The DTM German touring car championship heads to Brands Hatch this weekend, with a strong prospect of a home winner and a closely-fought contest.
Bromley’s Gary Paffett and fellow Briton Jamie Green will arrive at the Kent circuit leading the title race and separated by just 13 points, with 25 awarded for a win.
Paffett is the series’ most successful active driver, with 19 wins to his name, the last of these having come at the season opener in Hockenheim last month. In addition to his 2005 DTM title, Paffett has finished as runner-up three times and is favourite for this year’s championship. The series features fire-spitting, high speed coupés from Germany’s big three manufacturers – Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, that lap the circuit at an average speed of more than 100mph.
31-year-old Paffett’s winning pedigree in motorsport has brought him championships in the sport’s feeder classes and the prestigious McLaren Autosport BRDC award for promising young drivers, a roll of honour that includes David Coulthard and Jenson Button. His test driving role at McLaren has played a pivotal part in the team’s continued success.
Green, meanwhile, is a former F3 Euroseries champion, a title that has also been claimed by F1 drivers Lewis Hamilton, Paul Di Resta and Romain Grosjean. A frontrunner in the DTM since his series debut in 2006, Green almost won the first Brands Hatch DTM race that year, and has picked up seven wins since then. Finishing in second place at Hockenheim, he will provide tough competition to Paffett this weekend.
BMW, who return to the DTM this year after a 20-year absence, will present a strong challenge to the Mercedes-Benz pairing, after an amazing comeback win last time out at the Lausitzring with Canadian driver Bruno Spengler. Touring car legend Andy Priaulx, a three-time World Touring Car Champion, has a successful record at Brands Hatch and will be leading the Munich marque’s charge. “I can’t wait to drive Brands Hatch for the first time in a DTM car,” he enthused. “There are going to be a lot of laps in the race, so there is not going to be any space between the cars and this will make it quite an intense sort of circuit to drive.
“Paddock Hill everyone talks about and it is one of the most challenging corners you can drive. It is a real fast corner and there is not a lot of room for error. I last raced on the GP circuit in WTCC, but on the Indy track it is years ago and most likely in British Touring Car times. It is going to be interesting to get back there in a DTM car.”
DTM is a popular destination for former F1 drivers, with BBC commentator David Coulthard and Ralf Schumacher both driving for Mercedes, whilst moving in the opposite direction, 2010 DTM champion Paul Di Resta used the series as career stepping-stone. The F1 connection continues in the supporting VW Scirocco R-Cup race on Saturday, with 1996 World Champion Damon Hill making his first racing appearance since the 1999 Japanese Grand Prix. He’ll be racing alongside friends Mark Blundell, Martin Donnelly, Julian Bailey, Perry McCarthy and David Brabham, all of whom appeared in the sport’s top flight.
Tickets for the DTM at Brands Hatch are available on the gate from £10 with free entry for children aged 12 and under. For more information call 0843 453 9000 or visit www.brandshatch.co.uk