In the second event of the 2021 DTM, Mercedes-AMG Motorsport scores its first two wins in the still fresh season in the weekend’s two races. Philip Ellis (SUI) from Mercedes-AMG Team WINWARD secured victory in the first race at Lausitzring with a strong performance in the #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3. On Sunday, Mercedes-AMG Team HRT’s Maximilian Götz (GER) emulated this success by winning the second race.
Premiere in the second DTM race weekend in the 2021 season: for the first time, the so-called Turn 1 at the Lausitzring in Brandenburg was used, a banked corner that was to guarantee high top speed and spectacular overtaking manoeuvres.
Philip Ellis, who started the first race of the weekend from ninth place on the grid, already made up a few position in the turbulent opening stages until a safety car temporarily neutralised the field after a few laps. After the restart, Ellis moved up from sixth to second position by virtue of a strong manoeuvre with his #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3. After the mandatory tyre stops, Ellis remained in second place and gradually worked his way up towards the leader lap after lap. Going into Turn 1, Ellis then made the decisive overtaking manoeuvre. The blue-and-white Mercedes already having moved up alongside the race leader, Ellis made the decisive attack going into Turn 1, taking the lead as a result. As the race went on, Ellis turned down all the attacks by his fellow competitors and eventually crossed the finish line in first place. Thus, the Swiss-based driver also secured the first win for Mercedes-AMG in the current DTM season, which also was the maiden win for Ellis in this race series with its long heritage. Lucas Auer (#22, AUT) rounded out the strong team result for Mercedes-AMG Team WINWARD with sixth place. In tenth position, Maximilian Buhk (#18, GER) also scored a valuable championship point for Mercedes-AMG Team Mücke Motorsport.
Race 2: Maiden DTM win for Maximilian Götz
In second qualifying, Philip Ellis put his Mercedes-AMG GT3 on pole position for race two with the fastest lap time of the entire weekend. Mercedes-AMG Team HRT’s Maximilian Götz (GER) also had a good perspective for the race with third place on the grid. Lucas Auer (#22, AUT), Daniel Juncadella (#8, ESP) as well as Arjun Maini (#36, IND) also started from the top ten on the grid for the second race. In a hard-fought opening stage, both Ellis and Götz initially had to let a few opponents past. In this race, almost all participants opted for particularly early pit stops. After his mandatory stop, Maximilian Götz rejoined the field in second place. Philip Ellis returned to the track in fourth position with his #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3. With a little less than 15 minutes remaining in the race, Götz benefited from a technical problem of the car in first place and moved up into the lead of the field. In the remainder of the race, a thrilling battle for the following positions unfolded. Ellis, who had to deal with degrading tyres as a result of the additional weight he had been given after his win on the previous day, defended his fourth position in a tactically clever way until crossing the finish line. Out in front, meanwhile, Maximilian Götz continuously extended his lead and went on to score his maiden win in DTM and the second victory for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport in the current DTM season. Mercedes-AMG Team GruppeM Racing’s Daniel Juncadella and Mercedes-AMG Team WINWARD driver Lucas Auer also finished in the points-scoring positions with seventh and ninth place respectively, rounding out the outstanding result for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport as a result. With this success, Mercedes-AMG moves up into the lead of the DTM manufacturers’ standings. In the drivers’ championship, Philip Ellis is now in third place, followed by Maximilian Götz in fourth. Also in third and fourth place are now Mercedes-AMG Team WINWARD and Mercedes-AMG Team HRT in the teams’ standings.
DTM Trophy: Victory and podium result for CV Performance Group
In DTM Trophy, the CV Performance Group team with its driver William Tregurtha (GBR) also had a successful race weekend. After a third-place finish on Saturday, Tregurtha went on to win with the #85 Mercedes-AMG GT4 #85 in the second race at Lausitzring on Sunday and thus secured the first win of the season for a car from Mercedes-AMG in the series.
Philip Ellis, Mercedes- AMG Team WINWARD (#57): “A nearly perfect first race. From P9, we weren’t exactly in the best position for this race. But especially the restart after the safety car was nearly perfect. There, I moved up all the way to P2 up to the chicane. After that, I noticed that the leader had slight problems with his tyres and I benefited from that. I had to push really hard once more, but I was able to bring victory home. In the second race, we probably underestimated the extra weight a little bit at first. It was very hard, but we can live very well with fourth place.”
Maximilian Götz, Mercedes-AMG Team HRT (#4): “I am mega happy. It was highly emotional in the car as well. The maiden DTM win is always something special. After things weren’t going so well for us yesterday, this victory is a great end to this weekend.”
Arjun Maini, Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed (#36): “For us, the result is a bit disappointing and it doesn’t reflect what we are actually up to. The car had a good pace and the team did a good job. Since Monza, we have made a big step forward. However, the weekend as a whole was fun. It was good and hard racing. Now, we are looking forward to the weekend at Zolder.”
Stefan Wendl, head of Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing: “A sensational weekend for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport! The two wins by Philip and Maximilian have shown what a powerful crew we have in the DTM. All our teams and drivers are acting at the highest level and are in the best position to score victories and points. Therefore, it isn’t by chance that we are leading the manufacturers’ standings. Of course, the season is still long, but I am convinced that, with our team spirit, we will be in contention for the championship at the end, too.”
Source. Mercedes
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