DTM Nurburgring: Ferrari on pole, blow for title contender Nicki Thiim

Matteo Cairoli claimed the second pole position for Ferrari at the DTM Nurburgring race, setting a time of 1:25.345 - a result that could help him in his bid for the championship title. The Italian is currently 52 points behind the leader and had previously led the championship after the Lausitzring. He expressed happiness with his position, despite the challenging conditions at the track and his previous struggles at the Norisring and Oschersleben.

Thomas Preining of Manthey Porsche qualified second, just 0.036 seconds behind Cairoli. The Austrian driver, currently fourth in the championship, was satisfied with his performance after a difficult weekend. Preining explained that the strange track conditions and balance issues contributed to his slightly slower time.

Auer of Winward Mercedes secured third place with a time of 1:25.623, reducing his deficit to third place in the championship with Nicki Thiim by 20 kilograms. Thiim finished 11th, 0.318 seconds back, and will need to make up ground during the race. The Dane, who had a strong performance at Norisring, expressed disappointment but continued to believe in his chances of catching Thiim and Auer.

Marco Wittmann, driving for BMW, finished fourth, while McLaren's Ben Dörr secured fifth place. DTM leader Maro Engel of Winward Mercedes led the championship by 25 points over Thiim and Auer, despite being awarded victory in Oschersleben due to Mirko Bortolotti's disqualification. Both Engel and Bortolotti must start the race with an additional 20 kilograms of ballast, as per the decision made to prevent the Grasser team from benefiting from their appeal.