Audi Determined to Continue Upward Trend
At Estoril, the Audi A4 DTM was yet again able to prove its potential. Now, the Audi works team is bound and determined to continue this upward trend in the DTM with the race in Italy. Leading the manufacturers’ standings, Audi is leaving no stone unturned to clinch victory at the Adria Raceway after finishing third at the Hockenheim season opener and second at Estoril. As early as in the first two races, the new Audi A4 DTM gave ample proof of its excellent cornering ability, and the circuit near Venice – with its mere length of 2.702 kilometres – has corners galore. The race at Adria will start at 2 p.m. local time on Sunday, 16 May. Quotes before the race Mattias Ekström (Audi Sport Team Abt Audi A4 DTM #5): “During last year’s debut race at Adria, we already put on a great show for the audience. I like this track, and it reminds me a lot of the circuits we have in Sweden. I think my Audi A4 DTM will like it as well. I can hardly wait for the race to start: after Estoril, all of us at Audi are keen to take revenge!” Martin Tomczyk (Audi Sport Team Abt Audi A4 DTM #6): “Adria is a very short and tight circuit. We’ll be taking our new Audi A4 out on this track for the first time and, of course, are hoping it’ll take to Italy as well as it last did to Portugal. My goal after the successful start of the season is clear: I want to continue scoring points.” Christian Abt (Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline Audi A4 DTM #11): “The weekend at Adria will be tough on both the drivers and cars. Temperatures are usually very high, and there are no long straights for cooling down. As the track puts extreme stress on the tyres, it’ll be more important than ever during the tests on Friday to come up with a fast, yet `gentle’ set-up.” Tom Kristensen (Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline Audi A4 DTM #12): “The Adria circuit is new for me. I’ve heard that it’s pretty small and very hard on the brakes and gearbox. I like the Audi A4 and the DTM more and more. My goal is to score points in Italy, as well. And, of course, I’m hoping that Audi will win.” Emanuele Pirro (Audi Sport Infineon Team Joest Audi A4 DTM #44): “It’s been years since I last drove a race in Italy. That’s why I’m particularly looking forward to my `home event’, which is likely to be watched by many friends of mine. That’s additional motivation for me. Since the race at Estoril I’ve been feeling a lot more comfortable in the Audi A4 DTM. As the Adria circuit should be well suited to our car, I’m hoping for a very good result.” Frank Biela (Audi Sport Infineon Team Joest Audi A4 DTM #45): “It goes without saying that after Estoril I’ve been giving quite a bit of thought to what’s lacking at the moment and have come up with some answers. Now, it’s crucial to translate these into results. I know that I’ve got to change my way of thinking and adapt my style of driving. I’m looking forward to Adria and will give my level best to tune in with the rest of the band.” Hans-Jürgen Abt (Team Director Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline): “My whole team is now highly motivated to clinch our first victory following the results of the first two races. Our four drivers have kept all cars intact at Estoril; that’s why we were able to go about our preparations for Italy calmly and with full concentration, despite the short time between races.” Ralf Jüttner (Technical Director Audi Sport Infineon Team Joest): “Adria is new terrain for us. Neither are our two drivers familiar with the circuit, which doesn’t make things any easier for us. On last year’s video clips, the circuit almost appears like a kart track, and we’ve got to adjust to this. Considering that our racing speed at Estoril was pretty good, we’re now focusing on a stronger performance in the qualifying session – this should enable us to clinch a good result for Audi and to score points.” Dr Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport): “At Estoril we demonstrated that we’re able to win races with the Audi A4. At Adria we’re going to try to further improve our team performance. Naturally, we’re hoping that the circuit will be as well suited to the A4 as it was to the TT-R last year. After finishing third at Hockenheim and second at Estoril, victory must be our next goal. The first two races, though, have clearly shown how tight the fighting is in the DTM.” |