DTM BMW liveries revealed
The three DTM champions René Rast, Sheldon van der Linde and Marco Wittmann head into the new season with long-standing BMW M Motorsport partners, sporting strikingly liveries, on their Schubert Motorsport team M4 GT3s.
“We are delighted to have our long-standing BMW M Motorsport partners RoboMarkets, Schaeffler and Shell on board again in the 2024 DTM season. Without their support, it would simply not be possible to race successfully in such a high-class championship as the DTM,” says Andreas Roos, Head of BMW M Motorsport.
Wittmann’s BMW M4 GT3 will again sport the familiar green and white of Schaeffler, in which he has done battle since 2019.
Van der Linde also remains true to his partner, with whom he won the DTM in 2022 and finished on the podium on three occasions last season. The South African is very excited about the new season: “Lining up in a yellow and red car for Shell has become a hallmark for me in the DTM. As such, I am incredibly proud to continue this collaboration. Hopefully, we can repeat what we achieved together in 2022.”
Rast is at the wheel of a blue car with black accents (featured) in his second DTM season as a BMW works driver. Last year, he claimed one victory and a further two podiums in a similar design.
Road To DTM programme expanding
The ADAC is strengthening youth development in the karting scene and expanding the successfully established “Road to DTM” programme to incorporate the top German karting series, the German Kart Championship (DKM), in the 2024 season.
The “Road to DTM” offers a stringent youth development concept from karting to the pinnacle of automobile racing, the DTM, via ADAC GT4 Germany and the ADAC GT Masters.
Furthermore, ADAC Stiftung Sport is considering supporting talented youngsters from the German Junior Kart Championship (DJKM) in individual cases. More than 140 drivers have already registered for the various DKM classes.
The DKM is the pinnacle of German karting and has often provided the starting point for a successful career in motorsport in the past. DTM champions Thomas Preining, René Rast and Marco Wittmann all started out in the DKM, as did talented young DTM drivers Maximilian Paul and Ben Dörr.
ADAC e.V. is strengthening the concept and incorporating the DKM in its “Road to DTM” programme. At the end of the season, one driver will be rewarded for taking the next step in their career with a free starting place in ADAC GT4 Germany in 2025. From there, the best youngster in ADAC GT4 Germany receives a place in the ADAC GT Masters. The top young driver in the ADAC GT Masters wins a starting place in the DTM for the following season.
HRT & Winward colour schemes unveiled
Mercedes-AMG teams HRT and Winward have revealed their colours for the 2024 DTM season.
For HRT, when it comes to the design of the two cars, the team has opted for one familiar livery and some new colours.
“Our two Mercedes-AMG GT3 for the new DTM season are real eye-catchers. We are hugely proud of our strong partnerships, without the support of whom we would not be able to race in the DTM. It is going to be a great moment when we see the cars on the track for the first time,” says Ulrich Fritz, managing director of Haupt Racing Team GmbH, which will run cars for Arjun Maini and Luca Stolz this season.
Stolz will be at the wheel of the #4 Mercedes-AMG GT3 in the livery of HRT partner Merbag, while Maini will race in Mannol colours in the #36 AMG GT3.
Mercedes-AMG Team Winward meanwhile, will go in pursuit of the DTM title with a Mann-Filter-backed Mercedes for Lucas Auer and the #130 AMG GT3 for Maro Engel featuring a colour scheme marking 130 years of Mercedes-AMG in motorsport.
Van der Linde wins ABT Snow Challenge
Kelvin van der Linde emerged as the first winner of a DTM event in 2024: the ABT Snow Challenge, held in Gurgl (Tyrol, Austria).
The ABT Snow Challenge, an EV race on snow at an altitude of 2,600 metres with ABT GT3 drivers Kelvin van der Linde, Ricardo Feller, Marco Mapelli and Jordan Pepper, was run on a specially prepared race track on snow and ice together with media representatives and partners of ABT Sportsline.
Team van der Linde prevailed against Team Pepper in a thrilling final. The fight for third place was so close that the winner could not be recognised with the naked eye and the Feller and Mapelli teams were both classified third.
“That was great fun,” said Kelvin van der Linde after his team’s victory. “Unfortunately, no points are awarded for this in DTM. But it’s always good to start a new season with a success. I hope this is a good omen.”
In addition to the snow racing, the look of ABT’s Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 for the Nürburgring 24 Hours was unveiled last week in front of hundreds of fans as part of the ABT Racing Party at the Gurgl Carat congress and event centre, which was presented by Daniel Abt.
Images courtesy of BMW, HRT, Winward and ABT
