and Jack Aitken and Ricardo Feller go straight to the pits to complete the mandatory stop. Aitken drives out again in front of Feller.
18.
13:51
Aitken with the gap
Feller seems to be taking a step back for now and is now falling behind Jack Aitken a little. There is a gap of 0.7 seconds between the two drivers. It won’t be long now until the box window opens.
16.
13:48
Task from Luca Engstler
Liqui Moly Team Engstler Motorsport
Luca Engstler comes back to the pits at a slow pace and gives up the race prematurely. Ayhancan Güven is also no longer in the race.
16.
13:47
Preining drives away
Thomas Preining can now break away from his teammate at the front and with fast laps he has separated himself from Olsen by 1.4 seconds.
14.
1:45 p.m
The gap is getting bigger
At the moment Manthey can send a thank you letter to Aitken. The Ferrari driver continues to spread out and things pile up behind him while the gap to the front keeps getting bigger.
10.
13:42
Aitken spreads himself out
Feller tries again, but Jack Aitken spreads out, slams the door and so Feller has to fall back again, while the top three can easily break away.
8th.
1:40 p.m
Feller looks for the way past
Ricardo Feller is currently the fastest driver on the track, but he can’t take advantage of that because he simply can’t get past Jack Aitken’s Ferrari.
6.
13:38
Manthey ahead
At the front, the two Manthey Porsches are still flying parallel and occupy first and second place ahead of Christian Engelhart. Jack Aitken is in fourth place and life is difficult for Feller.
4.
1:35 p.m
Feller puts everything into it
Ricardo Feller gave it his all and turned up the heat in the first few minutes of the race and is in fifth place, close behind Jack Aitken. Mirko Bortolotti is currently seventh.
2.
13:34
Lots of duels in the back field
Things are very intense in the back of the field and the drivers don’t give each other anything in the fight for position. In the middle of it all is Sheldon van der Linde in the BMW.
1.
13:33
Start 1st race
The race has started! Thomas Preining has no problems at the front and prevails in the fight for the top position. His teammate takes second place, while there are already flying parts at the back.
1:30 p.m
Introductory round
Led by Thomas Preining, the field goes into the introductory lap. Now it won’t be long until the race starts!
13:22
Engelhart in the front row when he returns
The Porsche team Toksport WRT and Christian Engelhart went their separate ways in the DTM halfway through the season, now the German is returning to the racing series in the Grasser Lamborghini after being approved by Porsche and showed up last weekend. In today’s qualifying, he placed his car in second place on the grid. Dennis Olsen and Franck Perera make up the second row.
13:17
Preining with the best starting position
Thomas Preining secured the best starting position for Saturday. The Manthey driver set the fastest time in qualifying and will start the race from pole position. Meanwhile, his title rivals suffered setbacks. Although Bortolotti had secured the best time shortly before the end, his lap was canceled because he exceeded the track limits and in the end it was only enough for eighth place on the grid. Ricardo Feller placed his Abt-Audi in seventh place on the grid. If Preining wins, Bortolotti would have to finish at least fifth today to delay the title decision until Sunday.
13:13
The route
The 4.574 kilometer long circuit in Hockenheim is considered one of the DTM’s traditional venues. No other track has hosted more DTM races since its premiere in 1984. Since its debut, more DTM races have been held on this track than any other. During this time, Hockenheim has hosted the DTM season opening race an impressive 21 times and the DTM season finale an impressive 28 times.
13:04
Who will win the DTM title?
There are still three drivers in the championship who have a chance of winning this year’s title. The leader of the drivers’ standings with 193 points is Thomas Preining from Manthey-Porsche. Mirko Bortolotti is only 13 points behind with his SSR Lamborghini. Ricardo Feller also has a chance with Abt-Audi, who has 159 points to his name.
12:55
Welcome!
In the DTM everything is in place for an exciting finale in Hockenheim and today is the penultimate race of the season. It starts at 1:30 p.m.!