Marco Wittmann was delighted to be able to convert his pole position into victory in the opening DTM race at Assen, with the BMW driver saying the win made up for his disappointment in the previous round.
Wittmann had qualified his BMW M4 on pole position for the DTM’s first-ever visit to Assen, and the German looked to be odds on for the win early on in the wet race.
Wittmann’s early pressure came from the in-form René Rast, who sought to pass the BMW driver as the rain was at its heaviest early on.
A late pitstop strategy for Audi’s Nico Müller threatened to take the win from Wittmann, until he reeled in the Abt Sportsline driver on his out lap on cold tyres and passed to re-take the lead.
Victory for Wittmann, his third of the season, moves the two-time champion up one position to fourth overall in the drivers’ championship standings.
“Coming back like this to claim pole position and the win after the difficult race weekend at the Norisring is just magnificent,” said Wittmann. “The conditions were anything but easy.
“We had plenty of question marks about how the set-up and the car would work in the wet but everything went just fine.
“To earn the maximum number of available points is an outstanding result. Today, I had a mega good car, just sensational. Thanks to the team for that!
“The two Audis put me under pressure from time to time but I was able to build up a comfortable lead by the end. This victory is just great.”