Ben Dörr secured his first DTM victory on pure merit at the Sachsenring, mastering treacherous drying conditions in the Dörr Motorsport McLaren 720S GT3.
The 21-year-old capitalised on excellent operational execution during a chaotic tyre-swap phase. A ten-minute start delay left teams facing a difficult tyre choice on the slowly drying asphalt. While rival squads struggled with soaring tyre pressures after an initial gamble, McLaren nailed their optimum operational range.
This tactical maturity stood in stark contrast to the early wet weather strategy that ultimately plagued polesitter Maro Engel as track temperatures rose.
Late Restarts Erase Substantial Margin
Dörr had established a commanding ten-second advantage before late safety car interventions eradicated his lead. The first neutralisation occurred following a controversial on-track clash that eliminated Jules Gounon. Nicki Thiim slammed heavily into the side of the Frenchman’s “yellow Mamba”, as detailed by motorsport.com, forcing both drivers to retire.
Despite facing immense pressure across two subsequent restarts, Dörr held his nerve to cross the line ahead of the pack. Behind him, the chaos continued unabated.
Engel collided with Kelvin van der Linde, earning a 15-second penalty that relegated the Mercedes-AMG driver down to 17th position and leaving him entirely empty-handed for the afternoon.
Thomas Preining finished second in the Manthey Porsche, capitalising on the unfolding drama. Ricardo Feller completed the podium to secure a strong haul for the squad.
Preining now holds a 23-point championship advantage over Engel heading into the season finale at Hockenheim.
