Another podium for BMW at Brands Hatch: Bruno Spengler finishes runner-up in the BMW Bank M3 DTM.

Brands Hatch, 20th May 2012. BMW Motorsport continues to enjoy success in the DTM: following his victory at the Lausitzring (DE) a fortnight ago, Bruno Spengler (CA) of BMW Team Schnitzer was once again celebrating on the podium at the end of the race in Brands Hatch (GB). After 97 laps, the 28-year-old crossed the finish line in second place at the wheel of the BMW Bank M3 DTM. Victory in the third race of ten this season went to Mercedes driver Gary Paffett (GB), who took the chequered flag 2.7 seconds ahead of Spengler.

Spengler was not the only BMW driver to add to his points tally at the 1.929-kilometre “Brands Hatch Circuit”. Martin Tomczyk (DE, BMW M Performance Parts M3 DTM) finished fourth – his best result of the season – and leaves Great Britain with another 12 points to his name. Tomczyk also clocked the fastest lap of the race (42.138 seconds) on lap 57.

Augusto Farfus (BR), at the wheel of the Castrol EDGE BMW M3 DTM, came home in 11th. Joey Hand (US, SAMSUNG BMW M3 DTM) was 13th and Dirk Werner (DE) followed in 16th in his E-POSTBRIEF BMW M3 DTM. Andy Priaulx (GB), racing in front of his home crowd in the Crowne Plaza Hotels BMW M3 DTM, was forced to retire early on in the race.

Spengler got off to a flyer from third place on the grid and immediately moved into second, before settling in to be within striking distance of Paffett throughout the entire race. With the race drawing to a close, however, the Canadian was forced to start looking over his shoulder. The front splitter of the BMW Bank M3 DTM was damaged on the kerb in turn one, preventing Spengler from pushing his car to the limit over the final few laps. Third-placed Audi driver Mike Rockenfeller (DE) was closing the gap with every lap, but Spengler was able to hold on to second. Tomczyk dropped two positions at the start, but quickly moved back into fifth thanks to overtaking manoeuvres against Mattias Ekström (SE) and Adrien Tambay (FR). The BMW Team RMG driver gained another position over the course of the race, courtesy of a good strategy and quick pit stops.

The result sees Spengler climb to second place in the DTM drivers’ standings on 43 points, behind Gary Paffett (68). Tomczyk now has 18 points in seventh, followed in eighth and ninth by Farfus (15) and Priaulx (8).

Jens Marquardt (BMW Motorsport Director):

“I am very happy again with our third outing of the 2012 season. This is the first time we have brought a DTM car to Brands Hatch, and we found our feet very quickly. Our drivers were immediately able to compete with the front-runners. Second and fourth achieved by Bruno and Martin are fantastic results. Bruno once again showed nerves of steel and Martin was also extremely quick and produced a flawless drive. The last few laps were particularly nerve-wracking, but our drivers and teams did a super job and all deserve a huge compliment. We have a very good record so far, with three podium finishes from three races. We barely have time to catch our breath now before the next race in Spielberg in 14 days. We have found a good rhythm in the DTM, so I hope that we will be as quick in Austria as we were here. However, the first few races have already shown that the 2012 DTM pack is reshuffled at every circuit. The three manufacturers are on a par with each other, making it all but impossible to predict the race weekends. This is the best possible scenario for the fans, as motor racing can hardly get any more exciting and evenly balanced than in the DTM.”