DTM 2015 - Media Information.

2015 sees BMW Motorsport enter its fourth season since returning to the DTM. The record so far is outstanding. Six of the nine titles on offer in the Drivers’, Manufacturers’ and Team competitions since 2012 have gone to Munich. Furthermore, the “Rookie of the Year” has been at the wheel of a BMW racing car in all three seasons.

In 2014, Marco Wittmann was crowned the youngest German DTM champion ever in the Ice-Watch BMW M4 DTM. He won four races, including the debut of the new BMW M4 DTM in Hockenheim. Under the guidance of team principal Stefan Reinhold, BMW Team RMG also wrapped up the title in the Team competition. Wittmann and his team-mate Maxime Martin – “2014 Rookie of the Year” – won five of the season’s ten races.

Like last year, the starting grid features eight BMW M4 DTMs in 2015, fielded by the experienced BMW teams RMG, Schnitzer, RBM and MTEK. Seven of the last season’s eight drivers are back on board in 2015. New to the squad is Tom Blomqvist. The Brit impressed the powers that be at BMW Motorsport during tests with the BMW M4 DTM, and has been given the opportunity to prove himself as a DTM rookie. 

In keeping with the philosophy of “never change a winning team”, last year’s champion team goes into the nine race weekends that make up the 2015 season with an unchanged driver line-up: reigning DTM champion Wittmann and Martin are back behind the wheel for BMW Team RMG. There has been a change of driver in each of the other teams. 2011 champion Martin Tomczyk competes with BMW Team Schnitzer in his 15th season in the DTM. His new team-mate is António Félix da Costa, who made his DTM debut last year. DTM rookie Blomqvist joins BMW Team RBM for his first season. In Augusto Farfus, he has an experienced BMW works driver at his side, who has won four races in the DTM since 2012. After three years with BMW Team Schnitzer, 2012 DTM champion Bruno Spengler now does battle for BMW Team MTEK. He joins his new team-mate Timo Glock, who is now in his third year in the DTM.

In 2015, the teams and drivers can look forward to 18 races over nine weekends. For the first time since the 2000 season, each event will feature two races of equal value. A race on both Saturday (40 minutes) and Sunday (60 minutes) guarantees twice as much action as in previous years for the fans in the grandstands and watching at home on television. Spectators can also look forward to a 20-minute qualifying session on each of the two days.

Another change for 2015 is that there is only one tyre compound. Qualifying and the races are held on standard tyres. Each driver has four sets of tyres at their disposal. There are also more opportunities to use DRS: the system may be used three times per lap, provided the driver is less than one second behind the car in front after crossing the start/finish line. The rear wing can now be lowered by 18 degrees, instead of the previous 16. This reduces aerodynamic drag and increases the top speed, thus guaranteeing even more overtaking manoeuvres. 

The season kicks off with two races in Hockenheim on 2nd/3rd May. Before the series returns to the same venue for the season finale on 17th/18th October, it will call at a further four circuits in Germany: the Lausitzring, the Norisring, the Nürburgring and Oschersleben. Three rounds will take place outside of Germany, in Zandvoort, Spielberg and Moscow.