PressClub South Africa · Article.
Marco Wittmann’s road to victory in the 2014 Drivers’ Championship.
Mon Sep 15 14:36:14 CEST 2014 Press Release
From 2013 “Rookie of the Year” to 2014 DTM champion: BMW works driver Marco Wittmann (DE) was crowned champion in only his second season in the DTM. The 24-year-old at the wheel of the Ice-Watch BMW M4 DTM claimed his maiden DTM win at the season-opener in Hockenheim (DE) and has led the Drivers’ Championship since round three in Budapest (HU). The result at the Lausitzring (DE) means he has now won the title with races to spare.
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Lausitzring (DE), 14th September 2014. From 2013 “Rookie of the Year” to 2014 DTM champion: BMW works driver Marco Wittmann (DE) was crowned champion in only his second season in the DTM. The 24-year-old at the wheel of the Ice-Watch BMW M4 DTM claimed his maiden DTM win at the season-opener in Hockenheim (DE) and has led the Drivers’ Championship since round three in Budapest (HU). The result at the Lausitzring (DE) means he has now won the title with races to spare.
We have put together a compact review of Marco Wittmann’s road to the title in the 2014 DTM Drivers’ Championship for you.
Hockenheim (DE), 4th May.
A dream come true for Marco Wittmann: having secured
his first DTM pole position in Zandvoort (NL) in 2013, the BMW Team
RMG driver claims his maiden win at the opening race of his second
DTM season in Hockenheim – in doing so, he also earns his place in
BMW Motorsport history as the first man to win with the new BMW M4
DTM. At the same time, Wittmann’s success is also the first win for
BMW Team RMG in the DTM, and the 60th triumph for BMW in the popular
touring car series. Wittmann leads the Drivers’ Championship with 25
points after the first showdown of the year, followed by Mattias
Ekström (SE/18 points).
Oschersleben (DE), 18th May.
Wittmann goes
through an emotional rollercoaster on race Sunday in Oschersleben.
Starting from pole, he first leads the second race of the season.
Then comes the rain, however. The resulting three safety car periods,
together with technical problems, mean he ultimately has to settle
for 19th. The BMW Team RMG driver finds himself third in the Drivers’
Championship after round two, five points behind leader Mike
Rockenfeller (Audi, DE).
Budapest (HU), 1st June.
Wittmann leads from
start to finish as the DTM returns to the Hungaroring after a 26-year
absence. He first secures pole position in qualifying, before
dominating the race to cross the line in first place at the end of
the 41 laps. This is Wittmann’s second victory in three races in
2014. With 50 points to his name, he moves back to the top of the
standings in the Drivers’ Championship – a position he makes his own
for the rest of the season. Rockenfeller follows in second place, 19
points back.
Norisring (DE), 29th June.
The rain-dominated
home race at the Norisring sees Wittmann finish ahead of his closest
rivals in the Drivers’ Championship. Sixth place makes him the
best-placed BMW driver and earns him some valuable points at the
street circuit in Nürnberg (DE). He makes a cautious start from
seventh and, despite tricky conditions, stays clear of all the
turmoil. This result allows Wittmann (58 points) to defend his lead in
the overall standings. The new second-placed man is Edoardo Mortara
(Audi, IT) with 39 points.
Moscow (RU), 13th July.
Wittmann shows fighting
spirit and extends his lead in the Drivers’ Championship as the DTM
makes its second appearance in Russia: in an exciting race, with two
safety car periods, he crosses the finish line fourth in the
Ice-Watch BMW M4 DTM. At the halfway point of the season – after five
of ten races – championship leader Wittmann has already amassed 70
points to open up a 20-point lead over his closest rival Ekström.
Spielberg (AT), 3rd August.
Dream result against
a dream Alpine backdrop: despite racing with an additional 7.5
kilograms of performance weight on board, Wittmann wins his third
race of the season as BMW claims a historic quadruple success in
Spielberg. However, the race does not initially go entirely to plan
for the young German. He drops back to seventh from third on the
grid. However, Wittmann keeps his nerve, focusses on the job at hand
and works his way back to the front. Victory sees Wittmann extend his
overall lead to 39 points.
Nürburgring (DE), 17th August.
Wittmann and the
Ice-Watch BMW M4 DTM once again form an unbeatable pair at the
Nürburgring. Starting from pole position, the leader in the Drivers’
Championship claims victory number four of the season at BMW Team
RMG’s home race. Wittmann lays the foundation to his success at the
very start of the race, defending his lead into turn one. He is then
able to pull away from the opposition, only coming under any sort of
pressure in the final laps when his prime tyres start to degrade.
However, he once again refuses to be beaten and crosses the finish
line 1.286 seconds ahead of Rockenfeller to extend his lead in the
Drivers’ Championship to 64 points.
Lausitzring (DE), 14th September.
The weather is
the deciding factor at the eighth race weekend of the season: heavy
fog on Saturday means the drivers head straight into qualifying on
the back of a 15-minute practice session. Despite this, Wittmann goes
seventh fastest to claim a promising starting position for the race.
The 52 laps of the Lausitzring on the Sunday are eventful, but
Wittmann manages to stay out of trouble despite difficult conditions
– the track dries out over the course of the race – and numerous
incidents. He comes home sixth to pick up sufficient points to ensure
that his rivals in the race for the Drivers’ title can no longer catch
him. Wittmann has 128 points, followed by second-placed Christian
Vietoris (DE, Mercedes) with 59 points.