Reactions to the seventh race of the 2015 DTM season.

Zandvoort (NL), 11th July 2015. BMW Motorsport made history in the seventh race of the DTM season, claiming all of the top seven positions. Marco Wittmann (DE) presented BMW with its first win since August 2014 and the first success of the current season. António Félix da Costa (PT) celebrated his first podium in the DTM and was joined on an all-BMW podium by Maxime Martin (BE). Two BMW Team RMG drivers took their places on the podium, in the form of Wittmann and Martin. The leading trio was followed over the line by Augusto Farfus (BR), Bruno Spengler (CA), Timo Glock (DE) and Tom Blomqvist (GB). Martin Tomczyk (DE) retired with a technical problem.

Read here what BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt and the eight BMW DTM drivers had to say after the seventh race of the season in Zandvoort.

Jens Marquardt (BMW Motorsport Director): “That is obviously an absolute dream result. After a superb qualifying, we were able to take full advantage of the good starting position. Marco Wittmann got off to a great start and had a great race. The same goes for António Félix da Costa, with the best DTM race of his career, and Tom Blomqvist, who scored his first DTM points. However, all the drivers did a great job today. Only Martin Tomczyk was unlucky and failed to finish due to a technical problem. We had not bargained on this kind of historic result. Above all, it was a team performance – and is good for everyone after recent weeks. However, we know not to get too carried away with this result. We cannot solve all the problems overnight. Zandvoort suits us, and the weight situation certainly helped. This season has shown how quickly things can change in the DTM. However, it does suggest that all our hard work is taking us in the right direction. And it feels great to see the spirit within our team. We will need that over the coming months. We are now looking ahead to tomorrow, and hoping for a good result.”

Stefan Reinhold (Team Principal BMW Team RMG): “There is nothing better for a team principal than to stand on the podium with both of his drivers. That is an emotional high for us. The thanks for this performance go to everyone in my team and BMW Motorsport. That was a fantastic performance from everyone after such a difficult start to the season. We are now fully motivated to do well tomorrow too.”

Marco Wittmann (BMW Team RMG, 1st place): “It feels awesome to be back on the top step of the podium. I am incredibly happy. That is not only a great success for me, but for the team and everyone at BMW Motorsport. I think this result will give us a massive boost for the rest of the season. We all needed exactly that kind of result after the problems we have had at the start of the season.”

António Félix da Costa (BMW Team Schnitzer, 2nd place): “I am incredibly happy for myself, of course, as it has been a tough journey so far. We worked so hard for that. However, I am also very happy to give something back to BMW Motorsport. They have always believed in me and given me this opportunity. I am a really happy man today.”

Maxime Martin (BMW Team RMG, 3rd place): “This is a great day for BMW – and for me, of course. To stand on the podium after a race in which we occupied places one to seven is a great feeling. We made history today, and I was part of it. After the opening race weekends, which did not go to plan, this success will do everyone at BMW Motorsport good. This is my first podium appearance since my win in Moscow in 2014. We all start from scratch again tomorrow, but, as far as I am concerned, long may it continue this way.”

Augusto Farfus (BMW Team RBM, 4th place): “The result was obviously fantastic for BMW as a whole. It gives us a big boost after the disappointments of the first few races. Unfortunately it did not go entirely to plan for me personally. My clutch slipped at the start, which resulted in me losing a few places. After that we all had similar pace. I will now aim for pole position again tomorrow, and then a place on the podium. I have a score to settle with Zandvoort.”

Bruno Spengler (BMW Team MTEK, 5th place): “The race went very well. Starting from ninth, I soon made up places. Unfortunately my qualifying was not ideal, otherwise I could have started from further up the grid. On the whole, however, I am delighted with this fantastic result for BMW Motorsport. After our difficult start to the season, this is a magnificent comeback.”

Timo Glock (BMW Team MTEK, 6th place): “Unfortunately I had major problems with the clutch, which prevented me from getting away well at the start. After that I was stuck behind Tom Blomqvist, which put a lot of strain on my tyres. Despite this, I managed to get past Tom at some point and then benefitted from mistakes by the opposition. For me, personally, sixth place is a positive step, while the result is obviously awesome for BMW. Congratulations to Marco Wittmann. I am happy that he so emphatically disproved my prediction that we would not win a race this season.”

Tom Blomqvist (BMW Team RBM, 7th place): “The race went really well. I had a good start and pulled straight ahead of Timo Glock. After that I found myself stuck behind Jamie Green and had problems looking after my tyres. It started to get difficult for me about halfway into the race, and I lost my place to Timo. Despite this, I am obviously delighted with this fantastic result for BMW.”

Martin Tomczyk (BMW Team Schnitzer, DNF): “The car had a technical problem. During the Safety Car period it suddenly started to emit smoke from the engine area. Unfortunately I could not continue. I will now look ahead and hope things work out better tomorrow. All the same, congratulations to the entire BMW team on this result.”

DTM standings.

Drivers' Championship.

1. Jamie Green (81 points), 2. Mattias Ekström (70), 3. Pascal Wehrlein (68), 4. Edoardo Mortara (58), 5. Robert Wickens (57), 6. Marco Wittmann (39), 7. Bruno Spengler (37), 8. Christian Vietoris (36), 9. Gary Paffett (36), 10. Maxime Martin (32), 11. Miguel Molina (27), 12. Mike Rockenfeller (25), 13. Paul di Resta (23), 14. Martin Tomczyk (20), 15. António Félix da Costa (18), 16. Augusto Farfus (17), 17. Timo Scheider (16), 18. Daniel Juncadella (14), 19. Timo Glock (13), 20. Nico Müller (12), 21. Tom Blomqvist (6), 22. Lucas Auer (2).

Team Championship.

1. gooix/Original-Teile Mercedes-AMG (104 points), 2. Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline (97), 3. Audi Sport Team Rosberg (93 Punkte), 4. SILBERPFEIL Energy Mercedes-AMG (80), 5. BMW Team RMG (71), 6. Audi Sport Team Abt (58), 7. BMW Team MTEK (50), 8. Audi Sport Team Phoenix (41), 9. BMW Team Schnitzer (38), 10. EURONICS/BWT Mercedes-AMG (38), 11. BMW Team RBM (23), 12. PETRONAS Mercedes-AMG (14).

Manufacturers' Championship.

1. Audi (289 Punkte), 2. Mercedes-Benz (236), 3. BMW (157).

Statistics for the BMW DTM drivers.

2015 race calendar.

1st-3rd May – Hockenheim (DE), 29th-31st May – Lausitzring (DE), 26th-28th June – Norisring (DE), 10th-12th July – Zandvoort (NL), 31st July-2nd August – Spielberg (AT), 28th-30th August – Moscow (RU), 11th-13th September – Oschersleben (DE), 25th-27th September – Nürburgring (DE), 16th-18th October – Hockenheim (DE).