At last, the cars are back on track. On Friday, first free practice at the Hockenheimring provided the fans with a first appetizer of what is in store for the eagerly awaited opener of the 2017 DTM season that gets underway with first qualifying and the points for the first three placed drivers. With Paul Di Resta and Gary Paffett, two Mercedes-AMG drivers set the pace in first practice.

Di Resta was fastest in practice and ended up with an advantage of 0.110 seconds over his team-mate Paffett. Audi drivers Mike Rockenfeller and Jamie Green followed in third and fourth place respectively.

In eighth position, Tom Blomqvist was the best-placed BMW driver. Only Maxime Martin was unable to complete one full lap in the half-hour session. “We still have a lot of work to do. This didn’t really say much,” Mike Rockenfeller summed up after first practice.

“Now, we will sit down and see what we can still improve. I am happy that I am among the drivers up front. The basis is good,” ‘Rocky’ commented in the pit lane immediately after the session.

After free practice, the drivers rehearsed the two-row grid formation behind the safety car for the flying Indianapolis start. The first impression: this will provide spectacular situations.

DTM action continues tomorrow at 9.55 hrs with second free practice. Qualifying for race one follows from 11.35 hrs. The highlight of the Saturday will be the first race that gets underway at 14.45 hrs.