On Friday and Saturday, Mercedes-AMG driver dominated proceedings in the free practice sessions at the Hockenheimring, but the situation was reversed on Sunday. Six Audis and four BMWs ended up in the top ten. The fastest driver was BMW’s Maxime Martin with 1m31.777s. Next up were Mike Rockenfeller, 0.223 seconds down, and Jamie Green, 0.366 seconds down, both with an Audi RS 5 DTM.

The leader in the drivers’ standings and the race winner on the Saturday, Mercedes-AMG driver Lucas Auer, ended up 15th. “Free practice doesn’t say a lot, you should ask again after qualifying. A slight drizzle set in. Today, the cards will be reshuffled,” the Austrian said.

‘Rocky’, who finished on the podium yesterday, did it likewise as the points’ leader and held back with his interpretations. “It was okay. With used tyres, the car handled well. We have made some minor changes. You can judge your own performance, but as far as the opposition is concerned, you only know where you are after qualifying.”

At 12.20 hrs, qualifying is next for the 18 drivers. The second DTM race at the Hockenheimring from 15.15 hrs is eagerly anticipated.