Summarize

Cape Town driver Jonathan Aberdein impressed on his DTM German Touring Car debut in spite of a trying weekend at Hockenheim. Aberdein bounced back from a penalty that saw him start at the back of a wet first race, but he climbed to ninth before pitting too early for slick tyres and dropped back. Jonathan then put on another great display in the final where he fought from the back to 12th following a pitstop issue after running as high as fifth.

“Wow, that was a rollercoaster weekend!” Jonathan admitted. “I am very happy with my pace in the first half of the opening race and also with my fight back to 12th in race 2. “I drove my heart out in the first race and was as high as ninth in the wet before we decided to go to slicks way too early as it started to dry and I dropped well down skating around, but that’s racing!

“I started 12th and pitted from fifth in the second race, but the clutch did not disengage after the tyre change and I just sat there with the seconds ticking away until we got it sorted and I headed out right at the back. “I pushed like hell after that and caught and passed my teammate Pietro Fittipaldi and eventually made it back up to 12th, which will have to do for today. 

“We had excellent pace through the weekend but too many issues — I was so happy after to be fourth in the first practice but then I spun and touched the wall breaking the front splitter in the wet first qualifying, so not only was my aerodynamics affected, but I was put to the back of the grid after qualifying because we had to change the splitter. 

“Then that second race pitstop cost us, but this was the team’s first DTM race and my first race too and I am absolutely delighted with the positives we can take home from Hockenheim. “So that’s my first DTM debut done and dusted — my WRT team did a great job, the Audis scored a 1-2-3 and it's all good — bring on Zolder in Belgium in two weeks time!”