German Open

Four races, four different winners, two for Audi and two for Mercedes: a third of the way through, it’s still an open race in the DTM 2008, more exciting than ever before. Title defender Mattias Ekström isn’t nervous about that. At the beginning of the six-week break from racing he’s lurking in the same position as last year.

‘Winning at Norisring and being the champion at the end again,’ is what Mattias Ekström has planned for himself in 2008. Part one of his plan he’ll already be able to carry out in the next race. The charming city circuit in Nuremberg will be its location on June 29. Before that there’s a six-week break from racing, in which the field of drivers is balanced out in a way that it seldom is: Audi began the new season with two victories, leaving Mercedes, with a third place in Oschersleben, only one of six podiums. Mercedes hit back with a double victory in Mugello, and on the Lausitzring, well-known for being Mercedes-friendly, celebrated its second victory of the season. Now only one single point separates the first three teams in the team standings – and in the drivers’ table there’s also a dense scrimmage: six points in arrears, Mattias Ekström is in fourth place; Martin Tomczyk is in fifth, another three points behind.

Successful start from pole position

The Red Bull drivers collected their points in the first four races with an extreme variety of success. The season began perfectly at the Hockenheimring, the circuit that Ekström approaches with ‘butterflies in [his] stomach’. Driving with Number 1, Ekström clinched his first win of the season – something almost like an obligation, as he prophesied before in an interview: ‘If you win in Hockenheim, you’re competing for the title.’

Mercedes fights back, second podium for Ekström

On the idyllic circuit of Mugello in the middle of Tuscany Mercedes drivers showed that they also want to win the DTM championships, and celebrated a double victory: Jamie Green ahead of Paul di Resta. Mattias Ekström started badly from fourth place; Martin Tomczyk, well from twelfth, and in the first bend, the two drove side by side alongside Mike Rockefeller’s Audi. Tomczyk was forced off the track. His hood went flying, and he was no longer in the running for points. Saving himself after several duels, Mattias Ekström crossed the finish line in sixth place.

Following the trip to Italy, it was back to Germany. On the Lausitz Eurospeedway the DTM elite met up for the fourth time in five weeks. Against the favorable Mercedes Lausitzring circuit Mattias Ekström and Martin Tomczyk weren’t able to do much against winner Paul di Resta, but drove a tactically clever race and, thanks to good pit-stop tactics, came in third and fourth respectively.

Same position as 2007

Tactical cleverness is Ekström’s trademark also when it comes to the overall table. He’s not really worried about being six points behind the leader. ‘I think that we Scandinavians are a bit cooler than others,’ he said. The external pressure doesn’t affect us much because we have such high expectations of ourselves.’ Ekström’s confidence is justified, because his lurking position in the slipstream of Top 3 was already established last year. In 2007 the overall-winner-to-be was fourth overall after four races, just as he is now.