Forza Ferrari: Vermeulen takes pole, third place for Aitken

Thierry Vermeulen continues to look good at the Red Bull Ring. After third place in the Saturday race, the Dutchman produced the fastest lap of Sunday morning's qualifying session, stopping the clock at 1:28.301 minutes. That ensured the Ferrari driver from Emil Frey Racing will start a DTM race from pole position for the second time this season.

"I like these mixed conditions, even if the damp and slippery kerbs were a challenge. We made a few changes to the car - and they proved to be successful, as you could see. It is forecast to rain in the race. In that case, it is a clear advantage to start at the front and have much better visibility," said Vermeulen.

Switzerland's Ricardo Feller, at the wheel of an Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo2 for Land-Motorsport, took second place, 0.157 seconds slower than Vermeulen. Jack Aitken appeared unaffected by his late off in Saturday's race. The Brit from the Emil Frey Racing team was third fastest in another Ferrari. Local favourite Lucas Auer guided his Mercedes-AMG GT3 to fourth place. His compatriot Thomas Preining will start the race from fifth on the grid in a Porsche 911 GT3 R.

The drivers had to cope with difficult conditions in the second qualifying session at the Red Bull Ring. With temperatures around 15 degrees Celsius, the track had largely dried out Sunday morning after rainfall during the night. However, there were still damp patches next to the racing line. Despite this, all the cars took to the 4.326-kilometre Alpine circuit on slicks.

Championship leader René Rast made a statement with the first time under 1:29.000 minutes just two minutes before the end. After that, the lead seemed to change hands every few seconds. Feller was first to hit the top of the timing sheet, but he was knocked off top spot by Vermeulen, who produced the session's fastest time on his ninth lap. Shortly before the end of qualifying, Aitken and Auer climbed into third and fourth place almost simultaneously. With Rast starting the 14th race of the season from seventh place, Auer and Aitken, who lie second and fourth in the championship, will fancy their chances of taking the overall lead in the DTM.

Results are HERE