By: Mercedes-AMG DTM Team
July 13 2016

Fresh momentum for the races at Zandvoort: Mercedes-AMG DTM Team ready for the challenges of the circuit in the dunes

Strengthening team spirit and fitness: Mercedes-AMG DTM drivers return from training camp at Schladming (Austria) with renewed determination for Zandvoort

Gary Paffett (EURONICS Mercedes-AMG C 63 DTM) is a three-time previous winner at Zandvoort (2005, 2009, 2010)

Uli Fritz: "After a disappointing weekend at the Norisring, we travel to Zandvoort with our motivation very much boosted"

Comments ahead of the DTM races at Zandvoort  :

Paul Di Resta (30, Scotland):
Car number: 3
Team: Mercedes-AMG (Mercedes-AMG DTM Team HWA)
Car: Mercedes-AMG C 63 DTM

"Looking ahead to the race weekend at Zandvoort, I find myself in a strong position with regard to the championship. I'm therefore really keen to get back in the car and out on the track. In recent years, the circuit at Zandvoort has not been very good for us. But I believe that we now have a better understanding of the reason why and, moreover, that we are better placed to rise to the challenge."  

Robert Wickens (27, Canada):
Car number: 6
Team: SILBERPFEIL Energy Mercedes-AMG (Mercedes-AMG DTM Team HWA)
Car: SILBERPFEIL Energy Mercedes-AMG C 63 DTM

"The Norisring was a nightmare for me, so I'm all the more determined to be up there with the front-runners again at Zandvoort. The team deserves to be back on the podium and to be scoring a lot of points. That's my target for this weekend. I'm still a title contender - I'm only 17 points behind the leader, so there is still everything to play for."  

Lucas Auer (21, Austria):
Car number: 22
Team: BWT Mercedes-AMG (Mercedes-AMG DTM Team Mücke)
Car: BWT Mercedes-AMG C 63 DTM

"After the Norisring, we had a week of sport with the whole team in Austria. That was really cool. From there I travelled on directly to the F1 race at Spielberg where I was a guest TV commentator. It was really interesting to get a glimpse behind the scenes and see how television covers an event like this. The rest of the time, I was with my team in Berlin preparing for Zandvoort. Last year, we had a difficult weekend there. But I will again try to maximise my performance, to get the most out the car and to build on the decent results of the last two race weekends."  

Ulrich Fritz, Head of Mercedes-AMG DTM:

"After a disappointing weekend at the Norisring, we travel to Zandvoort with our motivation very much boosted. In Paul, Robert and Lucas, we have three drivers in the Top Ten. And just two good results would be enough to put Chris and Gary back in touch with the championship leaders. Consequently, the situation as we approach the halfway stage of the campaign is encouraging, although of course we lost a lot of points at the Norisring through no fault of our own. The track at Zandvoort is quite special, if only for its unique location next to the sea, and its characteristics certainly make it one of the greatest challenges of the season. Our drivers have repeatedly shown in the past how speedy they can be at Zandvoort. But the new Mercedes-AMG C 63 DTM has surprised us all through the season so far for different reasons on the tracks where we've competed. We are therefore being cautious about making any forecasts. But as I've already said, our team certainly won't be lacking motivation."  

Canadians In BOLD