Sheldon van der Linde finally claimed his first victory at the Norisring on Saturday in his fifth season in the DTM. The defending champion had previously secured his first pole position at the street circuit in Nuremberg, and so started the race from the front of the field. 69 laps later, he took the chequered flag in his BMW M4 GT3.
Qualifying
Sheldon van der Linde secured his first pole position at the Norisring, setting the fastest time of 48.775 seconds on his 13th lap. The South African would start the race alongside Thomas Preining on the front row of the grid for race 5 of the DTM season.
Ayhancan Güven took third place, followed by Luca Stolz, Kelvin van der Linde, and Mirko Bortolotti.
Van der Linde is no stranger to success at the Norisring, having finished on the podium in each of his previous four races at the track. However, this is his first pole position, and he will be looking to capitalize on his qualifying form and take his first win of the season.
Preining will be looking to challenge van der Linde for the win, as he has shown strong pace all weekend. Güven will also be a contender, as he has been one of the most consistent drivers in the DTM this season.
The Norisring is a challenging track, but it is also one of the most exciting. With so many drivers capable of winning, it should be a thrilling race.
The top 6 grid positions for race 1 at the Norisring:
- Sheldon van der Linde (ZA/Schubert Motorsport)
- Thomas Preining (A/Manthey EMA)
- Ayhancan Güven (TR/Team75 Motorsport)
- Luca Stolz (D/Mercedes-AMG Team HRT)
- Kelvin van der Linde (ZA/Abt Sportsline)
- Mirko Bortolotti (I/SSR Performance)
RACE ONE
Van der Linde held off Ayhancan Güven at the start to retain the lead of the race, and his team-mate René Rast promptly made up four positions to slot into third. Kelvin van der Linde and Mirko Bortolotti finished in fourth and fifth place.
Thomas Preining, who had come into the race as championship leader, dropped from second to eighth in his 911 after several collisions in the first half of the race. The safety car made two appearances, but the order at the front of the field remained the same after the pit stops.
In the end, it was van der Linde who pulled away to win the race, with Rast and Olsen finishing second and third respectively. It was van der Linde’s fifth DTM win in total, and it moves him to the top of the championship standings.
Here are some additional details from the race:
- Van der Linde’s win was his first at the Norisring, a track where he had never finished on the podium before.
- It was also the first one-two for Schubert Motorsport in the DTM since 2017.
- Olsen’s third place was his best result of the season so far.
- Preining’s eighth place finish was a disappointing result for the championship leader, but he still retains a narrow lead in the standings.
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