Fans at the Hockenheimring (DE) were treated to an action-packed opening race of 2022 by the 24 drivers in this yr'due south DTM. 3 BMW M4 DTMs finished in the points at the end of a race littered with spectacular battles, overtaking manoeuvres and collisions. Bruno Spengler (CA) came home sixth in the BMW Banking concern M4 DTM, making him the best-placed BMW driver. The Canadian fought back brilliantly from 13th on the grid. He was followed over the finish line past António Félix da Costa (PT, BMW M4 DTM) and Maxime Martin (BE, SAMSUNG BMW M4 DTM) in seventh and 8th. They also made great progress through the field, having started from 20th and 21st. Victory went to Edoardo Mortara (Information technology, Audi).

BMW DTM Hockenheimring 1 750x500

Martin Tomczyk (DE, BMW M Functioning Parts M4 DTM), Tom Blomqvist (GB, Ice-Watch BMW M4 DTM) and Augusto Farfus (BR, Shell BMW M4 DTM) were 12th, 13th and 14th. Blomqvist and Farfus had dropped well back after being involved in incidents during the eventful opening stages of the race. Tomczyk had also worked his mode through the field and was running in the top 10 until his car was damaged in a battle with Gary Paffett (GB, Mercedes) and Mattias Ekström (DE, Audi).

BMW DTM Hockenheimring 5 750x500

Marco Wittmann (DE), at the wheel of the Red Bull BMW M4 DTM, was the highest ranked BMW driver early on. However, his car was so badly damaged in a collision that he was unable to match the pace of the other cars and dropped dorsum through the field. He eventually came abode 16th. Timo Glock (DE) was hitting by a rival motorcar on lap three and consequently skidded off into the gravel bed in the DEUTSCHE Mail service BMW M4 DTM bringing his first race of the season to a premature end.

Reactions to the 1st race of the 2022 DTM season.

BMW-DTM-Hockenheimring-6

Jens Marquardt (BMW Motorsport Director): "That was a very tough race, with an eventful opening three laps. Compliments to my guys, who fought hard. Bruno Spengler, António Félix da Costa and Maxime Martin still managed to finish in the points despite having damaged cars. Given the circumstances, they did as well every bit possible. I feel very sorry for Marco Wittmann, whose car was damaged in a collision. He was very well positioned in the race and could possibly even accept been looking at a identify on the podium. Generally speaking, in that location were an awful lot of collisions, and our drivers suffered as a result. I hope tomorrow'southward race is a fleck calmer."

Bruno Spengler (BMW Team MTEK, 6th place): "I am very happy to take made upwardly then many places and scored valuable points after starting from 13th on the grid. Unfortunately, the rear left of my motorcar was damaged in a collision with Mike Rockenfeller, and I was unable to match the pace of the front-runners. We must now look at where we can improve tomorrow, equally we would probably have been lacking a bit of speed even without the damage to the car."

Facts and Figures.

Excursion/length/duration:
Hockenheim, 4.574 kilometres, 40 minutes plus one lap

Weather:
Sunny, 27 degrees Celsius

BMW Motorsport results:
#7 Bruno Spengler (CA), BMW Team MTEK, BMW Bank M4 DTM – 6th place

#13 António Félix da Costa (PT), BMW Team Schnitzer, BMW M4 DTM – 7th identify

#36 Maxime Martin (Be), BMW Team RBM, SAMSUNG BMW M4 DTM – eighth place

#100 Martin Tomczyk (DE), BMW Team Schnitzer, BMW G Operation Parts M4 DTM – 12th place

#31 Tom Blomqvist (GB), BMW Team RBM, Ice-Lookout BMW M4 DTM – 13th place

#18 Augusto Farfus (BR), BMW Team MTEK, Shell BMW M4 DTM – 14th identify

#11 Marco Wittmann (DE), BMW Team RMG, Cherry-red Balderdash BMW M4 DTM – 16th place

#16 Timo Glock (DE), BMW Squad RMG, DEUTSCHE Mail BMW M4 DTM – DNF