The third round of the 2008 DTM series will be staged at the Mugello circuit in Italy, this coming weekend. This race will be the 10th edition of the Italian edition. Mercedes-Benz drivers won seven out of the nine races so far.
Last year, Mika Hakkinen drove the AMG Mercedes C-Class to a surprise victory after starting 15th on the grid.
Last year, after qualifications, 5 Audis were on top to start the race, the first Mercedes driver was, once again, Canadian Bruno Spengler. A series of incident on the track and the presence of the Safety Car provided Hakkinen and Spengler to gain places amonst the Audis. Spengler finally crossed the finish line in 4th place.
This year, according to the DTM sporting regulations, the Audi A4s driven by Mattias Ekstrom, Tom Kristensen, Timo Scheider and Martin Tomczyk will weigh 20 kilograms more than the 08-spec cars of Mercedes-Benz.
According to the Audi race simulations, 20 kilos at Mugello cost about five tenths of a second per lap.
New pit stops regulations have been introduced in 2008 so that now the two pit stops are compulsory in the second third of the race. In the 33-lap race in Mugello, the drivers will have to pit between laps 12 and 22.
"Our podium finish in Oschersleben showed that we are working in the right direction," said Bruno Spengler, the driver of the 2008 Mercedes-Benz Bank AMG C-Class car. "I am confident that we will be able to further improve in Mugello. We have the potential to achieve this."
Last year, Mika Hakkinen drove the AMG Mercedes C-Class to a surprise victory after starting 15th on the grid.
Last year, after qualifications, 5 Audis were on top to start the race, the first Mercedes driver was, once again, Canadian Bruno Spengler. A series of incident on the track and the presence of the Safety Car provided Hakkinen and Spengler to gain places amonst the Audis. Spengler finally crossed the finish line in 4th place.
This year, according to the DTM sporting regulations, the Audi A4s driven by Mattias Ekstrom, Tom Kristensen, Timo Scheider and Martin Tomczyk will weigh 20 kilograms more than the 08-spec cars of Mercedes-Benz.
According to the Audi race simulations, 20 kilos at Mugello cost about five tenths of a second per lap.
New pit stops regulations have been introduced in 2008 so that now the two pit stops are compulsory in the second third of the race. In the 33-lap race in Mugello, the drivers will have to pit between laps 12 and 22.
"Our podium finish in Oschersleben showed that we are working in the right direction," said Bruno Spengler, the driver of the 2008 Mercedes-Benz Bank AMG C-Class car. "I am confident that we will be able to further improve in Mugello. We have the potential to achieve this."