Zolder, 7-8 August, 2021

Race 1

Alex Albon secured an excellent third place in the first round of the DTM weekend at Zolder in Belgium. It was the Thai driver’s first podium of the season. After setting off from the middle of the group, with Albon ninth and Lawson tenth, the two Ferraris rounded the first turn unscathed. However, Juncadella braked late at the first chicane, hitting several cars, including Lawson’s. A very violent rear-end collision sent the New Zealander’s 488 GT3 Evo 2020 spinning out into the gravel. The Ferrari returned to the track, but after pitting, he was forced to retire. All AF Corse’s hopes then turned to Albon, who moved into second place after the drivers ahead of him made their first compulsory pit stops. The Thai increased his pace and set quick times behind Rockenfeller, who stopped on lap 12. Albon now held an almost 34-second advantage over Van der Linde, but the latter was in virtual first place, having already pitted. Albon pitted shortly after the halfway point and, even though he stalled during the restart, like at Lausitzring, the AlphaTauri AF Corse driver re-entered in third. From then on, the race was all about the top three, Van der Linde, Rockenfeller and Albon, all bunched within two seconds of each other. Although Albon tried to attack the two leading Audis, the difference in acceleration on exiting the corners prevented him from launching a proper attack. Thus, he finished the 55-minute plus three-lap race in third place. The first podium of the season for the ex-Formula 1 driver only partially mitigated the disappointment over Lawson’s early departure. Van der Linde, on 97 points, stretched his lead in the standings over the New Zealander on 65.

Race 2

Zolder, 8 August 2021 – The two Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse Ferraris finished third and sixth in the third round of the DTM at Zolder. Liam Lawson made up for his disappointing retirement in Race-1, while Alex Albon, despite the ballast, claimed an excellent sixth place which helped his teammate in the standings.

Start and Safety Car
The leading cars set off smoothly, but at the back, Ellis hit Abril, who stalled his car in the gravel of the first chicane, bringing out the Safety Car. With a strong start, Lawson moved up two places to fourth behind Kevin Van der Linde, while Albon, blocked in his attempts to recover and with 15kg of ballast after yesterday’s podium, sat in eleventh. At the restart, Lawson passed Van der Linde fairly but decisively on lap six. In the meantime, Albon got the better of two rivals, with Klien’s stop helping him climb to eighth place. Wittmann was flying before his lap 11 pit stop, with Lawson taking over the lead before pitting later. The New Zealander came out in fourth, behind Goetz and Auer, who gambled on an early pit stop.

Déjà-vu
Meanwhile, out in front, Albon appeared to imitate yesterday’s tactics, taking advantage of the free track to record some fast times. The 488 GT3 Evo 2020 driver lay in first, ahead of Nico Mueller and Sheldon Van der Linde, the only ones still to make the compulsory stop. Lawson had the chance to climb the podium after the race officials inflicted a five-second penalty on Auer, who was in virtual second. Meanwhile, Albon pitted on lap 28, returning to the track behind Mueller in sixth.

Thrilling finale
The Audi driver tried to catch up on Lawson with a sequence of high-speed laps, but the Red Bull AF Corse man pushed hard, keeping Auer’s advantage to under five seconds. The New Zealander returned to the podium after yesterday’s disappointment and shortened the gap in the standings to Kevin Van der Linde, eighth, thanks also to the support of teammate Alex Albon, sixth at the finish. Kevin Van der Linde leads the championship on 101 points, followed by Lawson with 80, while Alex Albon is in fifth on 54, behind race winner Marco Wittmann.

To the ‘Ring
The next round of the DTM will take place at the Nürburgring on 20-22 August.

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