Thiim follows in his father’s footsteps and makes history with Norisring victory
This has never happened before in the DTM: Nicki Thiim from SSR Performance claimed his maiden DTM victory in the Sunday race at the Norisring. The Lamborghini driver and his dad Kurt Thiim are the first father and son in the 40-year history of the DTM to both go down in the list of winners in this prestigious series. Two of Kurt Thiim’s 20 wins came at the street circuit in Nuremberg.
“As a young boy, I followed my father’s DTM races here. Victory at the Norisring has always been at the very top of my bucket list. It feels incredible to repeat my father’s success, particularly after what has been a difficult season so far. The moments after the finish were very emotional for me,” said a visibly moved Thiim after his commanding lights-to-flag victory.
Mercedes-AMG driver Maro Engel (Monaco) produced an impressive display to take second place in his 100th DTM race. Thiim’s team-mate Mirko Bortolotti (I) was third and new enters the second half of the season as the new championship leader. 110,000 visitors enjoyed an exciting weekend at the only street circuit in Germany, as the DTM celebrated its 40th anniversary with a feast of action both on and off the track.
Pole-sitter Thiim backed up his fine form at the start of this season’s eighth DTM race, consistently pulling away from team-mate Bortolotti in the first half of the race. Engel followed in third place, while the championship leader coming into the race, Kelvin van der Linde (ZA) in an Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo2 for Abt Sportsline, and Mercedes-AMG driver Luca Stolz (Brachbach) completed the top five.
When the pit stop window opened after 20 minutes, Engel’s tactics came into play. The experienced racer was one of the first to change his Pirelli tyres. When Bortolotti emerged from the pit lane ahead of him one lap later, Engel was able to pass him, having already got plenty of heat into his tyres. Out in front, Thiim had a perfect pit stop and rejoined the race at the head of the field, ahead of Engel and Bortolotti.
With roughly ten minutes of the race remaining, the safety car made an appearance, as a piece of carbon had to be removed from the track. The top three retained their positions after the restart – Thiim crossed the finish line first after 69 laps. Behind the leading trio, Arjun Maini (IND) came home fourth for Mercedes-AMG Team HRT after a flawless display in his Mercedes-AMG. Fifth place went to Saturday’s winner René Rast (Bregenz) in the Schubert Motorsport BMW M4 GT3, who again showed great determination to gain 14 places over the course of the race.
Defending champion Thomas Preining (A) from the Manthey EMA team started from twelfth on the grid, but managed to climb to sixth place in his Porsche 911 GT3 R after some impressive overtaking manoeuvres in the closing stages. Stolz ended Sunday’s race at the Nuremberg street circuit in seventh place. Ayhancan Güven (TR) was eighth in the second Manthey EMA Porsche, followed by Kelvin van der Linde. The South African started from fourth but dropped well back down the field after contact with Ferrari driver Jack Aitken (GB) from the Emil Frey Racing team. He eventually had to settle for ninth place, ahead of Lucas Auer (A/Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter). That result saw van der Linde concede top stop in the table to Bortolotti and end the first half of the 2024 DTM season in second place. Rast lies third in the overall standings.
Maro Engel: “The season has been one of highs and lows so far. As such, it is really nice to put in a good race and finish on the podium in my 100th race. Anyone who experiences the DTM with all the fans at the Norisring knows what the series is all about. It was also an absolute highlight to stand on the podium together with my daughter.”
Mirko Bortolotti: “I enjoy it every time I drive in the DTM at the Norisring. The atmosphere in the grandstands was mega. This is a super result for the whole team. The first half of the season has not been perfect for us, but I am still pleased to be leading the championship. That is something we can build on, in order to be even stronger in the second half.”
Results are HERE
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