Hockenheim01/05/2011
Mike Rockenfeller
“The atmosphere at the opening race is always something very special. You see all the fans again for the first time at the famous Hockenheim Motodrom. Big questions are dominated by sporting issues: New car, new team – how do you compare? The long track layout is particularly challenging. For example, year after year you try to find the line in the Sachs Kurve. I don’t believe anybody has found the ideal line. Turn 1 is also very spectacular. You can enter very quickly, but it is very bumpy where the kerbs are. You have to be very courageous. You have to exit the second corner perfectly to be fast along the Parabolica. The best overtaking opportunity is before the hairpin and in sight of the large grandstand in the second part of the track.”
Data and facts
| Location | 80 km south of Frankfurt,120 km north-west of Stuttgart |
|---|---|
| Track length | 4.574 km |
| Distance | 38 laps = 173.812 km |
| DTM Track record in qualifying | Mattias Ekström (Audi), 25/10/08, 1m 32.244s (178,509 km/h) |
| DTM track record in the race | Paul Di Resta (Mercedes-Benz), 26/10/08, 1m 33.576s (175.968 km/h) |
| Pole Position in 2010 | Gary Paffett (Mercedes-Benz), 24/04/10, 1m 33.214s (176.651 km/h) |
| Fastest lap in 2010 | Bruno Spengler (Mercedes-Benz), 25/04/10, 1m 33.855s (175.445 km/h) |
All winners since 2000
2000 Bernd Schneider (Mercedes-Benz), Bernd Schneider (Mercedes-Benz), 2001 Bernd Schneider (Mercedes-Benz), 2002 Laurent Aiello (Abt-Audi), 2003 Bernd Schneider (Mercedes-Benz), 2004 Gary Paffett (Mercedes-Benz), 2005 Jean Alesi (Mercedes-Benz), 2006 Bernd Schneider (Mercedes-Benz), 2007 Mattias Ekström (Audi), 2008 Mattias Ekström (Audi), 2009 Tom Kristensen (Audi), 2010 Gary Paffett (Mercedes-Benz)
