30 year old René Rast won the drivers title in his rookie DTM season. The last time a rookie driver won the drivers’ championship was 24 years ago by Italian driver Nicola Larini. Rast snatched the DTM title from Mattias Ekström with a 6th place finish on Saturday and 2nd place finish on Sunday, turning a 21-point deficit into a razor-thin 3-point advantage.
The last time Audi secured all three DTM titles in the same year was 13 years ago.
(L-R) Jamie Green, René Rast, Mattias Ekström, Mike Rockenfeller
René Rast
“The season was one of ups and downs, not only for me’” said Jamie Green. “That six drivers traveled to the finale with title chances shows how unpredictable the DTM was this year. Aside from the problems that slowed me here and there, it was a real pleasure to drive as strong a car as the Audi RS 5 DTM. This is a car any race driver can only wish for. Having four drivers heading the standings, plus winning the teams’ classification – you really can’t achieve any more than that. Thank you also to Team Rosberg for the mega job the guys delivered.”
“The team and I were bent on getting out of the hole we were in last year and we managed to do that,” commented Mike Rockenfeller. “As far as the races go, we were doing really well. I won once and was on podium a few times. That in the end it wasn’t enough to finish at the far front was due to the less than perfect qualifying results. Rosberg and René (Rast) simply did a superb job in that respect and in the end clinched a deserved title.”
Jamie Green
René Rast’s career within the Volkswagen Group took him from the Polo Cup all the way to Le Mans and now into the DTM. He won the Porsche Supercup held as part of the Formula 1 supporting program an impressive three times. Since 2011, he has been active under the Audi banner. At the wheel of the Audi R8 LMS GT3 sports car, he is regarded as the measure of all things and a driver to guarantee success. His victories in the 24-hour races at Daytona, Spa and at the Nürburgring underline this, as do a title win in the ADAC GT Masters and now the DTM title.
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