Having finished in ninth position in the opening DTM race at DEKRA Lausitzring Turn 1 powered by Autohero, Nick Cassidy retired from Race 2 with less than five minutes. Cassidy had served up the day’s third-best time on the Lausitzring’s daunting Turn 1 and was on track for another top-10 finish when a tyre issue made it necessary to retire.
“”I really enjoyed my first DTM weekend of the season,” commented Cassidy. “I felt strong – today I was very comfortable, it’s a shame we didn’t get the result.
It was a difficult weekend for his Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse team with team mate Felipe Fraga’s Red Bull AF Corse Ferrari catching fire in qualifying in the morning. However, the time prior to the race was insufficient so that the Brazilian’s Ferrari 488 couldn’t take to the grid.
“Yesterday I didn’t have the pace, but it was a massive turnaround overnight. I’m really pleased with the performance. I wish we had more points, but that’s racing sometimes. The highlight of the weekend was the two-seater – a super-cool experience – and I’m really thankful for this opportunity.”
After his success on Saturday, Schubert BMW driver Sheldon van der Linde also charged to DTM victory on Sunday as well. The South African claimed pole position in the morning and scored 25-points with another commanding performance.
Second place in the race on Sunday went to Maro Engel (GER) with the GruppeM Mercedes-AMG, who also secured the additional point for the Autohero Fastest Lap Award. Three-time DTM champion René Rast (GER) came third, scoring his first podium finish with the ABT Audi R8 since his return to DTM. Classified fourth, Philipp Eng (AUT) completed the good day for Schubert.
The next round takes place at Imola in Italy, 17-20 June 2022.
Race 1 result, Lausitzring
1/ Sheldon van der Linde (RSA) – Schubert Motorsport
2/ Luca Stolz (GER) – Mercedes-AMG Team HRT
3/ Lucas Auer (AUT) – Mercedes-AMG Team Winward
9/ Nick Cassidy (NZL) – Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse
26/ Felipe Fraga (BRA) – Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse
Race 2 result, Lausitzring
1/ Sheldon van der Linde (RSA) – Schubert Motorsport
2/ Maro Engel (GER) – Mercedes-AMG Team GruppeM Racing
3/ René Rast (GER) – Team ABT
23/ Nick Cassidy (NZL) – Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse
2022 DTM Drivers Championship standings after two rounds (provisional)
1/ Sheldon van der Linde (RSA), 66 points
2/ Mirko Bortolotti (ITA), 51 points
3/ Lucas Auer (AUT), 48 pts
8/ Felipe Fraga (BRA), 20 pts
17/ Nick Cassidy (NZL), 2 pts
2022 DTM Teams Championship standings after two rounds (provisional)
1/ Schubert Motorsport, 79 points
2/ GRT, 51 pts
3/ Mercedes-AMG Team WINWARD, 48 pts
9/ Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse, 21 pts
Comments