Car racing championship
The
Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo of teams' champions
Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse , pictured at the
Hockenheimring in October
The 2021 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters was the thirty-fifth season of the premier German motor racing championship and also the twenty-second season under the moniker of
Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters since the series' resumption in 2000.
It was the first season of the DTM to be run under
Group GT3 regulations, following the costly two-year "
Class 1 Touring Cars " venture that led to
Audi and
BMW withdrawing manufacturer support from the series.
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
[5]
Maximilian Götz won the drivers' championship in the last race, surrounded by a controversy due to a first-corner collision between his rivals
Kelvin van der Linde and
Liam Lawson , as well as
team orders imposed by
Mercedes-AMG in the closing laps.
[6]
[7]
Rule changes
Technical
After two seasons raced under "
Class 1 " formula format, the series officially transitioned to FIA
GT3 regulation, using its own Balance of Performance.
[8] The move from Class 1 to GT3 attracted more manufacturers and teams that couldn't previously compete in the series due to high cost.
[9] The Class 1 format cars and 2.0-
litre (122
cubic inches )
turbocharged
inline-4 engines that were used in 2019 and 2020 were permanently retired.
After ten seasons,
Hankook terminated their tyre supplier contract with the DTM despite being under contract until 2023. On 1 March 2021, it was announced that
Michelin was to provide tyres for the 2021 season.
Sporting
For the first time since
2001 , the series no longer utilises standing starts for the commencement of races. Instead the series introduced its so-called "DTM formation start" in a rolling double-file formation.
[10]
Teams and drivers
All teams competed with tyres supplied by
Michelin .
Icon
Status
J
Junior
G
Guest drivers ineligible for points
Manufacturer changes
Mercedes-Benz returned to the series after two years of absence, but acted as a privateer manufacturer.
Ferrari, McLaren and Lamborghini joined the series for the first time, but acted as privateer manufacturers.
Audi and BMW remained in the series, but acted as privateer manufacturers.
Team changes
Hong Kong sports car team GruppeM Racing joined the series for the first time by fielding a Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo car.
Italian sports car team AF Corse joined the series with backing from Red Bull and AlphaTauri by fielding two Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020 machines.
German sports car team Haupt Racing Team joined the series for the first time by fielding two Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo cars.
American sports car team HTP Winward Motorsport joined the series for the first time by fielding two Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo cars.
German sports car team ROWE Racing joined the series for the first time by fielding two BMW M6 GT3 cars.
Polish JP Motorsport joined the series for the first time by fielding a McLaren 720S GT3 car, but only as a guest participant at three rounds.
German sports car team T3 Motorsport joined the series for the first time by fielding two Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo cars.
Driver changes
This section needs to be updated . Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (June 2021 )
Entering DTM
Former
Red Bull
Formula One driver
Alex Albon and
Formula 2 driver and
Red Bull Junior Team member
Liam Lawson entered the series with the
Red Bull -backed
AF Corse team. Lawson contested the full season combining it with an entry in the
Formula 2 Championship , while Albon was scheduled to compete in selected races where they did not clash with Formula One Grand Prix weekends due to his commitments as Red Bull Racing's test and reserve driver. Eventually, Albon only missed the final round at the
Norisring , where he was replaced by former
Super Formula ,
Super GT , and current
Formula E driver
Nick Cassidy .
[26]
[27]
Gary Paffett was set to come back to the DTM after a two-year absence driving for Mercedes-AMG Team Mücke Motorsport, with
Maximilian Buhk standing in for him in two rounds due to Formula E commitments.
[39] He was eventually forced to abandon these plans because of the COVID-19 restrictions though, and Buhk saw out the season.
[40]
Leaving DTM
Robert Kubica left the series after one season.
[45] Three times DTM champion
René Rast left the championship for
Formula E Audi full-time entry.
[46]
Race calendar
A preliminary nine-round, eighteen-race calendar was announced on 6 November 2020; four rounds were to be held in Germany, with the remaining five held across Europe.
[47]
[48]
[49]
Igora Drive ,
Monza and the
Norisring – all of which were scheduled to hold events in
2020 , before their respective cancellations due to the
COVID-19 pandemic – returned to the calendar, and the
Red Bull Ring will hold a round for the first time since
2018 . All circuits that held events in 2020 will return in 2021, with the exception of
Spa-Francorchamps ;
Anderstorp and
Brands Hatch will also not return, after their rounds were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Igora Drive was cancelled and DTM published a new calendar for the 2021 season. The inclusion of the Norisring round was uncertain as the season began in mid-June and it missed its traditional spot in early July, before it was re-added to the calendar to be held in October as the final round of the season.
[50]
Results and standings
Season summary
Scoring system
Points were awarded to the top ten classified finishers as follows:
Race Position
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
10th
Points
25
18
15
12
10
8
6
4
2
1
Additionally, the top three placed drivers in qualifying also received points:
Qualifying Position
1st
2nd
3rd
Points
3
2
1
Drivers' championship
Colour
Result
Gold
Winner
Silver
Second place
Bronze
Third place
Green
Points finish
Blue
Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple
Retired (Ret)
Red
Did not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
Black
Disqualified (DSQ)
White
Did not start (DNS)
Withdrew (WD)
Race cancelled (C)
Blank
Did not practice (DNP)
Did not arrive (DNA)
Excluded (EX)
Bold – Pole
Italics – Fastest Lap
1 – 3 Points for Pole
2 – 2 Points for P2
3 – 1 Point for P3
Teams' championship
Manufacturers' championship
Only points scored by the top three drivers of a manufacturer in races count for the manufacturers' championship.
Notes
^
a
b Cars No. 3, No.9 and No. 37 entered as Team Abt Sportsline, car No. 99 entered as Team Abt.
^
a
b Car No. 23 entered as AlphaTauri AF Corse, car No. 30 entered as Red Bull AF Corse. Both cars share a teams' championship entry as "Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse".
References
^
"BMW Motorsport and the DTM: The End of an Era" . www.bmw-motorsport.com . Retrieved 21 July 2021 .
^
"DTM future secured with support from Audi and BMW" . www.motorsport.com . Retrieved 21 July 2021 .
^
"DTM 2021: Full list of drivers, teams and manufacturers" . www.msn.com . Retrieved 21 July 2021 .
^
"Mercedes to support customer teams in DTM" . www.motorsport.com . Retrieved 21 July 2021 .
^
"Aston Martin DTM entry announced for 2019" . www.motorsport.com . Retrieved 21 July 2021 .
^
"Norisring DTM: Gotz wins title after Mercedes imposes team orders" .
Motorsport.com . 10 October 2021.
^
"Lawson hits out at "idiot" van der Linde after losing DTM title" .
Motorsport.com . 11 October 2021.
^ NWNAdmin.
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^
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^ Dagys, John.
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^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
l
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^ Lloyd, Daniel (17 December 2020).
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Archived from the original on 17 December 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020 .
^
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^
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^ Haidinger, Sven (20 March 2021).
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^
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^
a
b Thukral, Rachit (23 December 2020).
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^
a
b Lloyd, Daniel (2 March 2021).
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^ Thukral, Rachit (19 August 2021).
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^
"DTM 2021: BMW von Walkenhorst Motorsport bestätigt" . motorsport-magazin.com (in German). 16 February 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2021 .
^
"Offiziell: Marco Wittmann startet 2021 im Walkenhorst-BMW in der DTM" . Motorsport-Total.com (in German). Retrieved 6 April 2021 .
^ Lloyd, Daniel (1 March 2021).
"ROWE Confirms DTM Program with BMW" . sportscar365.com . John Dagys Media. Retrieved 1 March 2021 .
^ Lloyd, Daniel (17 March 2021).
"Van der Linde Maintains Series Presence with ROWE Drive" . sportscar365.com . John Dagys Media. Retrieved 17 March 2021 .
^ Lloyd, Daniel (25 March 2021).
"ROWE Confirms DTM Program with BMW" . sportscar365.com . John Dagys Media. Retrieved 25 March 2021 .
^
a
b
"Red Bulls DTM-Comeback mit Ferrari: Die Hintergründe von Bergers Coup" . Motorsport-Total.com (in German). Retrieved 13 January 2021 .
^
a
b
c
"F1 exile Alex Albon to compete in DTM with Red Bull backing" . www.motorsport.com . Retrieved 4 January 2021 .
^
a
b Thukral, Rachit (2 February 2021).
"Red Bull reveals DTM plans for Albon as Cassidy joins line-up" . Motorsport.com . Retrieved 1 February 2021 .
^ Thukral, Rachit (6 October 2021).
"Cassidy to replace Albon in DTM finale at Norisring" .
Motorsport.com . Retrieved 6 October 2021 .
^
"Lamborghini to be represented in DTM by T3 Motorsport" . Motorsport.com . Retrieved 28 April 2021 .
^
"Hawkey secures DTM move with Lamborghini squad" . Motorsport.com . Retrieved 10 June 2021 .
^
"Bortolotti to Drive T3 Motorsport Lamborghini at Assen" . sportscar365.com . Retrieved 9 September 2021 .
^
"DTM Red Bull Ring: Maximilian Paul gibt Debüt im T3-Lamborghini" . motorsport-magazin.com (in German). 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021 .
^ Lloyd, Daniel (2 March 2021).
"HRT Announces Two-Car Entry with Mercedes-AMG" . sportscar365.com . John Dagys Media. Retrieved 2 March 2021 .
^
"Haupt-Mercedes: Chef gibt Comeback - und wer die DTM-Stammcockpits kriegt" . Motorsport-Total.com (in German). Retrieved 25 March 2021 .
^
"Ex-Audi, Opel driver Haupt to make DTM comeback at 52" . Archived from
the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021 .
^
"Mercedes set to add ninth car for Nurburgring DTM races" . Motorsport.com . Retrieved 10 August 2021 .
^ Dagys, John (24 November 2020).
"GruppeM Commits to DTM with Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo" . sportscar365.com . John Dagys Media. Retrieved 24 November 2020 .
^ Lloyd, Daniel (22 March 2021).
"Juncadella to Drive GruppeM Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo" . sportscar365.com . John Dagys Media. Retrieved 22 March 2021 .
^
a
b Lloyd, Daniel (15 June 2021).
"Buhk to Sub for Paffett at Two Rounds Due to Formula E Clashes" . sportscar365.com . John Dagys Media. Retrieved 15 June 2021 .
^
a
b
"Paffett forced to abandon plans to return to DTM in 2021" . Motorsport.com . Retrieved 12 August 2021 .
^
"Marvin Dienst steigt für Maximilian Buhk in Hockenheim ins Space Drive-Cockpit" . motorsport-xl.de (in German). 17 September 2021. Retrieved 17 September 2021 .
^ Lloyd, Daniel (8 March 2021).
"Winward Joins with Mercedes-AMGs for Auer, Ellis" . sportscar365.com . John Dagys Media. Retrieved 8 March 2021 .
^
"GetSpeeds Schlüssel zum Einstieg: Ex-Haas-Tester soll erster DTM-Inder werden" . Motorsport-Total.com (in German). Retrieved 25 March 2021 .
^ Lloyd, Daniel (16 August 2021).
"GT Masters Champions Enter Nürburgring with Porsche" . sportscar365.com . John Dagys Media. Retrieved 16 August 2021 .
^ Watkins, Gary (28 January 2021).
"Kubica rules out DTM return, will target full-time LMP2 move" . Autosport . Retrieved 2 February 2021 .
^ Thukral, Rachit.
"Rene Rast confirms he won't return to the DTM in 2021" . www.motorsport.com . Retrieved 18 February 2021 .
^
a
b
"More than just a race series: DTM as the core of a motorsport event platform with five pillars" .
Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters . ITR e.V. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020 .
^
a
b Thukral, Rachit (6 November 2020).
"DTM opts for spec-GT3 cars from 2021" .
Autosport .
Motorsport Network . Retrieved 6 November 2020 .
^
a
b
"2021 DTM calendar confirmed with nine race weekends" . TouringCarTimes . Mediaempire Group AB. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020 .
^
a
b
"Norisring to host 2021 DTM season finale in October" .
Motorsport.com .
Motorsport Network . 28 July 2021. Retrieved 28 July 2021 .
External links