As DTM made its way to the Norisring, the only street circuit on the calendar did not disappoint. Jordan Pepper and Thomas Preining picked up wins in Race 1 & 2, respectively, on the streets of Nuremberg. Ferrari had their best weekend of the season and picked up a double-podium finish on Sunday. Arjun Maini’s rich form continues, and the HRT Team continue to make progress.

Jordan Pepper Delivers a Commanding Performance on Saturday

Jordan Pepper’s form shows no signs of slowing down, as the South African wins his first DTM race to become the sixth race winner of the 2025 season. Pepper achieved this feat just one week after his 24 Hours of Spa success. Pepper picked up pole position earlier that day and converted pole to win by driving a near-flawless race. Pepper’s race win seemed skeptical only at one point – when he lost time in the pits due to a rear-right tire issue. However, he had made up enough time in his first stint to take the win.

“It was the longest 55 minutes of my life” – Said Pepper

Thomas Preining finished in second place, just three seconds behind Pepper. Maro Engel returned to the podium despite an opening lap collision with Nicki Thiim. Thiim spun and finished the race last in 20th; however, the incident was deemed a racing incident by the stewards. Arjun Maini pushed his Ford Mustang to its limits and had an intense battle with three-time DTM champion Rene Rast, where he put up a strong defence. Maini finished the race in P8 while Rast drove a brilliant recovery from P17 to P10.

Mirko Bortolotti had a heated battle with Marco Whittman, which involved several instances of contact between the Lamborghini and BMW. This led to a warning for Whittman, and both drivers finished out of the top 15. Fabio Scherer could not start the race due to a massive crash in qualifying earlier. Timo Glock reported a power issue, and Aston Martin driver Gilles Magnus scored his first points of the season with a P12 finish.

Thomas Preining Wins Chaotic Sunday Race

Flawless strategy by the Manthey EMA team meant that Preining picked up his first win of the season in Nuremberg. Starting from sixth on the grid, Preining beat Ferrari drivers Jack Aitken and Thierry Vermeulen to clinch the win. The Emil Frey pair finished P2 and P3 to round up a double podium for Ferrari.

The race started with a massive incident at turn 1 involving Marco Whittman, Mirko Bortolotti, Nicki Thiim and Jules Gounon. The incident forced all 4 drivers to retire and red-flag the race. The race restarted under a safety car, where polesitter Vermeulen maintained the lead from Aitken and Preining, who had jumped from sixth to third in the first start.

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A full-course yellow was called when Fabio Scherer suffered a loose wheel. This caused another accident, where Tom Kalender’s Mercedes was hit from the back by Magnus’s Aston Martin while he slowed down to meet the delta time. This caused both drivers to retire from the race.

“That would’ve been the usual braking point. I don’t know what the other driver was thinking, but it happened. You can’t just vanish into thin air. It was a typical racing incident.” – Said Kalender

The race was won by the Manthey team’s pit crew. Preining was closing in on Aitken, trailing the Ferrari driver by less than a second. A faster stop by the Manthey team put Preining right on Aitken’s tail, and since he had pitted a lap before Aitken, warmer tires allowed him to take the lead of the race. Maro Engel finished fourth ahead of Arjun Maini. Rene Rast salvaged P7.

Arjun Maini Continues to Progress Upwards

After a few incredible comeback drives earlier this year, Maini qualified P2 in the Group A qualifying on Sunday and finished P5. He took part in a heated battle with Rene Rast on Saturday and finished the race in P8. This was Maini’s best weekend so far in 2025, on a track not easy to drive due to its tight street circuit nature. Half of the season done and now familiar with his new car, Maini will be eyeing a podium finish in the coming races.

Championship Standings

The DTM driver’s standings show drastic changes after every race weekend; however, Lucas Auer continues to lead. Thomas Preining and Jordan Pepper jump up the standings to P2 and P3 while being tied at 102 points each, thanks to their wins. Jack Aitken also moves up to P4 level with Maro Engel at 101 points. Zandvoort Race winners Rast and Guven fall to P6 and P8. Jules Gounon sits at P7 with 88 points. Arjun Maini moves up to P14.

Mercedes’ lead over Porsche shrinks by 10 points. Lamborghini, Ferrari and BMW fight for P3 in the standings with 174, 167 and 161 points respectively. Manthey extends their lead to Winward Racing.

Nurburgring Up Next

DTM will return in five weeks’ time to the Nurburgring on 8-10 August. Jordan Pepper, high on confidence and in great form, will look to grab big points. Lucas Auer, after a brilliant start, will want to pick up the pace again for the latter half of the season and look to return to the podium. After coming ever so close to victory, Ferrari will look to push towards the top step of the podium. Having won two races this season, Guven will look to make up places in the standings.

Desi Racing Co. is dedicated to bringing the latest updates and insights from the world of motorsport. Whether it’s Formula 1, Formula 2, WEC, MotoGP, Indian motorsports, or other racing series, we’ve got you covered! Stay connected with us for in-depth motorsport coverage. Follow us on Twitter/X/, Instagram, and LinkedIn to keep up with the latest motorsport news and updates.

Zandvoort saw top-tier racing and incredible DTM action. The weekend saw intermittent rainfall and therefore, unpredictable results. Underdogs such as Nicki Thiim and Max Paul had success, while the favourites like Lucas Auer, Jordan Pepper and Maro Engel would’ve hoped for better results.

Guven Holds his Composure in a Rain-Affected Chaotic Saturday Race

Strategy played a key role in Saturday’s race as the sun played hide and seek. Jordan Pepper showed exceptional skill during qualifying to secure pole position in tricky wet conditions. However, he failed to convert pole to win due to a strategy mishap. Pepper delayed his pitstop to avoid the crowded pit lane once the pit window opened. Later, when he did come into the pits, a slow stop meant that he lost the lead of the race. Maro Engel had a disappointing race, finishing P9, starting from P2. At the race start, he lost a couple of positions to Luca Engstler and Ayhancan Guven. Later in the race, Engel entered the pit lane one lap too early, before the pit window opened, due to a suspected radio miscommunication. This was effectively a drive-through and cost him the race.

Ayhancan Guven held his composure amidst the chaos and drove an excellent race to secure only his second DTM win, after his first at Oschersleben. Nicki Thiim and Max Paul finished P2 and P3, both starting from outside the top 10 thanks to a daring strategy. Thiim and Paul started the race on slicks and lost nearly 30 seconds to the leaders in the first 5 laps, however, a late stop allowed them to retain track position, and they cashed in their advantage to finish on the podium. Morris Schuring and Marco Whittmann fought till the end, with Schuring crossing the line just 0.017 seconds ahead of Whittmann to secure P5.

“It was a crazy race today. I got off to a good start and battled with Luca [Engstler], then we had a really good pitstop. The strategy was excellent too, but given the conditions, it was definitely walking a fine line.” – Said Guven

The race also saw multiple collisions and pit stop drama. Timo Glock made contact with Gilles Magnus’s Aston Martin, which sent him into a massive rally-style drift into the gravel. He did well to keep the car out of the barriers; however, a puncture meant that he had to retire from the race. Three-time DTM champion Rene Rast made contact with the barriers not once, but twice! Among other retirements, Arjun Maini too suffered an unfortunate retirement in his Ford.

BMW Dominates on Sunday for a 1-2 Finish

After a chaotic Saturday, Race 2 was comparatively uneventful. Rene Rast started from pole and drove an excellent race to convert it into a win. Marco Whittmann celebrated his 200th DTM race with a P2 finish and a 1-2 for BMW and Schubert Motorsport. Whittmann had a good start and straight away overtook Jack Aitken’s Ferrari in the first corner of the first lap to put himself in P2. Later, he piled on the pressure in the closing laps; however, Rast was successful in keeping him behind.

“I was clearly faster towards the end, I could attack, but it just wasn’t enough” – Said Whittmann

Jack Aitken and Thomas Preining had a fierce battle for 3rd; however, they could not keep up with the 2 BMWs. Preining emerged victorious from the battle to round up the podium. Maro Engel had a much better race, as compared to Saturday, and made up 7 places to finish P5. Fabio Scherer suffered a driveshaft problem, due to which he retired before the start of the race. Saturday’s polesitter Jordan Pepper suffered a DNF after a puncture due to contact with Thierry Vermeulen’s Ferrari.

Arjun Maini Shines on Sunday

After a disappointing result on Saturday, Arjun Maini bounced back on Sunday and drove a brilliant race in his new team. This also showed positive signs for the HRT team as well as Arjun Maini as they continue to familiarize themselves with the new car. A few weeks earlier, at Lausitzring, Maini showed promising signs with a brilliant drive from P20 to P12. This weekend at Zandvoort, starting from P16, he made up 6 places to achieve his best finish so far in 2025, driving the new Ford Mustang. This included his incredible battle with the McLaren of Ben Dorr, where none of the two drivers seemed too yield. However, Maini kept his head down and made the overtake stick. Maini and the team hope to continue this upward trend and hope to be fighting at the front of the field soon.

Championship Standings

A race win for Ayhancan Guven and Rene Rast propelled them into the top 3 in the driver’s championship. Lucas Auer continues to lead with 91 points, followed by Rast at 75 and Guven at 73. Jules Gounon and Maro Engel are close behind at 73 and 72 points, respectively. Arjun Maini currently sits at 17th in the standings.

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Manthey leads the team’s standings with 145 points. After a brilliant Sunday for Schubert Motorsport, they close the gap to Winward Racing as both teams are at 139 points. Mercedes maintains a healthy gap of 30 points in the manufacturer’s standings. Porsche is in 2nd with 152 points, followed closely by BMW at 142 and Lamborghini at 137.

Month-long Break Until Norisring

After an incredible weekend at Zandvoort, DTM resumes on 4-6 July at Norisring. Norisring is the only street circuit on the DTM calendar. Championship leader Lucas Auer will look to bounce back after failing to secure a podium at Zandvoort. Maro Engel will also hope to fight at the front for a win. Guven and Rast will enter the weekend with loads of confidence after their wins and will look to close the gap to the top of the standings.

Desi Racing Co. is dedicated to bringing the latest updates and insights from the world of motorsport. Whether it’s Formula 1, Formula 2, WEC, MotoGP, Indian motorsports, or other racing series, we’ve got you covered! Stay connected with us for in-depth motorsport coverage. Follow us on Twitter/X/, Instagram, and LinkedIn to keep up with the latest motorsport news and updates.

DTM is all set to make a stop at the DEKRA Lausitzring this weekend for Round 2 of the championship. The South African Jordan Pepper is leading the championship, but race winners Lucas Auer and Ayhancan Guven come into this weekend with lots of confidence. Let’s see who comes out on top at Lausitzring.

READ MORE: Auer and Güven Shine as DTM Kicks Off in Oschersleben

Jordan Pepper Looking for his First Win of the Season

Jordan might be leading the championship, but the Lamborghini driver did not win any races last time out. Thanks to his consistent qualifying and race results, the South African has managed to get the most points of anyone and take the championship lead. For Jordan, the goal this weekend would be to repeat that form and continue to get consistent points on the board, although he would not be completely opposed to getting some wins while he is at it.

Auer and Guven Carrying Momentum from Last Round

For Lucas Auer, Race 1 last time around was perfect as he started from Pole and was in control throughout to take the win when the chequered flag dropped. Guven too, impressed everyone by executing the perfect strategy to become the first ever winner, a Turkish driver to win in DTM. Both these drivers are on 34 points, just 3 behind the championship leader Jordan Pepper.

“I won my first DTM race at the Lausitzring in 2016; that was something of a breakthrough. The track is technically demanding, but also really cool to drive,” said Auer.

Arjun Maini and HRT are familiarising themselves with the Mustang

Both Arjun and HRT have been long-time associated with Mercedes, so shifting to Ford this year was a bold move. The new kid on the block is still getting to grips with the German team. Last weekend, Arjun was the quickest Ford of the two and also helped the American manufacturer score a point on debut. This weekend, the team and the Indian driver would be looking to build on the experience they have gained and hopefully move up in the grid. With the BoP balancing out the manufacturers in DTM, one can expect them to challenge for the top 10, if not for podiums and wins.

Schedule and Where to Watch DTM in India

You can watch all the sessions of DTM live on Fancode with a weekend pass for just this weekend or a full season pass for the full DTM season. The complete schedule in IST is given below.

Desi Racing Co. is dedicated to bringing the latest updates and insights from the world of motorsport. Whether it’s Formula 1, Formula 2, WEC, MotoGP, Indian motorsports, or other racing series, we’ve got you covered! Stay connected with us for in-depth motorsport coverage. Follow us on Twitter/X, Instagram, and LinkedIn to keep up with the latest motorsport news and updates.