Kelvin van der Linde has struck back in Sunday’s qualifying session at Zandvoort. The German-South African, who had been plagued by technical gremlins since his DTM comeback and was forced to retire on Saturday, put his Schubert BMW on pole position in sunny 19-degree conditions with a 1:32.831.
This marks his second pole of the year following his success on Sunday at Spielberg – and the revised Balance of Performance (BoP) with more boost for the BMW likely played its part. “We know what happened in Spielberg, but that’s two poles in four races,” a delighted Kelvin van der Linde told ran.de, reflecting on the tire issues he faced during the race at the Red Bull Ring.
“I never thought it would go this way, but the car was an absolute weapon this morning,” he said, thanking his crew. “Yesterday was obviously very bitter. I’m very proud that we were able to draw strength from that.”
BMW’s race advantage: A fresh set of tires in the bag!
The man who replaced Rene Rast at Schubert is well aware of how crucial pole is at Zandvoort, given that overtaking is notoriously difficult. Furthermore, tires play a decisive role on the dune circuit with its banked corners and abrasive asphalt, especially with two mandatory stops scheduled for Sunday. “Fortunately, we saved a set yesterday,” van der Linde noted. “That might just play into our hands.”
Joining him on the front row is local hero Thierry Vermeulen, who missed out by just 0.177 seconds, securing another strong result for the Emil Frey Ferrari squad. The Max Verstappen protégé attributed his performance to a minor setup change following Saturday’s qualifying – even surviving a brief off-track excursion after the first banked corner during his pole hunt.
“I knew the first lap was already good,” he told ran.de. “To take that final step, I had to go right to the limit. Unfortunately, I didn’t quite nail it, but second place is still a great result.”
Engstler on the Temerario’s surge: “It can’t be that much of a problem child”
Luca Engstler provided one of the morning’s biggest surprises. The Abt driver claimed third place, finishing 0.340 seconds adrift and ahead of fellow Lamborghini driver Mirko Bortolotti (Grasser). This marks the first time the new Temerario GT3 – which currently benefits from a special regulation regarding its rear wing – has featured at the sharp end of the DTM field.
“It can’t be that much of a problem child if we’re sitting on the second row,” Lamborghini factory driver Engstler told ran.de, defending his new machinery. However, the German faced a heart-in-mouth moment when leaving the pits: the Abt Lamborghini pilot nearly collided with DTM points leader Lucas Auer, who was already in the fast lane. Engstler reacted quickly, slamming on the brakes.
Engstler escaped further drama as the Abt team was let off with a warning for an “unsafe release,” since the driver himself neutralized the dangerous situation. Crucially, the warning does not count toward the drivers’ penalty points tally, where three offenses trigger a five-place grid penalty.
Dörr a second clear of Glock: “The weekend of fifth place”
Fifth place went to Dörr McLaren driver Ben Dörr (+0.412), who once again significantly outperformed his teammate Timo Glock. The former Formula 1 driver struggled, finishing 19th with a 1.379-second deficit.
“I can’t complain, P5 again,” Ben Dörr said with a grin to ran.de. “It’s the weekend of fifth place: fifth in qualifying yesterday, fifth in the race, and fifth in qualifying again today. Maybe we’ll see another five in the race, let’s see.” He reported a trouble-free session: “Everything went smoothly,” said the McLaren junior from Frankfurt.
Saturday’s winner Matteo Cairoli took sixth in the second Emil Frey Ferrari, while “Grello” ace Thomas Preining (+0.542) was the leading Porsche driver in seventh. Championship leader Lucas Auer (+0.559) ended up as the top Mercedes-AMG representative in eighth.
Ford Mustang remains off the pace despite BoP help
Aston Martin driver Nicki Thiim (+0.576) also remains in the hunt for a good result from ninth. Despite a BoP adjustment in favor of the Ford Mustang GT3 Evo, which granted the American V8 more engine power, the HRT squad endured another disappointing session.
Arjun Maini was the highest-placed Mustang in 18th – 1.291 seconds off the pace. Spielberg standout Finn Wiebelhaus fared even worse: the 20-year-old was the slowest in the field, finishing 21st with a 1.750-second gap to the top.
The race, featuring two mandatory pit stops, is scheduled to start at the usual time of 1:30 PM local time – and another tactical heat battle is expected in the dunes.
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
– The Motorsport.com Team
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: motorsport.com
