HOCKENHEIM, Germany — All good things come in threes — Mirko Bortolotti has clinched his first DTM title in his third attempt.
For the Viennese-by-choice, a second place in the last race of the season on Sunday at the Hockenheimring Baden-Württemberg was enough to make his dream come true.
“That was the best second place of my career, and my best title to date,” Bortolotti said. “After fourth and second place in the past two years, the pressure was great, but with our great team we managed it. I have been through thick and thin with Lamborghini for ten years. With the title, I was able to repay some of the trust that was placed in me.”
Encore broadcasts of the DTM two-race finale air on SPEED SPORT 1 on SUNDAY at 4:30 p.m. ET (Race 1) and 6:30 p.m. ET (Race 2)
The only person faster than the 34-year-old in the 16th race of the season was fellow brand driver Luca Engstler from the Lamborghini Team Liqui Moly by GRT, who celebrated his second victory. Third place went to René Rast in the BMW M4 GT3 from Schubert Motorsport – the racing team finished the season as the best team.
Mercedes-AMG won the manufacturers’ championship. A total of 95,000 visitors experienced an exciting DTM finale with a changeable course at the Hockenheimring and celebrated a well-deserved overall winner in Bortolotti.
As It Happened
The start in front of the full grandstands at the Hockenheimring on Sunday afternoon went perfectly for Bortolotti. The polesitter was able to quickly pull away, with his teammate Nicki Thiim following in second place. Behind them were Ricardo Feller in the Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo2 from Abt Sportsline, Engstler and Lucas Auer from the Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter in positions three to five.
Encore broadcasts of the DTM two-race finale air on SPEED SPORT 1 on MONDAY at 3:00 p.m. ET (Race 1) and 5:00 p.m. ET (Race 2)
At this point, Bortolotti was already clearly on course for the championship. His closest competitor, Kelvin van der Linde, who was only one point behind, had fallen from fifth to 11th place after a weak start.
By the middle of the race, Bortolotti had built up a lead of over three seconds and made his obligatory pit stop late. The Lamborghini factory driver was the first to return to the track, but was overtaken after a short time by the onrushing Engstler. The 24-year-old had stopped earlier and was unstoppable with his Pirelli tires already warmed up. Rast had moved up to third place behind the leading duo. Thomas Preining was fourth in the Porsche 911 GT3 R from Manthey EMA after a quick tire change.
After 37 laps, Engstler was waved off as the winner, 0.455 seconds later the new DTM champion Bortolotti crossed the finish line in second place. Behind Rast and Preining, the strong Thiim fought his way to fifth place in the final championship race. Feller secured sixth place, BMW driver Marco Wittmann gained twelve positions and finished seventh.
Auer followed in eighth place, ahead of the third BMW from Schubert Motorsport with Sheldon van der Linde in the cockpit. Third place overall Maro Engel completed the top ten in the Mercedes-AMG GT3. Kelvin van der Linde was no longer able to get involved in the title fight and finished the race in twelfth place.