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00:00You
00:33Hello and welcome at our look at the 2005 DTM season, a fascinating battle over 11 races and joining the
00:42series this year, some very big names, including former Formula One champion, Mika Hackinen.
00:49Yes, hello, this is Mika Hackinen. Welcome to DTM and come to Hockenheim.
00:54Yes, indeed, it was at Hockenheim where Hackinen started his return to motor racing after a couple of years off.
01:02Hockenheim, of course, always hosts the opening and closing rounds of the German Touring Car Masters, the DTM.
01:11Defending champion was, of course, Matthias Ekstrom from Sweden in Audi.
01:17And here he is, signing autographs. He won it last year by just beating out Gary Paffitt, the British driver
01:27for Mercedes-Benz.
01:29So what would happen in this first race? It was Ekstrom on the pole, it was Paffitt second on the
01:35grid.
01:36And JB Green, the British newcomer, in third place, he dropped back.
01:40But this first corer at Hockenheim always sees lots of action.
01:45And the opening race of 2005 was no exception.
01:49Capello involved with that, Christensen, Aiello.
01:53And a heavy hit for Tom Christensen. Let's see it again.
01:58See problems at mid-pack.
02:00And all of a sudden, cars spinning, Aiello spinning across the pack and being hit.
02:07An Opel, I think, a Loran, he spun in the first corner and just crossed the track when I was
02:14there.
02:15And then I had no chance to avoid this car.
02:18And it was quite a hard impact.
02:21Here's a different angle.
02:22And you see Capello spinning in the middle of the pack there.
02:26And then the black car, Aiello, goes across.
02:29And then Christensen gets collected.
02:31Bang!
02:33Coming into turn one, there was a lot of things happening out on the wet stuff.
02:37And by the time I arrive, Aiello, I think, comes out of the darkness, out of the smoke.
02:48And initially, I want to go inside of him.
02:51But he keeps rolling.
02:52And in the end, I brake.
02:53And more or less at the time I brake, I get a big hit from the back.
02:57And push me into Aiello, which is then an even higher impact.
03:02So the season's starting with that big bang.
03:06Off they go again.
03:09Let's see the start from a different view.
03:12And Gary Paffet, with the green mirrors on the silver Mercedes, getting away.
03:19And Paffet into the lead from his arch-rival, but also friend Matthias Ekstrom.
03:32There you see the positions then, six laps, officially on the board after that incident.
03:40Meanwhile, more spins up at the hairpin.
03:45And Heinz Harald Frensen, very much involved in that.
03:48Another ex-Grand Prix driver, who has been a regular in the DTM now for a couple of seasons.
03:55What a first DTM race from Jamie Green, though, going very well.
03:59Pit stops, of course, two each.
04:03Mandatory in this series.
04:09There they go, out again.
04:12And after the pit stops, it was a Lacey in the lead.
04:16Jean, a Lacey with some very good tactics.
04:19And look at this, spinning out Marcel Fasler after nudging younger Bruno Spengler.
04:25One of several drivers who'd come from the Euro F3 season of 2004.
04:34On board now.
04:35And some great shots, too, and you hear them going down the gearbox.
04:46Oh, action replay here.
04:48Jamie Green trying to find a way past Ekstrom.
04:52The back end stepping out, corrects it into the gravel.
04:54Jamie Green paying the price there and showing his inexperience in a DTM car.
05:02But here is Jean Alessi in a commanding lead from Gary Pappet at this opening round of the 2005 DTM.
05:10Bert Schneider is in third place.
05:14It's Mercedes-Benz.
05:15One, two, and three.
05:20And going wide in the black car is at Mika Hakkinen.
05:24Take a little time to get to grips with the DTM.
05:28But a win for Jean Alessi.
05:31And he's certainly very happy with that.
05:34And a very good start to the season for Mercedes-Benz.
05:37First, second, and third.
05:40I'm extremely happy, you know.
05:43Last year I didn't win any races, and that was tough for me.
05:47It was a tough winter because, you know, in our team we are tough workers.
05:52And when you cannot bring anything to your team, they ask you,
05:56are you sure you want to continue and are you sure you want to be motivated for the whole season?
06:01That is the best answer I can give for everybody, to be first.
06:07Yes, a very motivated Jean Alessi.
06:11And the bubbly sprays.
06:13And we move on then to the second round.
06:17Staying in Germany, the Eurospeedway Lauschitz.
06:20And this race on May the 1st.
06:30Hello, I'm Matthias Ekström.
06:33Welcome to Eurospeedway.
06:35Yes, indeed, the Eurospeedway built as an oval with the road course in between.
06:41And built on a plot of land which was once a coal mine.
06:47Situated between Berlin and Dresden.
06:50A very modern facility, indeed, has a massive grandstand.
06:57Cars being pushed into position.
06:59And this is where Gary Paffett won last year and then was disqualified because when he got the car to
07:06the post-race park Fermi,
07:08there wasn't enough fuel for them to take a sample.
07:11So he was disqualified.
07:13And he'll be looking to avenge that right here on this May Day.
07:22This was the start then.
07:25And Paffett, remember, Mercedes-Benz Silva with the lime green mirrors there into the lead.
07:32Mika Hakkinen, though, a very good start.
07:34Had qualified very well.
07:37The former McLaren world champion coming to grips with Mercedes pretty quickly.
07:43Jamie Green going well again.
07:49There is a replay of the start.
07:51That very tight left-hander.
07:53Very similar to the Daytona track, the way that spears off the oval.
07:57We can see it again.
08:05A few cars a little slow away.
08:10And some lock-ups into the first corner, but everybody makes it.
08:16After nine laps, it was Gary Paffett who continued to lead this race.
08:20We're on board with Tom Christensen as he tries to get past Bruno Spengler.
08:26There is Jamie Green with the orange mirrors.
08:38Christensen then spitting flames out.
08:43And here comes Ekstrom trying to find a way past Jamie Green.
08:48And bang into Jamie Green's door.
08:51Jamie was defending his position as good as he could.
08:55And on the other hand, I wanted to pass.
08:57And I decided to take a bit of a risk.
08:59And it was a shame because I touched him and he went in the gravel.
09:03Yeah, the risk was a bit too much, I think, there.
09:05Hakkinen coming in for his first pit stop.
09:10Stops on the marks, up on the pneumatic rams.
09:16Problem with one of the rams, the car drops and then spears round.
09:20Problems then for the team here.
09:24And disappointment for Hakkinen loses a lot of time.
09:29Christensen and Hakkinen pitting together.
09:35This is the second round of pit stops.
09:39Christensen, no problems at all.
09:41What about Hakkinen?
09:43Well, this time, no problems for him.
09:45And he accelerates away.
09:47But meanwhile, out front it was.
09:51Gary Paffet still in the lead.
09:53Christensen in second place.
09:55And Hakkinen in third.
09:56And here is Paffet, avenging the problems of a year ago.
10:01Takes the chequered flag at Euro-Lauschitz.
10:05And the rest of the field are coming through.
10:09The air horns go off.
10:10And Gary Paffet, certainly a very happy man indeed.
10:14A superb dominant drive from the youngster.
10:19Yeah, I mean, I made a very good start again.
10:21And got in the lead at the start.
10:24I pushed pretty hard to start with and got a bit of a gap to Mika.
10:27And then before the first pit stop, I held the same sort of gap.
10:30And again, after the second pit stop, I tried to push quite hard.
10:34And then, you know, I don't need, I don't know anything that happened behind.
10:37But after the second pit stop, I got into a rhythm.
10:39And I was about 10 seconds ahead.
10:41So there it was a case of just saving the tyres a bit.
10:43Not pushing too hard, but not relaxing too much.
10:48So, two races down, two Mercedes wins.
10:52As the team headed off for a circuit new to the DTM.
10:58And one of the most magnificent racing circuits in the world.
11:01Spa-Francorchamps, and absolutely everybody was looking forward to this,
11:07including Heinz Harold Frensen.
11:10Hello, ladies and gentlemen, our motorsport fans.
11:13Welcome to Spa on the great and fantastic racetrack.
11:17And I'm really enjoying, looking forward, what's going to happen.
11:22Yes, indeed, Spa, with all that history, situated some 50 kilometres to the west of Arken in Germany,
11:29close, in fact, to the Belgian-German border.
11:32Spa is, I think, in every single driver, it's in their top three circuits of the world.
11:37And even in the difficult wet conditions like we experience today, you still have a great sensation.
11:42But Eau Rouge is always going to live up there, in my memory, as one of the best corners in
11:47the world as well.
11:48Yes, indeed.
11:49And Alan McNish, a rookie in the DTM for 2005.
11:56To drive on this track, it's a lot of emotion, a lot of nice feeling.
12:02A special corner like Eau Rouge, where there is a big compression.
12:07And I have to say, you have fun.
12:12So, the start, Vika Hakkinen on pole.
12:15Ekstrom in second place.
12:16Christian Apt, a very good qualifying in third.
12:20Into the last source, hairpin for the first time.
12:24Ekstrom leads.
12:26Hakkinen goes out wide, down the hill.
12:30And down into the corner, they were talking about the famous Eau Rouge,
12:34with that big compression.
12:38And Ekstrom it is, who leads.
12:44The much newer bus stop section altered slightly for 2005.
12:49That would surely see some action.
12:53On board here with Laurent Aiello in the Opel.
12:58Fasler starting well up in third place, ahead of Christensen.
13:03We'll see that start again.
13:09And one car away very slowly indeed.
13:16But a very clean start from the Audi driver, Ekstrom.
13:22That has spent nearly all his career racing touring cars.
13:27Right at the start, the person we saw going slowly, incidentally, was Jamie Green.
13:33And a penalty, apparently, for Gary Paffet.
13:35Well, this was quite contentious.
13:37Here is Christian Apt's view.
13:40Out of his windscreen.
13:43Ekstrom, Hakkinen, Fasler, Christensen, Lazy, Apt.
13:46Now, this is what Paffet was penalised for.
13:50And there you see Paffet spinning round Pierre Caffer.
13:54Many thought it was just a racing incident, but he had to take the penalty.
13:58There we see it again.
13:59Well, there wasn't much room in that chicane.
14:02And around goes Pierre Caffer, fresh from the American Le Mans series in 2004.
14:10Another newcomer to the Audi team.
14:13Here's the Ekstrom pit stop.
14:16And problems when a rear nut is cross-threaded.
14:23So, Ekstrom loses just the vital second or so.
14:27And Mika Hakkinen was thus in the lead.
14:35Hakkinen out of the pits there.
14:39And Mika Hakkinen leading Matthias Ekstrom.
14:44Ekstrom puts his lights on to try and intimidate the former world champion.
14:48But he's difficult to be intimidated through O'Reuge.
14:52Absolutely on the limit.
14:56So, a big battle at the front.
14:58The DTM champion versus the three times world champion.
15:04Spa certainly living up to its reputation here.
15:09Here is Bernschneider.
15:12And a clash with the ILO Opel.
15:15And that saw him crash into the barriers.
15:18Look at that.
15:19Bang!
15:19Some 230 kilometers an hour.
15:22He stepped away.
15:23A little bruised.
15:24As Mika Hakkinen won in only his third DTM outing.
15:30A great drive from him.
15:31And he was a happy man.
15:34It's a good result.
15:36It's a fantastic result.
15:39I mean, it did not come easily.
15:42You know, it's been a really hard work behind all the time.
15:45But the team generally just has been a fantastic for me.
15:48They've really been helping me.
15:50All the drivers have been helping me.
15:52We're all together.
15:53We had a very good spirit together at the moment.
15:55And that keeps pushing forward all the time in developing a car and making better results.
16:02And even the extra weight that we have, you know, it doesn't seem to affect.
16:09So, it's great.
16:11A lot of reasons to be happy.
16:13Yes, indeed.
16:14So, three Mercedes-Benz victories in the first three races.
16:18Three different drivers.
16:20Would it be different at round four?
16:22Bruno in the Czech Republic.
16:25Of course, they've been racing at Renault for some 70 years.
16:32They used to run on the famous 29-kilometre track known as the Masaryk Ring.
16:41But now they have a modern facility of 5.4 kilometres.
16:46And it's still a very tough racetrack indeed.
16:52On the pole, Gary Paffet again.
16:55Heinz-Harold Frensen is second.
16:57Christensen third.
17:00At the start, a blinder from Frensen.
17:04They're heading to turn one with the red opal in the lead of the pack with Paffet in second place.
17:11But Paffet had jumped the start, anticipated it, then checked up and then went again.
17:19Didn't really help him, but officials saying he had jumped the start was Gary Paffet's championship chase coming off the
17:26rails.
17:28Problems with the penalty in the previous round at Spa, and now again.
17:37Oh, in the background are coming together between Pierre Caffer, Marcel Fasler, and I think Bernd Schneider also involved.
17:44We see it again.
17:48And there is Fasler going round in the opal.
17:52Yeah, actually I had really a good start and I could win some positions.
17:57And on the braking to the second corner, Bernd Schneider hit me on the rear left wheel.
18:04So I spun and yeah, it was not actually a position fight.
18:09I think he just was missing the braking point and was a bit too late.
18:15Let's have a look at that start again, watch Paffet's car just creeps a little bit, checks up.
18:20But that was judged to be a jump start and for the second race in a row, a penalty for
18:28Gary Paffet.
18:35They're confirmation of that penalty.
18:44But Heinz-Harold Frensen certainly looking as if he's going to give Opal their first points of the season.
18:51Opal of course announcing sadly they will not continue in the DTM for 2006.
18:57Here's Ekstrom's pit stop.
19:01The Audi team quick and efficient.
19:06Two different shapes of Audi in 2005.
19:11As McNish leads for the moment.
19:15And just a look at that.
19:16Ekstrom out in front of Heinz-Harold Frensen.
19:20Christensen in third place.
19:22McNish yet to make his pit stop.
19:25Yes, two different shapes of Audi.
19:27Some cars running with the new large grille.
19:32Others with the smaller grille.
19:34The Ap team running the 2005 shape cars.
19:38And Jost running the 2004 machines.
19:42But it's 2005 Audi's in the front here.
19:47And Heinz-Harold Frensen dropping back behind Tom Christensen.
19:53And Jamie Green just allowing Gary Paffet to pass.
19:58Paffet the more senior team member.
20:02But a great finish there.
20:04And Ekstrom takes it from Christensen.
20:07And the Audi flag certainly wave.
20:10Definitely it's a nice place to come when I have two victors after two times.
20:14So I think it's a very good result both for me and also for Audi that we are having a
20:20one-two victory.
20:21And it was very important for us in the championship.
20:25Yes indeed, so Ekstrom certainly putting himself in a very good place in the championship as we move on and
20:32back to Germany for the fifth round.
20:36Now here's a man new to the DTM and enjoying it.
20:41Hi, my name is Alan McNish and welcome to Osher Sleben.
20:46Yes, Alan probably new to this circuit.
20:48The former Renault tester, F1 tester, Toyota Grand Prix driver.
20:54And of course, Le Mans winner with Porsche.
20:57Well, this track was built between June 1996 and July 1997.
21:04The Motors Park Osher Sleben.
21:07Another excellent facility.
21:09Drivers being paraded in front of the large crowd here.
21:13Had some tremendous crowds all through the year in the DTM.
21:19So getting ready for the start.
21:20Christensen on the pole.
21:22Or Martin Tomczyk in the Red Bull Audi a second.
21:25Gary Pavan is in third place.
21:27Christensen can't get away.
21:29And Christensen drops back to 19th place.
21:33And it's Jamie Green who leads.
21:37The Euro F3 champion from Leicester in England.
21:41But let's have another look at that start again.
21:45See what actually happened there.
21:48Yeah, a stall from Tom Christensen.
21:51And this is what he had to say about it a little later.
21:55The car has been perfect, obviously, in qualifying.
21:58It was a fantastic lap.
21:59The team, everything was ready for the race.
22:02I made the mistake.
22:03The engine stalled.
22:04I had to restart the engine.
22:06And obviously nobody wait in this championship.
22:09Yeah, certainly nobody waits.
22:10And some phenomenal avoidances there.
22:13And Christensen dropping all the way down the field with a lot of work to do.
22:22Pit stops here.
22:23And look at Jamie Green sliding side by side with Gary Paffet, the two Brits together.
22:31But some team orders, maybe.
22:34Paffet, the senior member of this team.
22:37And Green drops in behind him.
22:43But certainly Jamie Green, one of the revelations of this championship as a rookie.
22:50With Matthias Ekstrom here.
22:53And Ekstrom moving up past the other red bull car of Tomczyk.
22:59And chasing after Jamie Green.
23:08And Ekstrom flying by then as Green starts to slide his car around with no grip left in the tyres.
23:17Tomczyk with a problem.
23:19The right front suspension collapsing.
23:21He's over the kerb.
23:23Into the gravel.
23:24And the end of Martin Tomczyk's fine run.
23:28But it was Gary Paffet who takes the win.
23:32Second, Ekstrom.
23:33And third, Jamie Green.
23:34A very good result for that young man.
23:37Definitely it's the result I've been looking for.
23:39And to get my first podium, it's a really good feeling.
23:42It's been a difficult start for me this year.
23:44And especially in the races, I've struggled a little bit.
23:46So it's good to keep improving.
23:49And I've never raced here before.
23:50So to get my first podium here is a bit of a surprise.
23:53But I think that shows good potential for the future.
23:55So I'm happy to be here.
23:59Yes, so Jamie Green is a rookie who gets the podium.
24:02Running in a 2005 car, incidentally.
24:06As we move on to Nuremberg.
24:09To the Norris Ring.
24:10This fascinating street circuit with so much history.
24:15And always with a very large crowd indeed.
24:20Hi, I'm Gary Paffet.
24:21And welcome to the Norris Ring.
24:22I won here last year.
24:23So I really like this track.
24:25And hope to try and repeat the victory this year.
24:29Yes, lots to do for the spectators here.
24:32There's the Dutsend Lake close by.
24:36And the circuit also very close to the centre of the town.
24:41Which of course is famous for its Christmas market.
24:45Also on the programme, what they called the Race of Legends.
24:48With some very big names indeed.
24:50Nigel Mansell and Emerson Fittipaldi.
24:53That was a good event for Saturday.
24:57Jodie Schechter there trying out his car.
25:02And it turned out to be a series of sprints.
25:06Six world champions in all here.
25:09Alan Prost.
25:10Nigel Mansell.
25:11Emerson Fittipaldi.
25:12Jodie Schechter.
25:14And motorcycle world champions.
25:15Mick Doohan.
25:16And Johnny Ciccotto.
25:19But we move on to Sunday's race.
25:23The DTM round.
25:25Tom Christensen off the pole.
25:27And into the first corner.
25:29Will it be Gary Paffet?
25:30And Bruno Spengler.
25:32Right up there.
25:33The young French Canadian.
25:36Christensen wins the dual into the first corner.
25:39With Paffet.
25:41And behind.
25:42Frinson, McNish and Pierre Caffer all collide.
25:46And finally they sort it out.
25:49Meanwhile at the leg hairpin.
25:51Look at this.
25:52And Mika Hagenis spun round absolutely wildly by Jamie Green.
25:57Looks like Ekstrom.
25:59And Jamie Green, they had a overtaking situation.
26:04And Jamie was not able to stop.
26:06At the last corner.
26:08And he crashed back into my car.
26:09And my race was over.
26:12And my race was over.
26:12But very disappointing.
26:14Certainly disappointing.
26:16The safety car came out.
26:20So some of the sting taken now at this race.
26:24And look at Capello smashing into the wall.
26:28Very hard indeed.
26:29A big hit for the former Le Mans winner.
26:33He leaves the shattered rear end behind and crabs his way into the pit lane.
26:40His race no doubt done.
26:44Meanwhile, Gary Paffet and Matthias Ekstrom are at it.
26:47Here they are absolutely side by side.
26:49The two big rivals.
26:51Very bumpy this Norris Ring circuit.
26:57And Margaritas, another XF3 driver, just in front of the orange car.
27:05But certainly very strongly into the hairpin goes Paffet.
27:14And Laurent Aiello clashes with the orange car.
27:17And Margaritas spins him around.
27:20So Margaritas, learning a trick or two from the French driver who's been in touring cars for well over a
27:27decade.
27:28He knows the tricks.
27:30Although, as you see from that chart, had a very high top speed with his car.
27:43Passed the pits once again.
27:44Paffet in the front.
27:49And Paffet on a very big charge indeed here, battling with the Audi squad.
27:55But after having an outstanding run.
27:58Meanwhile, more action further down the pack.
28:01And Spengler getting involved there.
28:03And Birch Snyder spinning around.
28:06That's all been happening here at the Norris Ring.
28:09On to the last lap.
28:14And Garry Paffet is who looks as if he's heading for another victory.
28:18A spin there, Reuter.
28:21And Reuter ramming Ekstrom's car will limp home with the bits falling off it.
28:26They're certainly not happy there.
28:29Well, that all looked a bit desperate from Manuel Reuter.
28:36There they are on the Mercedes-Benz team management place.
28:43And amazingly, the Ekstrom car is still going without the front bodywork.
28:49Meanwhile, it is Garry Paffet who wins it for Mercedes-Benz.
28:55And Christian Apt will come home in second place in one of the 2004 cars.
29:04Garry did a fantastic job.
29:05We were slightly handicapped, or badly handicapped, I have to say, after the first safety car,
29:10when the safety car came out.
29:11But after the second one, we made, when the safety car came the second time, we made two stops in
29:19a row.
29:19That was key for Garry's win.
29:22And he had the speed to push.
29:24He overtook after his second pit stop in one lap, three cars, and did a great job, thanks to the
29:30team and thanks to Garry.
29:33So, Paffet sprays the bubbly.
29:36And this championship looking very much now as a big battle between Ekstrom and Paffet for the second year running.
29:43As we move on to round seven at the Nürburgring.
29:50The man who welcomes us here, Mika Hakkinen.
29:52Hi, this is Mika Hakkinen.
29:54I come to see the race in Nürburgring.
29:58Yes, the famous Nürburgring.
30:01Of course, now they race on the modern circuit.
30:03There's the Schloss, which overlooks it.
30:07And just there, part of the old Nordschleife, heading down into the forest.
30:12And just some 100,000 fans on hand here to see the continuing battle between Garry Paffet and Matthias Ekstrom.
30:21And also, of course, to see drivers like Vika Hakkinen and Alan McNish, who was in the points in the
30:27previous race.
30:28So, Alan coming to grips with his Audi DTM car.
30:34Gary Paffet was on the pole here.
30:38Hakkinen second, Ekstrom third.
30:41Wet weather meant a rolling start behind the safety car.
30:47Once that had peeled off, it was Paffet ahead of Hakkinen and Ekstrom.
30:52Some very different lines round that very slippery hairpin bend after the pits.
31:02Let's see Bert Schneider then.
31:04Still looking for his first win of the season.
31:07Going in a bit too deep.
31:09Schneider, of course, the most successful driver of all time in the DTM.
31:14And here he is, coming into the pits.
31:17Together with Matthias Ekstrom.
31:19Who will make the quicker stop.
31:24Wheels go on.
31:25And Schneider gets away very smartly indeed.
31:29Beats out Ekstrom.
31:33And both of them switching to slick tyres on this drying circuit.
31:43Gary Paffet, though, currently in the lead.
31:46Pit stops coming up for him.
31:49Tom Christensen very late on the brakes.
31:52Christensen on a charge.
31:54But track conditions changing all the time.
31:59There goes Paffet.
32:01And there goes Ekstrom out just in front of Mikka Hakkinen.
32:11Well, into the race now with Gary Paffet there back onto the track.
32:18I don't remember doing it.
32:21I was quite surprised to see the, well, I was very surprised to see the drive-through penalty.
32:24I didn't know what it was for.
32:25So, you know, I don't remember doing it.
32:27And obviously it was a mistake that I didn't really realise what I was doing.
32:32Yeah, but the penalty was for just crossing the white line as he came out of the pits.
32:38And Mikka Hakkinen, too deep into that corner, spins it around an unusual way.
32:45And it gives the people in the Mercedes arena plenty to watch.
32:48But all that was an attempt to pass Ekstrom, which went disastrously wrong.
32:57But despite his problems, Paffet making the quick stop-go penalty, moving back up through the field.
33:03Possibly some Mercedes team orders coming into play.
33:09Mikka Hakkinen allowing him to pass there.
33:19At the beginning on rain tyres, we did not completely be able to go the speed that Gary did.
33:27But we didn't fall so much back.
33:30At the first pit stop, Matthias had an excellent pit stop itself.
33:35But then was just standing on his place and spinning the wheels.
33:39It was so slippery, he didn't move at all, so he lost a little bit of time there.
33:43But then with the slicks, I think the speed was there where we had been in qualifying.
33:48That means a strong team effort.
33:51Okay, at the end, Gary made his big error, which helped us to come in front.
33:59But after that, our cars could go the pace and stay with more or less the same distance.
34:04Difference to the end, I think it was an excellent race for us.
34:09Yes, and just look at the points.
34:11One point separating Ekström from Paffet.
34:14Tom Christensen in third place as they move on to the 8th of 11 races at Zandvoort in Holland.
34:23The race amongst the dunes, of course.
34:25And always some good DTM action from here.
34:29Hi, welcome to Zandvoort and the DTM.
34:32I'm looking forward to this weekend because it's a circuit where I won the European F3 championship last year.
34:40Yes, Zandvoort by the sea.
34:44I wonder if these fans will be off to the race circuit later.
34:47Some heroics there from the wind surfers.
34:51And some heroics coming up from the drivers too.
34:56There you see a superb shot of the circuit.
34:59How close it is to the actual seaside.
35:02Bern Schneider with a smile on his face because he was on the pole.
35:07Marcel Fasler qualified second.
35:09Heinz Harald Frensen in third position.
35:14Who would win the sprint to the first and a very wide first corner?
35:22Well, it was Schneider with Frensen right behind him.
35:26Ekström in third place.
35:27Some shrapnel ghosts flying in the background.
35:35And here they are heading up through the dunes.
35:40It's on board briefly with Mika Hakkinen.
35:44Schneider in the lead.
35:46Aiello taking a trip onto the grass.
35:49And this is Mika Hakkinen versus Manuel Reuter.
35:53And Reuter down the inside.
35:54Bang into the side of Hakkinen.
35:56Hakkinen spins across in front of them.
36:00Well, drama here at Zandvoort.
36:05Frensen in the lead at the moment.
36:08Some of the quick boys have made their pit stop.
36:09Schneider from Paffet.
36:1340-year-old Bernd Schneider, of course, looking for his first win in almost a year.
36:19Here he is late on to the brakes.
36:21And bang, just taps the back of Dindo Capello's car.
36:25Capello spins round.
36:26Schneider is delayed.
36:28And any chance of victory going out there?
36:32Disappointment for Heinz.
36:33Harold Frensen.
36:35He stayed out a long time.
36:37And that gamble didn't pay off.
36:40He finishes up behind Ekstrom and Paffet.
36:45So, Frensen's strategy not working out.
36:48Damage to the front of Tom Christensen's car, but he's still pushing on.
36:55Meanwhile, action amongst the other Audi's.
36:58Christian App being chased by Ekstrom.
37:02Oh, and App shuts the door on Ekstrom.
37:06Ekstrom finally finds a way round Appt.
37:10Appt in the older car.
37:15Paffet making a very quick pit stop here.
37:20And Paffet will exit the pits.
37:23And will he be in front of arch-rival Ekstrom?
37:27Well, you can see it from Ekstrom's camera.
37:29Yes, he is.
37:34So, this race looking good for Gary Paffet.
37:41Problems there with a plastic bag blocking the radiator.
37:46But it's Paffet who takes the victory.
37:49Moves back into the lead of the DTM.
37:55Ekstrom coming home here to finish in second place.
38:00And a superb third place coming up for Heinz Harald Frensen.
38:05Despite using a different strategy to the others.
38:09From the beginning, we had a strategy that we went maximum output, basically.
38:15My competitors pit in early.
38:17So, we had a strategy to change and we stayed out for longer.
38:22I just gave everything in this first stint.
38:24Also, my second stint.
38:25But because of my strategy, the others were very early with the pit stop.
38:30And the new tyres were faster.
38:32And so, I dropped behind the two leaders.
38:37So, Heinz Harald Frensen up on the podium.
38:39Good to see that as we move on to the ninth.
38:42The penultimate round of the DTM.
38:45And that held at Euro Speedway.
38:48The second running here of the year at the track.
38:53Hi, I'm Bruno Spengler.
38:55Welcome to Euro Speedway.
38:56And I wish you a lot of fun.
38:59Yes, it was at this track that Laurent Aiello, the 2002 champion when he was driving, of course, for Audi,
39:06announced that he was retiring from motor racing.
39:10So, why had the Frenchman decided to hang up his helmet?
39:17I want to stop my career because I have spent 25 years, you know, competing.
39:23And at the moment, I am a little bit tired about that.
39:27And I want to do something different.
39:30And it's difficult to explain.
39:32But if I race, I want to be 100%.
39:37You know, and at the moment, in my head, you know, I was a little bit asking myself if I
39:46had to continue or not.
39:48And this is not right for me.
39:50And I want to stop because, like I said, I am tired with motor racing.
39:57And I want to do something different, to have another life, sorry.
40:02So, the end of the road there for the 2002 champion, lifted up there by his two team bosses in
40:10recent years.
40:15Popular member of the DTM circus.
40:20The start, though, and Jamie Green off the pole.
40:24Watch for Green and Hightower, Frensen and his Opals in first and second places.
40:29This is quite something.
40:30Frensen ahead of Reuter.
40:33And I think they'd rub wheels with each other into the first corner.
40:37But it's Frensen in the lead.
40:41And Jamie Green off that pole position.
40:43While the others dropping back.
40:44Jamie Green had dropped back to fourth place.
40:49But still, Heinz, Harold Frensen in the lead.
40:53And, oh dear, Opal's going everywhere.
40:56Frensen from Reuter.
40:58Tomczyk involved in that skirmish.
41:00And we can see the start once again.
41:07And Jamie Green just didn't get the power down.
41:10But Frensen an outstanding start from him and into that difficult first corner.
41:25Go on board with Gary Pappitt now.
41:29And this race looking a good one for Pappitt.
41:33Ekstrom into the pits.
41:37Let's see who comes out the quickest.
41:39These pit stops are lightning quick, as you can see.
41:44Stopped for just over five seconds.
41:46All four wheels changed.
41:50Cars going in absolutely every direction here.
41:53Coming out of the pits.
41:58Frensen and Jamie Green have been in the pits.
42:02And problems there for Micah Hackenden.
42:05And here into the pits comes Heinz, Harold Frensen.
42:07This would be vital.
42:08Jamie Green behind him.
42:13And the two men at the top of the table.
42:16Absolutely wheel to wheel here.
42:19Ekstrom with his nose just in front of Gary Pappitt.
42:25Frensen rejoins.
42:30So, the penultimate round of the season.
42:33Seeing the top two contenders in a tremendous battle.
42:37And here they come to the line.
42:39And this time it's Ekstrom who takes it just from Pappitt.
42:43And he goes back into the lead of the championship.
42:49The race was very tough.
42:50And already from the beginning I had some small problems with my steering.
42:55It was quite heavy.
42:56But I pushed as much as I could.
42:59And when I saw Gary in the mirror I realized this will be one of the longest and hardest races
43:04of the year.
43:04And that happened as I expected.
43:07And Gary was very, very close to me.
43:09And luckily I could stay in front.
43:11And the car was keeping the consistency the whole race.
43:16And I'm very, very happy for this victory.
43:21Yes, a very good win for Ekstrom.
43:25Just two races remaining.
43:29And the penultimate round in Istanbul.
43:33The 10th round of the championship.
43:35And a brand new track racing in Turkey for the very first time.
43:42Hello ladies and gentlemen.
43:44Welcome in Istanbul.
43:45I have the great pleasure to show you the racetrack this weekend.
43:49Yes, this is the 5.3 km brand new Turkish track.
43:56Designed by German Hermann Tilk.
43:58And used just before this event for the Turkish Grand Prix.
44:04Some stunning architecture in the pits.
44:07Yes, and Gary Paffitt certainly enjoying the circuit.
44:11And these were his thoughts after some practice laps.
44:14Yes, the flag's flying for Gary Paffitt.
44:18It's got everything a racetrack should have.
44:20As well as having similar sort of undulations to somewhere like Spa.
44:25So it definitely makes it very interesting for the drivers.
44:29And interesting weather too.
44:31Raining in Turkey.
44:33Paffitt off the pole.
44:35Altburn, Schneider second.
44:36Jamie Green in third place.
44:39Paffitt at the start.
44:40Ahead of Schneider takes the lead.
44:43Ekstrom in third place.
44:46But he needs to be right with Gary Paffitt.
44:52And pretty heavy rain as you can see.
44:54Big rooster tails behind the cars.
44:57And Schneider certainly helping the cause of Gary Paffitt here.
45:03On board with Tom Christensen.
45:10We can see that start again.
45:14Bit of bumping and boring from Ekstrom as he tries to force his way through to the front.
45:20But only gets up to third place.
45:24But a very good start from Ekstrom.
45:29Ekstrom leaving the door open there.
45:32And Jamie Green goes through.
45:34Ekstrom goes wide.
45:35And did they touch?
45:37Well, if they did, it was only light.
45:40But certainly Ekstrom wasn't happy with his car after that incident.
45:46DS did an excellent start.
45:48But then he had the contact with Jamie Green.
45:52And we think that something happened to the car.
45:55Because short after this contact, he just radiated.
45:58The car is nearly undriveable.
46:01Yes, so it was all going wrong here for Ekstrom in Turkey.
46:06And Ekstrom dropping back.
46:09And here you see Margaritas even closing on him.
46:14And Ekstrom back in tenth place.
46:17Completely out of the points.
46:20And meanwhile, Paffitt was logging up the points at the front of the field.
46:31Marcel Fasler also involved in that struggle there.
46:37But Matthias Ekstrom not happy at all.
46:46Meanwhile, Paffitt heading for another ten points.
46:52Here he comes to the line.
46:54On a wet Turkish day.
46:58And Paffitt scores and moves back into the lead of the championship.
47:02With just one round remaining.
47:07Ekstrom trailing home in twelfth place.
47:15And Mika Hakkinen, well, he finished in second.
47:18Bernschneider was third.
47:20I feel really good.
47:22I feel very good.
47:23And particularly the reason because we had a program, we had a plan this weekend.
47:28We had a serious mission this weekend to get an extremely successful result.
47:33And maximum points for Gary, which we all did to create that possibility.
48:08Yes, a serious mission, which certainly worked.
48:09And the grandstand.
48:13And the grandstand.
48:13John Alessi, of course, always popular here.
48:17John, the winner in the opening round of the season here.
48:23And everyone getting wet again.
48:26There's Manuel Reuter, Laurent Aiello, heading towards his last race.
48:31A huge grandstand.
48:34A huge grandstand fall to see Jamie Green on pole position again.
48:37Green slow away.
48:39Christensen second.
48:40But Schneider is who goes into the lead.
48:44And a sensational start by the veteran Schneider in front of Green.
48:49Martin Tomczyk in third place.
48:51And Tomczyk spinning there.
48:52And Tomczyk spins right through the field without hitting anyone.
48:58So, Christensen moves up to third place.
49:05Behind's Harold Frensen.
49:07He leads the rest of the pack.
49:11See the start again.
49:14Well, look at that Audi just going straight to the front.
49:23Well, a great start from Tom Christensen.
49:28Jamie Green versus Tom Christensen.
49:33Tom, of course, with seven Le Mans victories in his pocket.
49:38This is Gary Paffitt going past Frank Stippler in one of the older Audis.
49:44Moving up into fourth place.
49:46And that would certainly be good enough to give him the championship if it stayed like this.
49:52Ekstrom in problems for a second race running.
49:55Dropping back behind Jean Allaisy.
49:58And lying in ninth place.
50:06The circuit drying, as you can see.
50:12And the fight seems to have gone out of Matthias Ekstrom.
50:15Meanwhile, Gary Paffitt certainly moving up.
50:18Passes Tom Christensen now in third place.
50:21We see it again.
50:22Takes a fair bit of curve of that apex.
50:24But certainly pushing hard and can start thinking about that big trophy now.
50:36Ekstrom up to sixth place.
50:39But it's Bernd Schneider, the old master himself, taking victory here.
50:45What a way to finish the season.
50:47And, of course, Gary Paffitt takes victory in the championship itself.
50:53Finishes third overall.
50:55In front of him, Jamie Green.
50:57And Schneider, the winner.
50:59But what about the man of the moment he'd fought all the season long with Matthias Ekstrom?
51:05And now he was the champion.
51:09It's incredible.
51:10I mean, you know, we were very close after Istanbul.
51:13But today was the, you know, the final few points we needed.
51:17And it's an incredible feeling, you know.
51:18The race was pretty hard today.
51:19So I didn't get much chance to think about the championship.
51:22But it's finally over.
51:24We finally won the championship.
51:25It was a great feeling.
51:27And won it, ultimately, with 84 points from Ekstrom 69.
51:31Christensen was third.
51:34But now we can hear from the runner-up in German.
51:39We have to admit, honestly, we gave it our very best shot to defend the championship.
51:45But it just didn't quite work out.
51:47To be realistic, Gary and Mercedes were just that little bit better than us.
51:51And he deserves to be the new champion.
51:56I need thank you for that.
51:57Nicht all of them out of the queue is.
51:59Liebe Bürger und Schette.
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