After the fierce controversies that emerged in the last race of last season, which became decisive for the assignment of the title to Maximilian Götz, the championship DTM 2o22 officially opened last weekend with the first test of the year, held on the Portuguese circuit of Portimao. Among the major protagonists of the entire event, including qualifications, the Italian emerged in particular Mirko Bortolottiauthor of both pole position that of a missed win in Race-1 for an unfortunate event that indirectly caused him to drop off the top step of the podium.
The Lamborghini rider from Trentino, after having sprinted in front of everyone and managed the race brilliantly with a decent advantage over his pursuers, seemed to have all the credentials to finish as the leader of the race, except then the insult in the second half of the race caused by the his teammate: Rolf Ineichen. The latter, who retired following a mechanical problem, was unable to park the car away from the track, generating the entrance to the Safety Car and canceling the advantage of Bortolotti. The latter, however, had an uncertainty in the restart phases, such as to lose the first position, slipping into fourth. In all of this he made the most of it Lucas Auer, winner in front of the other Mercedes of Luca Stolz. However, Bortolotti’s great overtaking on Van Der Linde on the last lap, decisive for the conquest of 3rd place, was applause.
Race-1 classification (Top 10)
POS. | PILOT | CAR | GAP |
1 | Lucas Auer | Mercedes | |
2 | Luca Stolz | Mercedes | +0.851 |
3 | Mirko Bortolotti | Lamborghini | +1.811 |
4 | Kelvin Van der Linde | Audi | +3.053 |
5 | Dennis Olsen | Porsche | +3.406 |
6 | Ricardo Feller | Audi | +4.405 |
7 | Sheldon Van der Linde | BMW | +4.768 |
8 | Laurens Vanthoor | Porsche | +5.365 |
9 | Philipp Eng | BMW | +7,399 |
10 | Maro Engel | Mercedes | +7.468 |
Race-1 highlights
A whole other story, however, in Race-2characterized by the ‘rebirth’ of two other pilots involved in accidents or retirements in the previous round: in this sense, the victory of the Swiss Nico Müller, started from pole position and author of a flawless performance that brings Team Rosberg to the throne of Portimao. The Brazilian’s performance was also positive Felipe Fraga, also out of the standings in Race-1 with his Ferrari of the AF Corse team for a retirement. The only welcome confirmation is to be found in Bortolotti, 3rd also in the second round. A podium that smiles at the 32-year-old especially for the developments in the general classification, at the top of which there is the Trentino. In the list of ‘rejected’, however, first-class names appear such as those of Sebastien Loeb and Maximilian Götz. The Frenchman, on his absolute debut in the category, does not go beyond the 16th place in race-1, worsening further in the next race with a 18th square. The reigning champion, on the other hand, even ends up outside the top 10 in Race-1, finishing 11 ° with his Mercedes, going up to 5th place in Race-2.
Race 2 classification (Top 10)
POS. | PILOT | CAR | GAP |
1 | Nico Müller | Audi | |
2 | Felipe Fraga | Ferrari | +3.415 |
3 | Mirko Bortolotti | Lamborghini | +8.447 |
4 | Marco Wittmann | BMW | +10.283 |
5 | Maximilian Götz | Mercedes | +12.734 |
6 | Kelvin Van der Linde | Audi | +13.533 |
7 | Laurens Vanthoor | Porsche | +14.349 |
8 | Sheldon Van der Linde | Porsche | +18.002 |
9 | Ricardo Feller | Audi | +19.754 |
10 | Maro Engel | Mercedes | +21.579 |
Race-2 highlights
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